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Don’t Just Think about Pink, Be about Pink!
As Breast Cancer Awareness month comes to a close, I hope that you were doing more than just admiring all of the trendy pink shirts of the season and got involved in some way to promote the awareness of breast cancer. I have said it before — breast cancer knows no color, no age, and no income level. It is capturing the lives of younger woman every day. Every one of us either knows someone who has breast cancer, is recovering from breast cancer or has a history of breast cancer in the family. It’s an aspect of “six degrees of separation” that is on an entirely different level. While it connects many woman in ways like never before, breast cancer is also impacting the lives of woman like never before. Taking our mothers, our sisters, our daughters and our friends.
I urge you to get involved this year, it’s not too late. This is the last week and you can make a donation, volunteer at an event, or run (or walk) in the last Breast Cancer Awareness race of the year. It only takes a little, you don’t have to do a lot.
As the niece of two aunts who died of breast cancer, the granddaughter of an amazing woman who was a 15-year breast cancer survivor and the friend of a very courageous woman who had a double mastectomy because she carried the breast cancer gene, I am committed to informing and educating people about this disease I want honor the woman who came before me and stand side by side supporting the women I know who are still here fighting.
As always, I like to leave you with some tips to help keep you “in the pink” about lowering your risk of getting breast cancer. Even if you have a family history of breast cancer, like I do, doing preventive acts can really help reduce your chances of acquiring the disease.
Conduct a self-breast exam. Get to know your breasts. Are they lumpy? Do you know notice anything different?
Get a mammogram. If you have a family history like me, then you should schedule an exam by the age of 35. Most women get one around 40-45. And to my girls who are 40, please get your mammogram. No it is not comfortable. Yes the machine squishes your breast together and it does hurt. And yes, the liquid they use is ice cold. But it is important to get the test.
Improve your diet if it is filled with soda, sweets and fried foods. These foods have a negative impact on your health in general.
Talk to a young woman about the importance of breast health. Start a discussion with a young woman you know and ask her if she has questions about breast cancer and what it means to her. Encourage her to know her family history.
To donate a mammogram, click here– www.thebreastcancersite.com
Live life, live healthy!
My Lumpy Breasts: A scare and a blessing
My grandmother is a 15 year breast cancer survivor and I am so blessed to still have her in my life, telling me not to worry one bit that I haven’t found a husband yet! Haha, I guess only a grandmother could truly love you enough to not wonder why at 36, seemingly intelligent and attractive, that you are not married and haven’t given her great-grand children. Well, I adore her for that and all of the wisdom she bestows upon me. Wisdom such as knowing how to take care of yourself and how to gracefully overcome the boulders life can throw at you.
I was only a teenager when I discovered three small lumps in my left breast. Not knowing why my father had a look of pain and extreme worry on his face, I knew something wasn’t right. It was also the pain I would have in the middle of the night from lying on my stomach. that I knew something was wrong. I had my first mammogram at the age of 17. I can’t recall if I had ever even heard the words “breast cancer.” I would often hear my father talking about my grandmother’s illness, but I don’t know if initially he used “breast cancer” to describe it. I don’t even recall the OB-GYN using these two words, until my father asked “Could it be cancer?” What powerful and frightening words for a 17-year old to hear, just 4 weeks before she is to head off to college and all of her life ahead of her.
The OB-GYN said I was blessed, the results were benign cysts and they would diminish with a change in diet. Which they did in a matter of months. No soda, no fried foods, not a lot of sweets. More vegetables, salads and healthier options to balance my very “teenage” diet. What a small price to pay to keep my breasts and stay healthy. It was at that moment, that I first learned about self-breast exams, mammograms and breast cancer. It was 1990, almost 20 years ago.
Apparently, I have lumpy breasts and at 17 it was challenging for the technician to locate the cysts with the mammogram. Even now it’s still a challenge. Which is why it is so important that women do self breast exams. You will know what is a normal lump and what is not so normal. The more you know about your breasts, the more proactive you can be when in your health care provider’s office. There is still so much to be done around awareness of breast cancer, breast health and breast masses. Ladies, do your part, know your body. Take care of it with the upmost of care, love and adoration. Spread the word!
Live life, live healthy!
Taking Care of Our “Girls”
As we enter into this month of Breast Cancer Awareness, I ask that you take care of your “girls.” Learn more about your breast health and be proactive. I also mean this in the literal sense. Talking to our young women about breast health is so important. We cannot assume or take for granted that our girls are completely knowledgeable about what is going on with their breasts. There are many questions that we had as young girls and women, that I know today’s young girls have too. Talk to them about family history, early detection, self-breast exams, lumpy breasts, mammograms, bra sizes, diet, small breasts, nutrition, and all of those essential factors related to their breasts. Their health depends on them being well informed and knowledgeable. Most importantly, don’t let your fear of the issue be the reason that you don’t discuss this issue with your daugther, niece, or younger sister. Fear is often the primary reason many women ignore overt symptoms related to breast cancer and breast masses. Don’t let that happen to you or another young woman.
I would like to ask my fellow women to do a couple of things this month and hopefully you will do them in the months and years to follow.
Conduct a self-breast exam. Get to know your breasts. Are they lumpy? Do you know notice anything different?
Get a mammogram. If you have a family history like me, then you should schedule an exam by the age of 35. Most women get one around 40-45.
Improve your diet if it is filled with soda, sweets and fried foods. These foods have a negative impact on your health in general.
Talk to a young woman about the importance of breast health. Start a discussion with a young woman you know and ask her if she has questions about breast cancer and what it means to her. Encourage her to know her family history.
Live life, live healthy!
