After my sister died from breast cancer three years ago, I asked, during my mammogram, whether I should get tested for the breast cancer gene. I was warned that doing so, particularly if I tested positive for the gene, could mark me as an individual with a so-called pre-existing condition.
Much is made over the material girl's multitudes of metamorphosis. For those of you too young to remember, I speak of Madonna. And, yes, the Divine M...
Angelina Jolie was not the only one to choose a prophylactic mastectomy. I did, too -- but for different reasons.. (Thank you, Angelina, for making it public. You've given me the courage to write about it for the very first time).
Angelina Jolie, you could have decided to be totally private about undergoing a double mastectomy and breast reconstruction surgeries. But that is not the woman you are.
Angelina Jolie's revelation today, done with eloquence and dignity and grace, is remarkable both in its message and its import to the world of women. Pro-action.
Like many nurse practitioners, my mother declined to work in the for-profit sector and instead devoted her life to public health. She believed strongly in the need for universal health care -- a cause she felt was a deeply moral issue.
Instead of coaching athletes, she has spent the last several years coaching me as I've strived to get better, first from ovarian cancer at the age of 32, then from the autonomic nerve damage the life-saving chemo caused.
Every person has a timeline of their own life, made up of the big moments in it -- the personal bests and worsts that singe their memories. On my timeline, one of those worsts came on November 3, 2004, when my mother was diagnosed with breast cancer.
Cancer is a diagnosis that affects the entire family, so try thinking outside the box this year. Instead of purchasing Mom a tangible gift, begin a new tradition of creating a new fond memory.
For those who have lost a loved one, holidays can trigger grief. Mother's Day is particularly difficult for me, because I no longer have my mother here to physically spend the day with.
For me, one of the scariest parts of my diagnosis with breast cancer was the challenge of keeping life as normal as possible for my two young daughters.
Women are made up of more than just breasts, a uterus, and a pair of ovaries. There is more to women's health than the care and cure of these three vital but non-comprehensive organs. We need to look beyond, to the forgotten whole woman, who is more than a sum of her parts.
The one thing we have to make sure is that they don't change irreversibly. Cancer can take a lot physically. It can only take what we allow it emotionally. We are stronger than cancer. Even if it takes our life, we are STILL stronger than cancer.
Trust me, we are all just one left turn away from tragic events. Everyone. Blaming people is easy. Try to focus on what IS in your life, as opposed to what isn't. It's a waste of time and energy to miss those who are not there. And it's rude to those who are!!
It is day six past my chemo session and the side effects this time are by far worse than before. I had been told that the affects are cumulative and that each time you will feel worse, for longer, but well, quite frankly I guess I didn't want to believe it.
Who would I be without him defining who I was? How could I keep a marriage going that no longer had trust, no longer had commitment, and no longer had love?
