Check your self!

So this weekend as I concluded opening week events and scheduled my, um, yearly visit to the DR (too much? – whatever) I realized that it was this time last year that we discovered a lump in my breast. Now it wasn’t cancer it was actually just a fluid filled sac, a cyst but the Doc gave it another name. I went to a few Dr’s to get multiple opinions and then had surgery about 6 weeks later to remove the lump and do a biopsy. It was an out patient surgery that only took 25-30 minutes (prep time was what sucked), but a little scary as I had never been under the knife before! I loved when they knocked me out except I didn’t even realize they had done it until I was passing out and I didn’t even get to count backwards…WTF, I wanted to count! It was more like, “we are going to give you a cocktail. Oh haha, fun! I want…. zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.”

The lump felt like a junior mint (remember that episode of Seinfeld, haha) or a gel pill that was slightly rubbery and could move fairly easily under your fingers. Cancer lumps do not move as easily and are firm. You also could have other symptoms like actual changes in the look and feel of your breast, it varies. I tried to read up on all the possible situations just in case for some strange reason they were wrong. Some people may not have agreed with me reading all these things because sometimes you begin to freak yourself out, but I am glad I read up on it and that day I was pretty comfortable with the outcome of the surgery.

The reason I am sharing this is because I think everyone should take time and read up on the symptoms of breast cancer and be aware of what you need to look for! You should start giving yourself exams once or twice a month at different points during the month so you know how your breasts feel during your cycle. Don’t rely on your once a year Dr’s appt because I went to my Dr. a month and half before and they didn’t find anything. T. was actually the one who found it! Hey, it is something you can do with your significant other!!!

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month but you should always be aware of the effects of breast cancer. Be proactive when it comes to this. Yeah, my thing wasn’t that big a deal and was very minor in the scheme of things but it made me think and during this process I discovered I should have been aware of this stuff long before a situation like this occurred and I should have been checking myself regularly. It is one of those moments in life where I think someone is telling you to stop and pay attention, don’t be so self-absorbed! I am a controller and want to have control of every situation, things need to be planned and go a certain way – but that’s not life, you can’t control/plan your life all the time – SHIT HAPPENS! So over the past year I have really focused on trying to let go, focus on myself and my family and friends, and remember what is important in my life. I am still not there, but working on it and glad this whole thing happened to me because I am more aware of who I am then I ever was before!

P.S. I digress, sorry – Women, check yourself! And men, check yourselves out too!!