Month: October 2018

Random Tuesday’s have a whole new meaning…

On By journeyofenoughLeave a comment

I used to use the phrase that included “on a random Tuesday”… until a random Tuesday changed my life. I was 41 years old when I heard those words on a Tuesday. I was teaching a class on a Tuesday when I got a call. I was standing in the hallway on a Tuesday when I heard the doctor say, “I am not sure how to tell you this, but you have breast cancer.” For a while, my world stopped on a Tuesday. I am going to give new energy to Tuesday’s! Tuesday’s are going to be a regular blog post day from now on.

As I sit at the orthodontist office, waiting for my youngest son to get some brackets put on his teeth, I am making a commitment. A commitment to be more consistent in my writing. A commitment to make Tuesday’s something to look forward to. A commitment to myself and to you. I keep getting told that someone needs to hear what I have to say. Although that’s hard for me to believe, I’m going to assume it’s true and hope you will continue to follow me in my journey.

Putting myself out there is scary. It’s eye opening and heart warming. I am hoping it will be a positive spot for your Tuesday and won’t be as “random.” Consistent Tuesday will be the phrase instead of random. I hope you will join me on my journey of enough as we share some time together.

PS – the flowers are from my husband, who sent me random flowers, because unexpected flowers are so amazing! Pink for breast cancer awareness month and I am the chairperson of our Relay for Life team.

Pinktober

On By journeyofenoughLeave a comment

I’m sure you know by now that October is Breast Cancer Awareness month. To some people, it might be an annoying amount of pink. The first year after I was diagnosed, I wore pink every single day in October. It’s not that I love the color (I really didn’t own much pink previously). I wanted to raise awareness. I wanted someone who wouldn’t think of getting checked to call and make an appointment for a mammogram. I wanted them to see a (then) 41 year old breast cancer survivor and realize that it could happen to them. I want a husband to remind his wife to get checked. I wanted a mom to urge her daughter to get checked, or a group of friends to go together & have drinks after.

According to statistics, my aunts having breast cancer might not have been of concern – they aren’t “straight line” relatives. Straight line relatives would be mother/daughter/sister/grandmother. I had none of those… yet I went anyway. My cancer was detected because they had a baseline to compare to from the year before. I had gone the past few years. Because of this baseline, they could see the lump that was not there 12 months prior. They could take action instead of just waiting to see if it changed. People may complain about mammograms being painful. It is far more painful to have a wire guided biopsy and then have a mammogram (to make sure they have your cancerous tumors pinpointed).

If you’ve had breast cancer in the past, there is no reason to avoid follow up appointments. None. Think you don’t have the time? It takes less than 30 minutes. 30 minutes once a year. You are worth it. You are so worth it that you should go out for lunch after… or get a massage, or a manicure or get a treat of some kind. 30 minutes a year could be the difference between stage 1 or 2 and stage 4. There is no stage 5. I was 41 when I was diagnosed and I have promised my husband and my boys and my sisters and my parents and my friends that I will get checked every year for the rest of my life. Pinktober is just a good reminder to do so. My appointment is already scheduled for November. When is yours? Make sure your journey lasts as long as possible- make your mammogram appointment or urge the women in your life to schedule theirs.