Feeling Myself..Part 3 Post Surgery

So I finally had the surgery yesterday to remove the mass that was in my boob. My goodness was that an experience in itself. To be honest, it was the scariest, most nervewracking experience ever. To be in a hospital waiting room while you get the pre-op paperwork done, then you're shown into your room where they make you change into your robe behind a curtain, and not only that but you're stuck trying not to listen to the conversations going on around you, because you'd rather not know what the person next to you is going through, and hearing them voicing their concerns does not make yours any less.

I got the lucky opportunity to have my IV put in by a new nurse, and let me tell you, she was not successful. Here's the problem, I am absolutely terrible with needles, and I didn't need to hear someone say, "um, her vein shifted, I think we'll have to start over". But me being the big baby that I am, I got dizzy and nauseous and needed a few minutes to breathe, just so I wouldn't throw up. They decided to give me a pro nurse the second time around. Needless to say, my left arm and my left hand both have a nice black and blue.

I met with my anesthesiologist who asked me much of the same questions the pre-op nurse did. But when she didn't address my anxiety, I asked about it, and she was like are you worried about this? Of course, I said yeah, I'm kind of overwhelmed. She gave me something that was equivalent to two cups of wine and the worry surely went away. Overall, the operation took longer than originally anticipated, but I do feel like I'm handling it better than I thought I would.

Today I'm a bit sore, I'm in slight pain, but not enough to fill the super strong prescription that they gave me. I'm trying to be a trooper about all this and minimize the amount of pills I take. I want to endure this as best as I can. I am also swollen so I've been icing it to try and minimize it, but again, it's just all part of the recovery process.

I do have to say that throughout all this, I've had an amazing support system. And I truly want to thank those who were there for me. To those who weren't, it's fine, because I didn't have any expectations going through this. In fact, a good portion of those who read the first blog have yet to do my challenge that I asked of them. So in all honesty, I know where I stand and the people who stuck by me are the people who I will treasure the most, forever. Because they didn't have to take time out of their lives for something so heavy and something so hard-hitting but they did. They did it for me, and I will never forget it.

This journey isn't over. Tomorrow I get my dressings changed, and then I still have to wait for the final results of the biopsy. The good news of it all is that my scar will be minimal, the mass is out of my chest, and I can continue to work on maintaining my health while I'm still young and still got it. I'm happy with knowing that this was an eye-opening experience, and that there are people in my life who no matter what, were there for me, even if they hadn't known me for years. I have so much love in my heart right now, and I am so ready to share it.

Still Feeling Myself...My Journey Continues

So today was my appointment with the specialist, and I have to say I definitely believe I chose the right person to take care of me!

Here's the deal, it turns out this damn mass is a little bit bigger than we expected, and it's pushing the border on the scale of a large fibroadenoma. In other words, it definitely has to come out. It's seemingly benign with no indication or suspicion of being cancerous, therefore a biopsy is not needed prior to surgery, which means less time waiting, and less time worrying. What a damn relief!

In short, my surgery is scheduled for Wednesday 10/10 which the doc and I agree it's a lucky number :) I'll have to go back a week later for a post-op follow up and I may be able to come out with a minimal scar! Amazing :)

I'll keep you all posted post surgery. And I will be taking pink pics this month too. I just want to wait til this is over, or maybe I'll post later this week pre-op as well. Oh and I'm definitely rocking pink nails this month too!

Keep the pink coming and FEEL YOURSELF!

I'm Feeling Myself...Are You?

This is probably going to be the most important blog I will ever write. This is a blog that I never thought I'd be sharing, a topic I never thought I'd experience. And while many women have gone through worse, it's still a fucking scary thing when you're on that table and you hear something that will change your life, change your perspective, and honest to God it will make you value everything you've ever acquired.

Today, I received news that I have a fibroadenoma. A common, typically benign, small tumor, or lump on my breast. Easily removed through surgery, and many even choose to leave it and monitor it, as some tend to go away on their own. They can grow to be the size of a lemon, or they can be tiny. Mine is 2.5cm wide and 1.15cm in height. I'll most likely opt to have it removed, because I certainly do not want to know that there is an irritating lump present in my chest. You're not welcome here buddy, sorry you're gonna have to go.

I'm not writing this blog for pity, for viewers, for fans, for sympathy. None of that. I'm writing this blog today, because it's important for us women at ANY age to really start taking care of ourselves. I'm 24, about to be 25, and I'm thinking, man I have a LIFE ahead of me, I have TIME. But even then, there are just NO guarantees whatsoever! There's a lot in my life I want to accomplish, and have yet to accomplish, and I'm not going anywhere until I'm done.

Back to my point, back to my awesome title...FEEL YOURSELF UP!!! Yeah it sounds so wrong, but we have got to do it. Go online and look up how to administer a self breast exam and start feeling those bad boys up. Don't wanna do it? Then have your boyfriend or girlfriend do it. Tell them what they should be looking for, and look regularly! That means once a month, because ladies, our hormones are forever raging. They change our bodies constantly and again, typically, we're told to wait til we're 30, but turns out, a fibroadenoma is more common in women under 30.

Oh and lastly, fuck you school system for not adding this shit to the health education line-up. Saving the TaTas is such a big deal nowadays, and we should start to face the damn reality...it can happen at any age, even if it is more common in women over 40. I don't care about common anymore, I was never COMMON to begin with. So let's eliminate that word, and introduce reality, that ANYTHING and I mean ANYTHING is possible.

And by the way, if you're a friend of mine, and you truly care, here's what I want you all to do. I'm not asking you to make a donation in my name or anything like that. I'm gonna make it fun for you all...and I'm gonna add my own, to show that I'm gonna play fair. Go out, buy a pink shirt (you can get plain t's cheap almost anywhere so don't give me the broke excuse), and buy one of those braceletes, any bracelet. Whether it says I love Boobies, or it's a real Breast Cancer bracelet. Then, wear it, and post a picture!!! Title it I'm Feeling Myself! Plus, October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month anyway...it's only super appropriate! Do this for me, fellas too! I wanna see these pics so get to posting and add it in my comments box! If you really wanna make me feel awesome, tag me in that shit! LOVE YOU ALL!