This is the shower where I found a lump in my breast.
Where were you when yours was found?
Archive for July, 2009
This Is the Shower
Saturday, July 25th, 2009Share Your Success Story!
Wednesday, July 8th, 2009
This isn’t entirely a post about breast cancer. It’s more about weight loss, which really does connect to breast cancer in a way, because there are many women (like me) who revamp their lifestyles, clean up their diets and get fit after a run-in with the disease. It’s a good idea, you know? The whole clean life thing.
Anyway, if you have a great weight loss success story and would like to be featured on That’s Fit (I write there too), then please leave me a comment, and I’ll be in touch. We’re sharing inspiring Biggest Loser sorta stories, and all you’d need to do is answer a few questions and submit two photos (before and after). Check out Mel in this post. And Roni in this one. And visit That’s Fit on Monday at 11 a.m. and check out Heather — impressive. These posts will give you a sense of how your spotlight would appear.
If you are not a candidate for this project of mine but know someone who might be, please send that person my way.
Pretty please.
And thank you.
Photo: D Sharon Pruitt, Flickr
Comfort From a Boy
Tuesday, July 7th, 2009Writer Abigail Thomas offers in her book “Thinking About Memoir” the following writing exercise: Write two pages (one post) in which a child comforts an adult.
That’s easy.
The child was Joey. The adult was me. And it happened in February, 2005, one day after I realized my hair was shedding from my scalp faster than I could say chemotherapy. It had been 13 days since my second treatment with the toxic breast cancer drugs Adriamycin and Cytoxan, and not a rubber band nor a hat could hold my wisps in place. My scalp was sore, each hair still attached to my head hung with a weight that was nearly unbearable, and it had become abundantly clear that the moment had arrived: It was time to shave my head.
“Don’t worry, mom, you’re not going to die,” announced my almost 4-year-old boy, who was taking his turn shaving away the last of my chemo-stricken hair. “It’s only a haircut,” he assured me.
Whether he knew it or not, Joey was absolutely right. It was only a haircut. I didn’t die. And while some of his comments during my years fighting breast cancer weren’t as comforting — “You look like an alien,” he revealed while visiting me in the hospital in March of that same year — this is the one that still brings tears to my eyes, because, well, it was innocent, it was real and most of all, it was damn comforting.
The child, almost 4 years old
The adult, 34 years old
This post can also be found at Braving Boys.
Thank You, Nicole
Friday, July 3rd, 2009
Me, thankful for my doctor, October 2008
I love that I inspired my friend Nicole in Ohio to write names all over her body in black permanent marker. Why did she do it? Well, because she did a breast cancer walk and wanted to honor those who donated to the cause by displaying their names on her arms, legs and other parts. She took her cue from me — I’ve done this marker thing twice now (here and here), and it makes me proud that she followed my lead, and is planning to do it all over again next year. I am also flattered that Nicole wrote about me in a recent email to all her contributors. Here’s what she said:
Hi. I am so excited to share with you that I received notification today from Komen of Columbus that I made the honor roll (top 100 fundraisers)! I placed 26th with a total donation of just under $2,400. Total raised by all for the event via donations was just over $500,000!
Did you know every $150 raised helped one uninsured woman get a mammogram!
They asked me to share why I did it and I shared about my mom and my friend Jacki! I also shared with them that the idea of writing names on myself came from my friend Jacki and her efforts to raise money in Florida! Jacki is a good friend from Kent State and SURVIVOR! If you have time check out her blog: www.cancerspot.org
Thanks again for your donations and coming along with me! I can’t wait until next year!
Thank you, Nicole, for all your hard work in the fight against breast cancer. I am so happy to have you on my side.
