Damn That Yearly Mammogram!
I made it my New Year’s goal (not resolution) to get caught up on all the doctor’s appointments and other things that I had been putting off until I was healed well enough from my spinal surgery last spring. One of those appointments I had really put off was my yearly (it was now bi-yearly) mammogram. I meant to do it before my surgery, but of course found every excuse in the book to let it slip. Why am I sharing this? Because when you hit 40 it is really important to have your tatas checked – yearly. Especially if you have breast cancer somewhere in your family. Don’t leave your breasts unchecked and wait until you feel something.
Yes, mammograms basically suck for two reasons. One, having your boobs squished down to a pancake hurts no matter your size. Two, you can’t breath until you get the results. That day or two wait for the call is a literal mind f*ck, but what you don’t know or want to know can kill you. The waiting time is excruciating.
By the time we get to our late 30’s and 40’s we all know somebody who has or has had and beaten breast cancer. I know too many women who have had it. My maternal grandmother had breast cancer and thankfully it was caught early enough to be treatable. She died at an old age, thankfully.
So I had my mammogram this past Tuesday morning and was on pins and needles until I received the call everything looked fine the next day. I could finally breath. I was told my boobs are dense which makes it all that much more imperative to have them checked every year (your husband/boyfriend don’t count). Apparently dense breasts (which you can have if you are an A cup or D cup) are more susceptibility to breast cancer.
So I am asking you gentle reader, who I consider a friend, even if I don’t know you by face – to make an appointment today to get a mammogram. Make it your New Year’s resolution/goal to call your GP or OBGYN to get a prescription and get it done. Yearly. Just do it. Please. And don’t forget to do your own monthly self-exam too!
Thank you.
– Lauren Dimet Waters
Photo: RunForTheCure