If you've been following the news tonight, or been on Facebook, you've probably stumbled across the announcement that the Komen Organization has stopped providing grants for breast exams to Planned Parenthood affiliates. If you have no idea what I am talking about, here is a link to NPR's version of the story. I have strong opinions about Komen. For now, I will just say, that I am not a fan and leave it at that.
But I do have a message for everyone (at least those ranting on Facebook status updates) who is attacking Komen for cutting funding to Planned Parenthood. If you really care about women with breast cancer, and want to do something for them, put your money where your mouth is, and donate to local organizations. The walks, runs, and pink merchandise raise money towards keeping the the Komen machine running smoothly. But how much of that money is actually helping the woman (or man) who has been diagnosed with breast cancer and going through treatment? Cancer patients need caretakers, drivers, meals, and a clean house. They don't need another stupid ribbon. They are already aware of the cancer. It bit them in the ass.
Almost every community has local organizations which exist to help ease the life stresses of cancer patients. In my small, rural town I can name two. One group provides wigs; the other arranges drivers to take patients to a doctor or to the chemo clinic. Save your energy and don't passive aggressively attack Komen. Find a better organization in your local community to give your time or money donations. I bet the organizers will be pretty darn thankful.
Showing posts with label tips. Show all posts
Showing posts with label tips. Show all posts
31 January 2012
25 February 2011
Full Support
Yesterday I wore a real bra for the first time since September 2008. Since the mastectomy, I have worn a mess of medical bras, light weight Gap sporty bras, prosthetics inside and outside bras, and nothing. The wearing of the bra was as uneventful as it should be.
Last week I went to Nordstrom's for a fitting. I chose Nordstrom for two reasons: customer service and their prosthetic program. Prior to my catching the cancer, my shopping experiences in department store lingerie departments had been less than comforting. Once when seeking a minimizing bra to fit into a special order bridesmaid dress, the sales lady loudly informed me that I could "just duct tape 'em, honey." At other stores, the sales clerks were nonexistent or uninformed. The only store that was ever helpful was Nordstrom's.
I was a bit hesitant about foisting my chopped-up torso onto an unsuspecting sales person, especially since the only people to have seen my winking smiley face (my nickname for my scars) have been my medical teams, my husband, and my mother. So while I got the go-ahead to wear bras from my surgeon a few months ago, I put it off. In my hunt for a nice lingerie store in the area, I discovered that Nordstrom's has a Prosthesis Program. I called ahead to explain my situation and was told I wouldn't need an appointment. So last Friday, I first went to a spa for a facial, and then to Nordstrom's for a bra fitting. The sales ladies were wonderful. They barely batted an eye; just went about grabbing different bras, whipping them on and off me until we found 3 that I liked. Their only concern was if I had healed from my surgeries.
If I could afford it, I don't know if I would shop anywhere else for bras ever again. I rarely leave a store feeling good about myself (a long boring story/rant about how clothing retailers don't make and/or sell clothing for tall women and/or sell them in their stores), but I did on Friday. Thank you, Nordstrom's.
Last week I went to Nordstrom's for a fitting. I chose Nordstrom for two reasons: customer service and their prosthetic program. Prior to my catching the cancer, my shopping experiences in department store lingerie departments had been less than comforting. Once when seeking a minimizing bra to fit into a special order bridesmaid dress, the sales lady loudly informed me that I could "just duct tape 'em, honey." At other stores, the sales clerks were nonexistent or uninformed. The only store that was ever helpful was Nordstrom's.
I was a bit hesitant about foisting my chopped-up torso onto an unsuspecting sales person, especially since the only people to have seen my winking smiley face (my nickname for my scars) have been my medical teams, my husband, and my mother. So while I got the go-ahead to wear bras from my surgeon a few months ago, I put it off. In my hunt for a nice lingerie store in the area, I discovered that Nordstrom's has a Prosthesis Program. I called ahead to explain my situation and was told I wouldn't need an appointment. So last Friday, I first went to a spa for a facial, and then to Nordstrom's for a bra fitting. The sales ladies were wonderful. They barely batted an eye; just went about grabbing different bras, whipping them on and off me until we found 3 that I liked. Their only concern was if I had healed from my surgeries.
If I could afford it, I don't know if I would shop anywhere else for bras ever again. I rarely leave a store feeling good about myself (a long boring story/rant about how clothing retailers don't make and/or sell clothing for tall women and/or sell them in their stores), but I did on Friday. Thank you, Nordstrom's.
12 August 2010
Six Easy Steps
Six Easy Steps to Getting Complements:
Step 1. Gain weight by eating whatever you want due to depression caused by a cancer diagnosis.
Step 2. Gain more weight by eating whatever you want under doctor's orders while undergoing chemo.
Step 3. Get bloated from steroids being pumped in to you system on a weekly basis due to chemo.
Step 4. Eventually lose the chemo steroid bloat.
Step 5. Have surgery which takes fat from your stomach and uses said fat to rebuild your breasts.
Step 6. Finally lose the weight you gained after your cancer diagnosis so you finally weigh what you did before the cancer diagnosis. (check the blog in a few days for a more serious post on how I actually lost my chemo weight)
Suddenly you will begin to receive all kinds of complements about how skinny you look, even if you weren't all that skinny before the cancer diagnosis.
So now you ask, "How should I respond to all of the complements on my weight loss?" Just smile and say thank you. We don't want to be sharing our secret, or do we?
Step 1. Gain weight by eating whatever you want due to depression caused by a cancer diagnosis.
Step 2. Gain more weight by eating whatever you want under doctor's orders while undergoing chemo.
Step 3. Get bloated from steroids being pumped in to you system on a weekly basis due to chemo.
Step 4. Eventually lose the chemo steroid bloat.
Step 5. Have surgery which takes fat from your stomach and uses said fat to rebuild your breasts.
Step 6. Finally lose the weight you gained after your cancer diagnosis so you finally weigh what you did before the cancer diagnosis. (check the blog in a few days for a more serious post on how I actually lost my chemo weight)
Suddenly you will begin to receive all kinds of complements about how skinny you look, even if you weren't all that skinny before the cancer diagnosis.
So now you ask, "How should I respond to all of the complements on my weight loss?" Just smile and say thank you. We don't want to be sharing our secret, or do we?
20 February 2010
FYI OMG
Earlier this week, I learned about the OMG! Cancer Summit for Young Adults. The 3rd annual conference will be held on May 23, 2010 in New York on the campus of Pace University. The event sounds like a wonderful opportunity to meet other young people who share similar cancer-related concerns. The day-long event will offer networking opportunities and host different panel discussions. Panel topics of high interest to me are on fertility issues and living life after cancer, but also listed on the agenda are conversations on employment/insurance, sex & relationships, and social media advocacy. Well known names in the young person's cancer world, including Kairol Rosenthal, author of Everything Changes: The Insider's Guide to Cancer in Your 20s and 30s and Matthew Zachary, founder of I'm Too Young For This!, are highlighted as panel participants, I don't know if I will be able to attend, but I am most definitely considering it.
To learn more about OMG! 2010 go to http://omgsummit.org/2010/index.html. Registration begins on April 5.
To learn more about OMG! 2010 go to http://omgsummit.org/2010/index.html. Registration begins on April 5.
29 December 2008
Bubbles!
One of my favorite forms of relaxation is sitting in a hot bath, usually with bubbles, reading a magazine or trashy novel. According to my oncologist's office, bubble baths may cause urinary tract infections (UTI) in chemo patients. As I understand it, the UTI is caused by the chemicals in the commercially produced bubble baths. The thought of getting a UTI while on chemo made me fearful, so I was sad at the thought of 5 months with no relaxing bubble baths.
For Christmas, Brandon made me homemade lavender bath bombs with all natural ingredients. He found the recipe online from Instructables.com. I believe most of the ingredients were found at a local health food store. He has two additional tips for anyone who wants to makes some bombs:
TIPS:
1) Measure dry ingredients by weight, not volume
2) Plan to triple the amount of wet ingredients called for. You might not use the whole mix, but you'll certainly need to use more than the recipe calls for.
I highly recommend these homemade bath bombs. The bath smelled great and the oils made my skin very soft. Once again, I can enjoy leisurely baths through the long winter nights.
For Christmas, Brandon made me homemade lavender bath bombs with all natural ingredients. He found the recipe online from Instructables.com. I believe most of the ingredients were found at a local health food store. He has two additional tips for anyone who wants to makes some bombs:
TIPS:
1) Measure dry ingredients by weight, not volume
2) Plan to triple the amount of wet ingredients called for. You might not use the whole mix, but you'll certainly need to use more than the recipe calls for.
I highly recommend these homemade bath bombs. The bath smelled great and the oils made my skin very soft. Once again, I can enjoy leisurely baths through the long winter nights.
27 December 2008
The Third Day of Christmas
Happy Holidays (whatever that holiday may be) to everyone!
So I am surviving the my latest round of A/C chemo. My appetite has not been good. I've been feeling more nauseous than usual (but no vomit yet!). And the exhaustion, aches, and pains are not going away.
Brandon and I chose to not travel for our holidays this year. The reason for this season was chemo. Holiday travel can be very stressful, and my body shouldn't be overly taxed. As it turns out, I had chemo scheduled for 2 days before Christmas so we couldn't reasonably plan to travel anywhere. We celebrated our first Christmas as a married couple with a tree, our cats, and a delicious meal at the local Chinese (non-buffet) restaurant. I ate a double serving of wonton soup, a couple of steamed dumplings, and a bite or two of crab rangoon. Brandon ordered beef in brown sauce, without vegetables but as per usual at this restaurant, the order was confused and the beef arrived with mounds of delicious looking broccoli. So now the broccoli leftovers await me in the refrigerator.
I love broccoli. Naively, I thought my love of broccoli would keep me safe from ever getting cancer. A quick Google search proves that I am not crazy, and broccoli is considered a cancer-fighting-healer vegetable, see here. So my love of broccoli now confuses me. I'm not sure how to take this next step in our relationship. How can I trust broccoli again? Sure it is still delicious and can be prepared in a variety of salads, soups, pastas, casseroles, etc..., but I counted on broccoli to protect me from a horrible disease, and broccoli failed me. So what is the moral of this tale? Don't count on food to stop cancer.
So I am surviving the my latest round of A/C chemo. My appetite has not been good. I've been feeling more nauseous than usual (but no vomit yet!). And the exhaustion, aches, and pains are not going away.
Brandon and I chose to not travel for our holidays this year. The reason for this season was chemo. Holiday travel can be very stressful, and my body shouldn't be overly taxed. As it turns out, I had chemo scheduled for 2 days before Christmas so we couldn't reasonably plan to travel anywhere. We celebrated our first Christmas as a married couple with a tree, our cats, and a delicious meal at the local Chinese (non-buffet) restaurant. I ate a double serving of wonton soup, a couple of steamed dumplings, and a bite or two of crab rangoon. Brandon ordered beef in brown sauce, without vegetables but as per usual at this restaurant, the order was confused and the beef arrived with mounds of delicious looking broccoli. So now the broccoli leftovers await me in the refrigerator.
I love broccoli. Naively, I thought my love of broccoli would keep me safe from ever getting cancer. A quick Google search proves that I am not crazy, and broccoli is considered a cancer-fighting-healer vegetable, see here. So my love of broccoli now confuses me. I'm not sure how to take this next step in our relationship. How can I trust broccoli again? Sure it is still delicious and can be prepared in a variety of salads, soups, pastas, casseroles, etc..., but I counted on broccoli to protect me from a horrible disease, and broccoli failed me. So what is the moral of this tale? Don't count on food to stop cancer.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
