The Moment Everything Changed

By U.S. Army Soldier Sgt. Maj. Janina Simmons

© Sgt. Maj. Janina Simmons

 I remember exactly where I was when the call came. The words hit like a tidal wave: "You have cancer." In that moment, everything changed. My breath slowed. My world stopped. I didn't know what was next, only that the life I had known had just shattered.

I was young, strong, disciplined. I had done everything "right." And suddenly, I was facing Stage 4, incurable cancer. It wasn't just my body that was threatened, it was my identity. I had built my life on structure, on early mornings, on putting in the work when no one else was watching. But now, with the weight of a terminal diagnosis pressing down on me, I had to ask myself a deeper question: Who am I when the world doesn't reward my discipline with certainty?

 In the first few days, the darkness crept in. I wanted to quit. I thought, What's the point of pushing so hard if I'm dying anyway? But then something shifted. Not because the diagnosis changed, but because I did. I remembered David Goggins, one of the voices that had pushed me before, in training and in life. Carry the boats, he says. That hit me like lightning. So I laced up my shoes, walked out the door, and ran 20 miles. That was the moment I realized what it really means to be unstoppable.

 Before cancer, being unstoppable meant setting PRs, never missing a workout, showing up with intensity. It meant pushing through physical barriers and proving people wrong. But after cancer, being unstoppable became sacred. My workouts didn't stop, but they transformed. They became intentional. No longer just about performance, they became about presence. Every run, every lift, every rep carried a new weight: This might be the last time. So feel it. Appreciate it. Be grateful you're still in the fight.

 Two days after radiation treatment, when my body felt like it had been poisoned from the inside out, I was back on the road. My legs were heavy, my heart rate was erratic, every step was a battle. But that's just how I am. Unstoppable. While undergoing radiation treatment, I qualified for the Boston Marathon and finished two ultramarathons, a 60-miler and a 75-miler. People thought I was crazy. Maybe I was. But those miles taught me something profound: the mind is infinitely more powerful than we think. When your body wants to quit, when every logical voice tells you to stop, your mind can carry you farther than you ever imagined possible.

 Adversity didn't destroy my discipline, yet it revealed the depth of it. I no longer trained just because I could. I trained because I still get to. That shift from ego to gratitude rewired everything. I stopped asking "why me?" and started saying "why not me?" To the version of myself who almost gave up, the one who cried quietly after the diagnosis, who thought the fight was over before it began, I would say this: You don't get to quit. As long as you have breath, you have purpose. As long as you can move, you still have work to do. Life doesn't stop being beautiful just because it gets hard. In fact, hardship brings clarity, a reminder that your time here is limited, and your legacy is being built now.

 Even with Stage 4 cancer, with doctors saying it's incurable, I don't feel sorry for myself. 

In fact, I feel like the mentally strongest person alive. That's the kind of belief it takes to rise out of the dark. Not because everything's okay, but because you decide to be okay anyway.

To anyone going through struggle right now, I say this: adversity isn't here to break you. It's here to build you. As Viktor Frankl said, "When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves." Your pain isn't pointless, it's carving out a deeper version of you.

Maybe you're facing your own impossible diagnosis. Maybe you've lost everything you thought defined you. Maybe you're staring at a future that looks nothing like what you planned. I see you. I know that darkness. And I'm telling you, the fight isn't over. It's just beginning.

Your struggle is your strength in training. Your pain is your power being forged. Your lowest moment is where your greatest comeback begins. Unstoppable isn't about what happens to you, it's about what you choose to do next. Every day you rise is a victory. Every breath is a blessing. Every step forward is an act of defiance against everything trying to hold you back. The world needs your story. It needs your strength. It needs proof that the human spirit can't be conquered, no matter what tries to break it. So rise. Not because it's easy, but because you can. Not because you're guaranteed tomorrow, but because you're here today. I plan to keep rising. And so should you.

About the Author

Sgt. Maj. Janina Simmons is a U.S. Army Soldier, 14Z Air Defense Artillery Senior Sergeant, and Stage 4 cancer patient. Simmons has served in the Army for 15 years, successfully completing Ranger School and the Sergeants Major Academy. Her service has been marked by an ambition that did not recognize boundaries, and her grit, determination, fitness and resilience have made her a living example of the Army’s motto “Be All You Can Be” to thousands on social media. Learn how you can Be All You Can Be at www.goarmy.com.

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