As a grandmother, full time high school teacher, and PdD student, I thought my tiredness was coming from age and work, so I had a stress test and upper and lower GI. The doctors said everything was fine, but none of them asked if I'd had a mammogram. I had not.
In July 2006 I felt it as I rolled out of bed; it felt like a hardened orange beneath the skin. I immediately came to the computer and searched breast cancer. I read about the "dimple." I looked down and there it was... like a monster that had come in the night!
I can't begin to tell of all the wonderful, supportive people I met along my journey of chemo, lumpectomy, and radiation. When I had to wear a wig and when I began to go wig-less, my students were my biggest fans. People seemed to come out of the woodwork to help. My daughters began running in the cancer awareness fundraisers. My sisters had a hat-tea party.
Life is so precious! Since my experience, we have a new grandson (I can't imagine not getting to know him), I still teach full time, I went to Israel with my sister who would not have gone alone, I am almost ready to begin my dissertation, and my husband and I are making our home wheelchair assessable for later years.
I want every woman and man to have the same wonderful care I had, and hopefully, avoid some of the stresses by having mammograms and early detection. One of my professors whose mom died with breast cancer told me about Click A Day. I now CLICK every day and buy gifts from the site. I urge everyone I know to join up and click.
Thank you, Breast Cancer Site, thank you!
Swansea, SC
