They say that God works in mysterious ways. I had an experience during my cancer journey that reminded me of this—one that helped give me hope and strength for the challenges I was facing.

The inspiration came through an unexpected source: a stranger’s prayer on a plane.

More about me

My name is Dominique, though my friends call me “Dom.” I’m from Portland, Oregon, and I’m 31 years old, have a marketing degree the University of Las Vegas, and I run social media and paid advertisements for my clients, and I’m also a digital creator and the host of the podcast, BeastVsZombie.

I’m a very optimistic (and competitive) person by nature, and my motivation to help others comes from my personal experience with cancer. Here’s my story.

More than just tired

In 2014, I was attending UNLV, and I started feeling tired for no reason. I was 19 years old, and having been an athlete all my life, I’ve always been in tune with my body. I knew something was off.

Even after an extended rest, I still felt tired, like I was dragging myself through my daily routine.

Eventually, I discovered a lump on my neck, and I went to see an urgent care doctor. He straight up told me: “I think you have cancer. You need to get further testing right away.”

Shocked and surprised

I didn’t believe him. I was thinking, “There is no way I have cancer. I’m 19 years old and I’m super healthy.”

Of course, nobody thinks they have cancer until they have it.

After more doctor visits and tests, I was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Technically, I had stage IV, because the cancer had spread to my chest and below my diaphragm.

Yet, I wasn’t too concerned. I didn’t feel that bad physically, and the doctors told me I had a 70% chance of being cured after the initial treatment.

However, my parents were more concerned than me.

As optimistic as I felt, it was hard to envision my future. I couldn’t have known that it would take a few different treatment options and a bone marrow transplant to bring me into remission.

I also couldn’t have known the cancer would come back just three years later. In fact, I would be dealing with cancer off and on for the next 10 years.

I needed all the hope and encouragement I could get.

A stranger’s kindness

Which is why a stranger’s act of kindness was so meaningful.

During that time, I was flying back and forth every two weeks from Las Vegas to Portland to get chemo treatment.

I started seeing some of the same workers and flight attendants. I made it a point to talk with whoever I was sitting by and make friends on the plane. I would ask them about their life and get to know them, kind of networking.

That’s how I met Lisa Marie Carter, who I sat next to on the plane.

I shared my story with her, how I was just 19 and facing cancer. She sat there, listening intently. Then she said, “I’d like to pray for you.”

And I said, “Ok sure. Yes, please pray for me.”

Who was I turn her down? Cancer is war, and you need all the positive vibes you can get.

Prayers on a plane

So, we closed our eyes, and bowed our heads, and then Lisa prayed.

She asked God to help me and give me strength to get through cancer—I can’t remember the exact words she said, but I remember how I felt. And I got chills, physically and noticeably, and had this overwhelming positive feeling that is hard to describe.

Then Lisa said she would like to post about me on social media. “I have all of these followers and you’re going to get a lot of gratitude and prayers and love,” she said.

I got off the plane, and later she posted about me and all these people started blowing me up—like hundreds and hundreds of comments on social media. They said they were praying and sending blessings my way.

It was crazy how these random people began doing this.

And like Lisa’s prayer on the plane, these acts of kindness gave me strength and hope.

The experience also made me rethink my spiritual beliefs.

Spiritual background

Growing up, I would often pray with my dad: before meals and before I went to sleep. And the importance of prayer was instilled in me from an early age. However, as I got older, I kind of stopped praying.

There was something about this experience on the plane that restored my belief in prayer, and it motivated me to build my relationship and faith in God again.

And it certainly needed it for what lay ahead.

Cancer recurrence

After going into remission, I thought I was in the clear, that I beat cancer. Yet, just three years later, I got a similar lump in my neck—it was the same thing all over again.

At this point, I was 26 years old and had to be quarantined at a hospital for one month, like my first transplant. However, the second transplant was much more challenging. I had full body chemo and body radiation.

It was bad.

I remember my hands and feet were burning and the skin peeled off like a sunburn. I also had nausea and fevers and a strange episode of ringing in my ears that doctors say may have been a mini stroke.

It was one of the toughest points in my life, and my mindset grew negative.

Prayer was one of the ways that helped me find the positive. I prayed and thanked God for helping me make it this far, and how he would help me beat cancer—even before I was out of the woods.

Where I’m at today

Eventually, those prayers were realized.

Today, I am in remission, and I continue to be healthy.

I keep praying, and I’ve been dating a Christian girl for the past few years. We often pray together and watch church services online. These continue to help increase my prayers and belief in God. I’m so grateful.

Starting BeastVsZombie

After going through cancer, I wanted to use my story to inspire others to show up for themselves—to know they can overcome any challenge in their lives, whether big or small. So I created a podcast called BeastVsZombie.

I had just beaten cancer for my second time, and I wanted to turn my tragedy into triumph and share my story to help the world be a better place.

My goal is to do 1,000 episodes. If I can help just one person with each episode then I will help at least 1,000 people.

It has been amazing to meet so many different cancer survivors and people in the medical world. We have talk about a variety of topics, and people with all sorts of beliefs and backgrounds listen to it.

Advice for others

It’s important for people to stay active, whether before, during or after a cancer journey. Whether you can run, walk or crawl, or even just be pushed outside in a wheelchair, do that. It will help you feel normal and help you stay positive.

Which underscores the point: be as positive as possible. Look for the positive in everything, which will help you through every part of your cancer journey.

Prayer can be a great way to help you stay positive.

It helps us be a part of something bigger than ourselves. Because life is more than just our own story, and when we pray, it helps connect us with God and other people. I’m so thankful for that stranger’s act of kindness on the airplane that reminded me of this.

 

For more about how to pray, see Asking God for Help.

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