Women's Health Wednesday - Nisha Bawa Talks Balancing Career & Community while Overcoming Lymphoma
“To be totally honest, work kept me alive. Instead of sitting on the sofa or laying in the bed during my medical journey, I followed my same daily routine.” Today’s woman dreamer, Nisha Bawa, is a program manager at eClinical Works, with a passion for community and giving back. For Women’s Health Wednesday, she shares her key learnings from a courageous battle with lymphoma, and how she balanced her health journey with her career and family life with resilience and grace. A strong, independent woman, Nisha shares how she made the decision to move to a new country at age of 16. She shares her involvement with India Society of Worcester, ECW Giving Circle, and community organizations! Enjoy her inspiring story!
1.You started your journey in India, then moved to England in 1977 followed by Boston where you work at eClinical. What were some of the most crucial moments/lessons you have learned throughout your life?
Making the decision to leave my family and move to a new country at the age of sixteen was a huge decision for me. I made this decision on my own. At the airport, when my family came to say goodbye to me, my mom whispered in my ear, “don’t cry in front of dad,” (dad being very sensitive) “he will be devastated.” So I held my tears and boarded the plane to start my life in a new land.
I moved to London where I completed my studies and got married. After my son was born in 1987, we moved from London to Swindon which meant an hour and a half commute to my job. After long deliberations, I decided to quit my job and became a full-time mom. This was a tough decision for me as I loved working and I was not eager to be dependent on my husband, financially. I had been independent since I was twelve years old by doing small jobs while growing up in India. Once we had our second child, my husband’s job transferred him to Boston. Again, we packed our bags and moved to the United States, a new country where we didn't know anyone. Just as we started settling down in our new country, my husband got a new job offer in Bangalore and we packed again with excitement. I was thrilled because I knew this would be a fantastic move for our young family to appreciate our culture first hand.
Each move had its own challenges. I come from a very strong family of women. Their attitude on life was to always go with the flow, and that is the attitude I adopted.
2. You recently went through a challenging crisis with lymphoma. You pushed through resilience and grace. How did you stay positive throughout that journey? How important was the role of a supportive community in this?
I feel so Blessed. Yes, I went through this medical journey, but I had the best medical system, family, and friend support. I call my doctors my angels. I had access to the best food, and due to COVID, I was working from home, so I could move around as I pleased. It makes me wonder how do people manage with this illness when they do not have access to all these facilities…
Life gives you lemons and you make lemonade. The support of family, friends, and community is priceless. Doing something for others allows you to forget your own pain and it gives great joy to bring happiness to other faces.
This journey was also a reminder that money comes and goes, but health is the most important in life. Without good health you cannot enjoy anything in life. I tell everyone who I hear complaining about small things in life, please look down there are millions and millions of people worse than you, we are blessed.
I am not afraid of dying. Death does not bring tears to my eyes. However, I do get teary eyed when I see someone doing a good deed for another human being.
3. You are also a project manager, which is a very busy role. Was it challenging balancing your work while dealing with your health journey? What are your tips to other women in similar situations?
To be totally honest, work kept me alive. Instead of sitting on the sofa or laying in the bed during my medical journey, I followed my same daily routine.
At my work, my team lead said he could lessen my workload, if I wished for it, but my response was to keep the projects coming. The busier I was, the less I would think of my pain. I felt so joyful that I worked for eClinicalWorks, a company that is so compassionate to their employees and understands what they are going through. That’s all I needed to hear. Just the thought that I was given this option by my company is such an honor. I am truly blessed to work at such an amazing place.
During my illness, I lost all my hair. I had three options in front of me: either I could hide myself and come out when I feel all better, wear a wig, or stay strong and take life by its horns. So I decided to take the last option. I stayed positive, wrapped my head in beautiful chunnis, scarfs or wore hats. Many times when people saw me they thought I was trying to make a fashion statement. I believe beauty is within all of us - a beautiful smile is all you need. I believe if you smile people will stay close to you. No one wants a gloomy face around them.
During this time, I also went through crazy changes in taste. I realized how we take our healthy body for granted but when we lose any function, you realize the impact of it. Thank God for the chef in the house, my husband, who made meals for me accordingly. Taking me to the hospitals, waiting for me for hours in the car (due to COVID he could not come inside), etc. He has been very supportive through my journey and I couldn’t have done without him. I have many names to add to this supportive list, but I will keep it short.
4. You are also actively involved in several community organizations such as Ekal and other wonderful projects. Share some details on that?
My love for serving others comes from my grandparents and parents. I come from a family who have always done good deeds for others. I remember my Grandad, a simple living and high thinking man. He was a widower and tailor master in India. While he didn’t make much money, he had a list of 5 to 10 widows who he would send money orders to every month before he would spend any money on his own household. My Nani ji and my Mom would celebrate our birthdays in India by distributing blankets to the poor in the cold weather.
I am proud to say I am part of few community organizations like India Society of Worcester (ISW) where I currently am the religious chairperson, but have held many other positions in the past. ISW has been my family’s second home. It was here that I taught Hindi language every Sunday to young kids for over twenty years. This was very rewarding for me.
EKAL Vidyalaya raises funds to support education in rural parts of India. Due to COVID, we have not been able to do events in person, but we still carried on most events remotely.
Another program I am honored to be a part of is eCW Giving Foundation. I was nominated to the board of this organization last year which has distributed close to $1M to fulfilling the needs of underprivileged people in the USA.
I feel grateful when I pack a lunch and spend time with a person who is old and may need company, asking a pregnant woman if she would like to eat something special and delivering that to her. Serving others can be big or small.
5. As the platform for women dreamers, what is your next big dream?
I do not have big dreams or bucket lists. I take one day at a time!
I just hope if I can make a smile on someone's face by just talking to them or for being there for them, that’s all I want to do. Finding joy in helping others is one of the many lessons I carry from my parents.
Thank you Nisha for sharing your inspiring story with us! We are excited to have you in our global women’s network
Bio: Nisha Bawa was born in India and traveled across the country as she grew up. She lived in England for many years before she settled down in Boston in 1989. She has been working at eClinicalWorks for over 13 years and has enjoyed every moment of it. She also participates in community activities, such as the India Society of Worcester, Ekal Vidyalaya, and others. She also loves singing, dancing, and going to parties!!
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