Nara Smith opens up about two-year-old daughter battling cancer
South African-born model and influencer Nara Smith has shared the heartbreaking news that her two-year-old daughter, Whimsy Lou, is battling cancer.
Nara Smith has taken to social media to share the devastating news surrounding her family.
The South African-born model and influencer, who is married to fellow model Lucky Blue Smith, revealed on Wednesday, 1 July, that their daughter, Whimsy Lou, was diagnosed with cancer late last year.
“There is no easy way to say this or to talk about any of this, but late last year, our daughter, Whimsy, got diagnosed with cancer,” she said in the Instagram video.
The model went on to explain how the cancer was discovered.
“When we saw something suspicious on her, we took her to the ER. They didn’t quite know what to make of it, so then we took her to our paediatricians,” she said.
Nara said the way the doctor broke the news to them was one of the most difficult moments for the family.
“I just remember him going really quiet and calm, and my heart dropped in that moment,” she recalled.
She said that somehow her instincts told her that something was terribly wrong.
“I don’t know whether it was my gut telling me something or just a mom’s intuition, but the first thing that I felt was, ‘She has cancer.’”
The model said the doctor then told them to take Whimsy to the nearest children’s hospital for further evaluation. After undergoing X-rays, ultrasounds and finally a biopsy, the family received the devastating diagnosis that she had cancer. Smith did not reveal what type of cancer her daughter has.
She said that ever since receiving the diagnosis, the family has faced many challenges and the experience has taken an emotional toll on them.
“Throughout all of this, I’ve been on a plethora of forums and social media. I’ve also talked to parents and families in the hospital. All of that combined really brought me a lot of comfort and alleviated the feeling of loneliness for me,” she said.
The content creator said she decided to share her family’s journey in the hope that it would bring comfort to others and encourage people to seek medical attention if they notice something concerning.
“We wanted to share this to hopefully bring someone else that comfort or even incentivise you to go get something checked out that you’ve been avoiding,” she said.
Nara also shared how the diagnosis has affected her work and family life. She and her husband are raising three other children, including a newborn baby.
“Processing this and navigating all of this as a family has been really hard. A lot of you have probably realised that I’ve been posting a little less, and this is the reason why. Having found out all of this and navigating it while postpartum, also loving and caring for our other kids at home, being in the hospital with Whimsy a lot, and balancing work on top of that has been really challenging.
“Finding that balance is something that I struggle with on a daily basis. Some days are a little easier, some days are really hard, and all I can do is try my best and show up in all those areas in the best way that I can.”
The content creator said she hopes her post can bring comfort to others who may be facing similar challenges.
Since sharing the news, scores of people have taken to social media to send messages of love and support. With a combined following of more than 16 million across Instagram and TikTok, Nara has received an outpouring of comfort, with thousands of supportive messages flooding her comment sections.
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