So I Found Lump…
At the beginning of February this year whilst lying on the bed watching a bit of telly after work, I found a lump. Not sure why I even checked, but I must have felt uncomfortable. I was rubbing along the bottom of my breast, close to my ribs, where the underwired bit goes on your bra. It was not a big lump, and to be honest I had to check a few times. Then began this ridiculous back and forth from one breast to the other to see if I could feel the same on the other side, I could not.
People think that your life just goes back to normal or you pick up where you left off once you’ve finished treatment. You might think this too, because this is the part no one warns you about. No one prepares you for the stark reality of survivorship. So, you have absolutely no idea what you are doing and are just trying to figure it out as you go. This is a lonely place to be.
On Feb 28, 2020, I had a truly unbelievable experience: I made a sign asking my favorite baseball player on the San Diego Padres to sign my newly bald Chemo head AND HE DID! The idea came when I realized my bald head was basically a ball. A baseball. And baseballs get signed.
By Eleanor Howie My sister, my mum and I have lots in common. We have the same sense of humour, the same nose, the same smile. And we’ve all had mastectomies. I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t aware of breast cancer. My mum had cancer twice before I was 4 years old. The second time she was pregnant with my sister. Whenever anyone asks who my hero is, I tell them it’s my mum. She is without a shadow of a doubt the strongest woman I know. After my sister was born, my mum threw herself fully into treatment. She had radiotherapy, chemotherapy and a single mastectomy without reconstruction. When I was 19 my mum and I underwent genetic...
Fear. The things that drive our fears are very real and sometimes imagined. Having had a cancer diagnosis likely means you’ve pushed past many things that caused you to be fearful and afraid. But instead of saying F’ everything and run, we face everything and rise! We endured surgeries and treatments we never thought we could and learned exactly who we are and how we can get through most anything life throws our way, even if we cry along the way!!
