Women Empowered
Senator Dr. Saphire Longmore; I am a Woman, I am a Mother, I am Strength
BY NOEL CUNNINGHAM
“I came into my own publicly and recognized and declared, I am a Woman, I am a Mother, and I am Strength. I will still rise and will roar.” ~ Saphire Longmore
It is not every day that you get a chance to meet a psychiatrist who is a: Government Senator, former Miss Jamaica Universe, and a breast cancer survivor. It makes Senator Dr. Longmore the perfect Woman Empowered. If asked, she will tell you her best title to date is being a mom to two little men Axl and Neo.
Dr. Longmore is a proud Clarendonian who attended the Glenmuir High School where she was the deputy head girl. Saphire is a miracle that couldn’t wait to happen. Saphire’s mom Elaine went to the doctor for her last visit before her due date and was told the baby died. This was a devastating time for her everyone. While her mom was getting ready to go to the hospital she went in labor. Saphire was born right there and then in her Grandma’s home in Clarendon.
After graduating from Glenmuir High School without a doubt, she knew she wanted to become a doctor. She graduated from medical school at the age of 22, then took a 10-year break to travel and flex other muscles. Returning to her roots, she became a qualified psychiatrist in 2011. Currently, she mantains her own private practice and is a Consultant Psychiatrist at The University of the West Indies.
In 2000, Dr. Longmore finally gave in to her mother’s request to enter the Miss Jamaica Universe Competition. Little did she know she was about to create history. She entered and walked away with the crown of Miss Jamaica Universe that year.
This makes her the first practising medical doctor to enter and win a beauty pageant in Jamaica. “This title is not one that I emphasize on a lot; however, it’s one that I’m grateful for and it was great exposure.” Dr. Longmore tells me. Sadly two years later her mother passed away. “I am happy and thankful she was alive to witness that moment.”
Since then she has worked in the print media and even hosted television and radio shows, which have been aired nationally, regionally and internationally.
One would wonder what a beauty queen and a medical doctor is doing in politics? Senator Longmore’s aim is to improve the health of the people. “You can improve the health of one person by writing a prescription. Imagine, I am in a position where I have a say on policy and programs. It allows me to improve the lives of a greater number of the population.”
“Sometimes life throws things at you.”
In 2017 Dr. Longmore experienced an awakening. What many would consider the end, she calls it the beginning. “On October 3rd, 2017, my life changed. The day after Breast Cancer Awareness Month was launched the quintessential happened: I stepped out the shower and felt a lump in my breast. A lump that had been there for a few weeks, but only at that moment did I become ‘aware’ of it. Immediately I felt it, I knew; it was the big C. My mind was void.”
“It’s a day I will never forget. I was preparing to go to work where I was conducting ward rounds at the hospital, after which I was to get my kids from school and run errands. I conducted the two-hour round in a daze, sticking to the clinical care of my patients and teaching the students, knowing well the possibility of that being the last time I would be doing it. My brain was numb with the looming awareness. I had cancer.
I completed my day and said nothing to no one. I had to grasp the reality myself first. I had to plan a course of action. I felt sadness, anger, shock, fear, and gratitude; gratitude because it was purely by God’s handiwork that I came to be given a chance to save myself; a chance that I also immediately knew I was going to make the most of.”
The Rebirth
One year later Dr. Longmore was cancer-free. She did her last phase of treatment to reduce the chances of recurrence. She described this phase as a moment of finding her purpose; something greater than herself. She took control of what she could and accepted what she couldn’t.
Facing Reality
“One year ago, two weeks after my last treatment I was hoisted into a reality that who I thought was standing by my side was no longer there.”
On February 2nd, 2020, Dr. Longmore found the courage to share her truth with her thousands of Facebook followers. “In this life, I have come to accept and appreciate nothing is certain. There are no guarantees no matter how much you plan and take precautions. Today marks the better part of a full year I thought I would have only been celebrating the ending of my formal treatment for cancer. I would have had my last treatment, and I should have been on the road to breathing new life and seeking to not just survive, but thrive. But instead, I had to embrace one of the harshest realities. I had to face the end of my marriage. Yep! Real reality.”
Being the strong Saphire that she is, her main focus now is raising two young men. On a larger scale, she is focusing on what impacts crime in Jamaica, and how we can use the little money we have to reduce violence in society. She is also leading the charge to identify how mental health can be tackled at the family and community level.
“Be effective in taking care of yourself foster and nurture healthy relationships.”
Saphire has some words of wisdom. “Women, especially those of you are the center of their families, and who tend to neglect themselves in the pursuit of their family’s happiness. The best way to achieve this happiness is by being there yourself, and being in the best health you can be.”
She explains the importantance of starting a health plan that includes: diet, exercise, stress management, spiritual exploration, laughter, screening, and health insurance. “I am one of those who have been fortunate to access all the above, being fully aware many can’t. This doesn’t mean significant effectiveness can’t be had with scarce resources and meaningful lifestyle changes,” reasons Saphire.
“One Life to Live. Live it.”
Saphire will tell you that she is an avid water-sport enthusiast. She is an accomplished: snorkeller, scuba diver and swimmer. Let me not forget to add that she is the life of the party. At the end of the day, she aspires to be the best doctor, mom, and senator she can be.