Rebuilding Self Trust as a Previvor: How ESCAPE to THRIVE Helped Me Claim My Place in Advocacy

by Devon McGarry

I arrived at the ESCAPE to THRIVE leadership conference—a small, immersive retreat hosted by Bag It at Miraval Arizona Resort—with a question in the back of my mind: Where do previvors fit? Where do I fit?

Escape to THRIVE brings together advocates, survivors, caregivers and nonprofit leaders for high‑quality learning, meaningful connection and personal renewal, blending interactive sessions with wellness. It is designed to support the whole advocate by balancing skills development, peer collaboration and space to recharge. As a BRCA2 previvor, I live with significantly increased genetic risk of cancer without a cancer diagnosis, navigating constant decisions, vigilance and uncertainty—an experience that is often largely invisible to those around me.

Previvorship carries a unique kind of invisible work. We make complex medical decisions long before illness, weigh prevention against quality of life and move through the world with risks that others cannot see. The burden of choice is constant: screening schedules, surgical considerations, fertility implications, insurance barriers and how to communicate risk to family. These decisions shape our daily lives, yet they are often unrecognized. ESCAPE to THRIVE created space for that reality.

One of the most powerful aspects of the retreat was being in a community with survivors and caregivers while fully honoring that our experiences are different. Survivorship, caregiving and previvorship each carry their own timelines and truths.  And yet the emotional threads—fear, resilience, hope, grief, determination—can coexist without comparison. This space reminded me that advocacy does not require sameness. It requires listening, respect and the willingness to stand alongside one another.

During the retreat, we participated in a somatic exercise focused on body awareness. We were guided through a slow body scan, noticing sensations without judgment. As someone who lives with increased cancer risk and works in research, I often view my body through a lens of surveillance—something to monitor, manage and prepare for.

But in that moment, something shifted. I noticed something simpler and more profound: my body was supporting me. I was breathing. My heart was beating. Even in uncertainty, in a body that feels unpredictable at times, everything necessary to keep me alive was functioning exactly as it should. Advocacy begins not only with information and action, but with reconnecting to our bodies in ways that build trust rather than fear.

That theme resurfaced during the “Out on a Limb” experience at Miraval. Suspended 25 feet above the desert floor, secured by a harness and belayed to a stranger, I felt immediate trust in the system. I trusted the equipment, the process and the person holding the rope. What surprised me was how much harder it was to trust myself.

That realization stopped me in my tracks. Here I was relying on someone I had just met to keep me safe, yet doubting my own ability to take the next step. As previvors, we often place trust in screening protocols, clinical guidelines, providers and data—all essential tools—while questioning our own inner strength and intuition, because our relationship with our bodies is shaped by risk. By the time I climbed down, I understood that the work was not about conquering fear. It was about rebuilding self‑trust.

Advocacy for hereditary cancers, for me, is rooted in reclaiming that trust. It is about empowering previvors to believe in their own strength, instincts and right to take up space, even when we do not fit neatly into what people expect cancer advocacy to look like. This experience reaffirmed something FORCE has shown me again and again. Previvors are not “waiting patients.”  We are active decision‑makers, advocates and leaders in our own right. FORCE creates space for lived experiences and honors the full spectrum of risk, choice and identity.

ESCAPE to THRIVE reminded me that empowerment does not come from having all the answers. It comes from connection, self‑awareness and learning to trust yourself again. Breath by breath. Step by step.

If you are a previvor who has ever wondered where you fit or whether you belong in this work, I want you to know this: there is a seat for you at the table. Your experience matters. Your voice matters. Advocacy includes honoring the full range of hereditary cancer experiences, without comparison and without apology. Sometimes the most powerful leadership begins with trusting yourself to take up that space.

Devon McGarry is a BRCA2 previvor based in the Greater Philadelphia area. She brings more than 15 years of experience in global clinical research and drug development across academic institutions and clinical research organizations, with a focus on real‑world evidence and patient‑centered outcomes. As a FORCE Research Advocate and Patient Advocate Leader, Devon is committed to advancing hereditary cancer awareness, strengthening research that reflects patient needs, supporting individuals navigating elevated cancer risk and advocating for policies that address insurance barriers, privacy protections and health disparities.