The Real Housewives of Miami star, Guerdy Abraira, joined Inside South Florida to share her journey of resilience, from her breast cancer diagnosis to shaving her own head, and how she found empowerment within her community
Now, cancer-free, she’s reclaimed control of her life.
“I reclaimed myself by now being selfish and realizing ‘Wait, but I need to now fight for me and put me first and be selfish and forget it,'” says, Abraira. “I'm going to now say no to a lot of things that don't serve me. So, you release what no longer serves you. And that's the model I took on to be able to be in a position to fight this battle.”
As a public figure, Guerdy explained the importance behind her choice to share her cancer journey on national television, aiming to showcase that even through trials and tribulations, there is hope.
“I signed up for the show, when it was good, the good times, so then I'm like, ‘what I do now, say no, no more cameras, I'm opting out of the show? And I'm like, ‘I'm not going down like that,’” says Abraira. “That's not going to be my legacy of me opting out of anything, any challenge, me Guerdy, if you know me, you know, that's not even an option. So, for me, it was kind of like, I knew that there was going to be a positive ending to it. And it was just getting through the kinks. And I said, ‘You know what, we'll start with the dark and hit the light at the end,’ and I'm going to show it.”
As a woman of color, Guerdy spoke on the racial disparities in cancer cancer-related deaths. She highlighted a 42% higher mortality rate among people of color due to limited access to screenings, treatments, and the presence of stigma.
“42% higher rate of death because of multiple reasons,” says Abraira. “Because of lack of funds and the lack of insurance, lack of family caregiving support, or just want to be in denial and not want to know the worst because of the fact that you got to put food on the table. Whatever the reasons are, it's still to me unacceptable, and we have to find a way to help this community to stop the stigma.”
Throughout her healing journey, Guerdy expressed the overwhelming abundance of love and support she’s received from the community.
“The blessing I think is definitely first knowing that I'm loved,” says Abraira. “Because that for me, was so overwhelming and people are like, ‘We love you, we want to hug you, we want to put our arms around you,’ the community came alive, you know, like, and that was really resounding, and I was overwhelmed in the best way.”
For more information, follow @guerdydesign
‘The Real Housewives of Miami” now streaming on Peacock.
