It was six months ago on the morning of Thursday
April 15th that I discovered a
lump in my left breast. It wasn’t the usual sounds of my husband rattling around in the bathroom getting ready for work, which woke me up that morning. It was
an awful throbbing pain that directed me to my left breast. As soon as I touched my breast I could feel that it was swollen and very warm. I quickly discovered the source of my discomfort it was a
lump on the side of my breast. As I examined the lump I began to wince from touching it. I sat up in bed and said in a loud astonished voice “you got to be kidding me”! Nick heard me cry out and came into the bedroom, “what’s the matter”, he said. I guided his hand to the lump that I had discovered, does this feel like a lump to you? As I waited for his input I looked into his eyes to see if they would shed some light on what his thoughts might be at this moment, in a soft voice he replied, “yes it does and I think the
first thing we need to do is to call the doctor and schedule and appointment”.
I got out of bed and tried to reassure myself and my husband that it was probably nothing more than an out of control pimple under my skin
in the wrong place and
at the wrong time. As I stood in the doorway saying good-bye to my husband who was spending the weekend in Chicago on business, I promised him that I would call my Ob/Gyn today. I called the office to schedule the appointment and the receptionist stated that their earliest availability would be on
Monday… mentally I knew that this was going to be a long weekend.
Later in the day Nick called from Chicago to see how I was feeling. I managed to tell him that I had been given an appointment for Monday before he had to jet off to a meeting. I felt helpless and in despair, I couldn’t believe that this was happening to me. The timing of this discovery in my mind could not have come at a worst time. Nick’s promotion is in full force, hence the business trip to Chicago, we are spending practically every weekend getting the house ready to be put on the market, and looking for a new home in a different state.
On Monday as we were driving to the appointment I explained to my husband that my doctor would do a breast exam and depending on what he finds during the exam he would give me a script to have a mamogram and an ultra sound of my left breast. I left the office with the script and immediately upon arriving home I placed the called to the diagnostic imaging center to schedule the appointment, they were kind enough to fit me in the next morning. That evening as Nick and I lay in bed still wondering what was to come, I shared with him my state of mind. I thought that since I was dealing with the whole MS thing it some how served as an automatic guaranteed against any other major illnesses coming my way. I began to cry for being so stupid to think such a thing. Nick said I am sure that everything is going to be ok. He held me close until I finally drifted off to sleep.
On
Thursday April 22nd I received a call from my doctor informing me that they found what they call a simple cyst ½ centimeter in size and my doctor stated they usually are not cancerous, however I would like for you to also see a surgeon. After I hung up the phone I kept hearing the doctors words
usually they are not cancerous… usually! That’s good… right? Do I really need to see the surgeon as he had suggested? I am in the clear… right? Well, I ended up contacting the American Cancer Society and I spoke with a woman who was very understanding and helpful. I explained to her that the doctor’s
usually not cancerous words struck a funny cord inside of me. She advised me to call the surgeons office and schedule the appointment… hopefully the appointment will close
this medical chapter in my life. I picked up the phone and scheduled the appointment with the surgeon.
The surgeon looked at my reports and examined the breast in question. He also agreed with my doctor that it was a simple cyst ½ centimeter in size. He explained to me that in six months I should have another
mamogram and
ultra sound done to make sure that there were not any “other” abnormalities. I left that office realizing that this chapter was over
for now… I knew that I had to
live in the now and I could not worry myself about other abnormalities that may or may not be there six months from now. When
the lump was discovered I immediately scheduled an appointment with my doctor and I did not drag my feet.
Ladies October is breast Cancer Awareness Month and
breast cancer can and will happen to anyone at any given time. Let’s make sure that we remind our
Mothers, sisters, sister-in-laws, nieces and girlfriends to have
an annual breast check-up! And
guy's breast cancer can also happen to you, so spread the word!
On
October 15th it will be time for me to schedule that six month check-up and I am
now ready to open up that new chapter in my life.
Trish
The Dial Corporation will donate $100,000 to benefit the Breast Cancer Network of Strength in support of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
http://www.networkofstrength.org/
In October 2010,
Perdue Farms will donate$1.00 for every chicken recipe uploaded to
http://www.perdue.com/ , with a maximum donation of $10,000 to Susan G. Komen for the Cure. For complete details with terms and conditions, visit
www.perdue.com/recipededication.
READ FOR THE CURE - Benefiting the Susan G. Komen for the Cure
www.myreadforthecure.com/falloffer
*Click on the link to purchase a
Survivor Mug
Pink Ribbon Photo – Photographer Unknown
Breast Exam Photo – The National Breast Cancer.org
All other Photos by Trish
www.wix.com/TrishN/Trish-Nicholas-Photography
To Purchase Gallery Photos Courtesy of Redbubble
http://www.redbubble.com/people/tmeian
To Follow My Photography Journey:
http://hubpages.com/hub/A-Photographers-Journey
