South Lake Tahoe woman facing brain cancer with friends, family and hugs

"I will not let cancer define who I am. Cancer is not going to be my story."

Those powerful words come from South Lake Tahoe local Krista Kline Carson.

The 1989 South Tahoe High graduate, wife, mother and wellness coordinator for Barton University, is battling cancer after a tumor removed from her brain was found to be Stage IV Glioblastoma Multiforme, one of the fastest growing brain cancers. On Monday, January 18 she begins a six week regime of radiation and chemotherapy.

I sat down with Krista this week, and she shared with me this amazing journey she is on. An hour of smiles, laughs, tears and a heart felt story.

Her life changed on December 15, 2015. Krista was suffering from a headache that was so bad she was vomiting and couldn't take her head off the pillow. Thinking she might just need a chiropractic adjustment, she went in to see Dr. Borges who she shares an office with, but she just got sicker. Her husband Jesse Kalin Carson, a long time local musician, picked her up and she went home to take a nap.

On December 16, she went to the emergency room at Barton Memorial Hospital as the symptoms wouldn't subside. A CT Scan revealed a 6 to 7 cm tumor on the right parietal lobe of her brain. Wanting a neurosurgeon to see her, she was transferred to Reno by ambulance where they did an MRI on December 17. The news nobody wants to hear was delivered to Krista and Jesse, it was a brain tumor and it needed to be removed right away.

On Friday, December 18, the tumor was removed at Renown Health in Reno, NV. The tumor was a highly malignant Stage IV Glioblastoma Multiforme. The worst kind, one that comes with a median survival rate of about eight months to two years.

There were no other signs. There were no other symptoms outside of one previous headache a few weeks prior to the day of surgery.

Two stories came out of those days that have not only changed Krista, but have changed those around her and those she has never even met.

The first began with the December 13 episode of Sunday Morning on CBS. The subject was the "Super Pose," and how your body can influence your mind and help you feel powerful. Author Amy Cuddy said during that episode, "When you pretend to be powerful, you are more likely to actually feel powerful."

The Super Pose is to stand straight up, shoulders back and hands on the hips.

"I told my family to get into the Super Pose when I went into surgery," said Krista. "My whole network of friends then shared that as well."

Krista's brother was in Tahiti celebrating his fiftieth birthday, and stood outside in front of a rainbow in the Super Pose at 10 a.m. PST Sunday, when she went into surgery.

"I came out of the 1.5 hour surgery beautifully with laughing, feeling great and full functionality," she said.

The news that followed was devastating when they announced the tumor was Stage IV. During the first 24 hours after surgery Krista received messages and texts from friends and family, asking what they could do for her.

And this is where the second story comes into play.

"I feel very strongly that I am a very small percentage of the population that has such a great support system," said Krista. "I knew then that I had a responsibility to do something better and knew the tumor was a conduit for something bigger and better."

This is where HugMission began. The Sunday after surgery, she woke up in her room at Renown where good friend Shannon Beni was sleeping on a cot next to her bed. "I looked at her in the middle of the night and told her 'I have a mission and I need hugs.'"

Krista told Shannon that she needed hugs to fight the brain cancer.

So, there she is, just two days out of brain surgery, walking the halls of Renown with Shannon, and hugging everyone she came into contact with. She hugged, and got hugs, from nurses and staff and strangers in the halls.

Krista was released from Renown on Monday, day three after surgery. Her mother brought her and Shannon Superman tee shirts which were quickly put on and worn through the hospital's halls as she grabbed more hugs. (the Superman shirt symbolizes the Super Pose). They all headed back to South Lake Tahoe in a snow storm to prepare for the holidays.

Family and friends have been by her side every step of the way so far. During Christmas, the family, including her daughter, shaved the right side of their heads to match the new look Krista was sporting after surgery.

The Hug Mission stayed in her head and she knew what she needed to do to beat cancer and be there for her husband, and their 2 1/2 year-old daughter Trella.

#HugMission now has a Facebook page and a twitter account. Her widespread team designed a logo and got the Krista's Cure website up and running. Tee shirts have been designed and are being sold on the website.

Krista's goal is to have 100,000 hugs by February 3, her birthday. Those are a lot of hugs for one person to give/receive, so everyone is challenged to give others hugs, and record them on the website, or on social media. By Monday, January 11 there were 200 recorded hugs. By Wednesday, 900.

Her friend, STHS teacher Bridey Heidel had her AP English students do a cinnamon roll hug and they recorded it and posted to facebook. What is a cinnamon roll hug? All the students held hands, then rolled up while standing into one big group hug. Add 25 more hugs.

Krista says she is the excuse people can use to give a hug. She's had people tell her that hugging is out of their comfort zone, but they're doing it to support her in her battle.

She is amazed by the energy she is getting from the community and their hugs.

"I haven't felt this good in my whole life," said Krista.

As part of her health program, Krista eliminated all sugar and carbs from her daily food intake and went on an alkaline diet. The cancer can feed off of those, so the one-time sugar addict went cold turkey. "I don't even miss it," she said. Vegetables and quinoa are now a big part of her daily menu.

The next step for getting healthy will be for her to get back into exercise. Krista helped coordinate the Fit program at Barton Health, and now she'll be able to do the things she didn't have time for previously. Exercise will help her with chemotherapy.

Her treatment starts Monday in Reno. Her cancer doctor is based at UCSF but she's able to get the radiation and chemo in Reno. This week she was fitted for a special head brace that will keep her head still during the radiation and allow them to get the same spot each time. She'll be going there five days-a-week for the 15 minute appointment, then take daily chemo pills every night.

She researched the tumor, and doctors that could help, She and Jesse flew to Houston to visit MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, but felt the UCSF program met her needs to the best.

Going to Houston gave her time to visit with old friends and get in some hugs. After graduating from UC Santa Barbara she moved to Texas to work and get her master's in Clinical Psychology. She was a Licensed Professional Counselor at The Women's Home in Houston. She moved back to South Lake Tahoe in May of 2010 and started an integrated wellness practice inside the Borges Chiropractic office.

During a dinner with her parents at the Beacon in January of 2011 she heard a musician in the bar and they went to hear him after their meal. A week later, Jesse and Krista met for coffee and she knew then that "he was the one." They were married in 2012 and baby Trella came in June of 2013.

How you can help:

#HugMission - get more information HERE. Information on buying a tee shirt is there as well.
YouCaring.com - Donate to help Krista and her family.
Follow her journey by reading her blog.

Krista plans on keeping a daily log of what she does, what she ate, what steps she took to beat cancer and hopefully write a book one day about this part of her life.

"This is a mad and remarkable shift in my life," said Krista. "I don't know what is going on. Something is guiding people in a very fun way, this is inspiring."

Krista is also planning on reaching out to Vice-President Joe Biden who lost his son Beau to brain cancer.

"This is big, bigger than I can even imagine," Krista said about what the #hugmission is turning into to.

How many people have you hugged today?