Tag Archives: mammogram

My First Mammogram

So if you have never had a mammogram than you have never had a “boobie pancake”, before I had mine everyone lied to me. They all told me it wasn’t bad, yeah right!!! I am going to be honest I guess there could have been things that were worse but, off the top of my head I cannot think of what it would be. I am not positive who invented the mammogram but I am convinced either it was a man or a female into pain. Here is how my day went… First, my husband came because I think he … Continue reading →

How to Make a Mammogram More Comfortable

If you have been putting off getting a mammogram because it is uncomfortable, you might want to know that there are several ways to make it a bit more pleasant. Okay, maybe pleasant isn’t the right word. After all, when someone takes your breast and stretched it across the room before smooshing it flat, you have to expect some discomfort. You can, however, lessen that experience with some simple steps. Timing is Everything The timing of your mammogram can make a big difference in how comfortable the procedure can be. Breast are most sensitive in the days leading up to … Continue reading →

When Problems Come

When problems come, as they do to all of us at some time or another, it’s a comfort to have that special one to turn to. This week I was called back after a mammogram for further X-rays and ultrasound etc and I experienced first hand the support and love of my darling husband. As we waited for the days to pass before the tests, he sought always to encourage me. He also prayed for me and came with me when the day for the tests came. Among the women waiting only a couple had their guys with them. The … Continue reading →

How God Calmed Fears

Any woman who has ever been for a mammogram, knows the feelings it arouses and the waiting on tenterhooks till the letter saying all is clear arrives. Imagine this. You open the letter and read you are being called back for further X rays and tests. Your heart misses a beat or two. Your eyes blur. You decide you must have read it wrongly. But the words stay stubbornly the same. Yet there is a sense in which you are not surprised at all. Even though you have no symptoms, discovered no lumps or changes, there is a feeing of … Continue reading →

100 Things Every Marriage Should Experience Before Dying

Have you heard of the book 100 Things To Do Before You Die? (Not to be confused with 101 Things To Do Before You Die, which, while the title’s similar, is an entirely different beast of a book and was written by a different author, Richard Horne.) Dave Freeman, one of the 100’s co-authors, died this past August. I’ve never read the book, but I certainly got a sense of the man. Here’s a snippet from his obituary in the Los Angeles Times: The “100 Things” approach later swept the publishing industry, said Neil Teplica, who wrote the book with … Continue reading →

Huge Health Innovations from 2007

The past year was a big one for health innovations. Here’s a look at some of the most amazing advancements in tests and treatments in 2007. Researchers from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have discovered bisphosphonates. These compounds actually prevent bacteria from sharing DNA — which could mean an end to drug-resistant bacteria. Bisphosphonates can actually kill the cells that harbor drug-resistant DNA. Probiotics — the friendly bacteria in the body — can prevent or cure yeast infections. 2007 saw the introduction of an over the counter supplement that contains two strains of lactobacillus that are known … Continue reading →

Cancer Statistics

Prevention magazine recently teamed up with the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center to poll American women about cancer. They got some interesting results! More than fifty percent of women polled have a close friend or relative who has been diagnosed with cancer. That is a mixed blessing — it means there are a lot of people with cancer, but it also means that a lot of women are getting tested. 92% of women over forty are scheduling mammograms to detect breast cancer. 85% of women surveyed had a mammogram in the last two years. 94% of women polled … Continue reading →

Do You Know When To Get Screened?

You know what tests you need. Maybe it’s a mammogram and pap smear. Maybe it’s a colonoscopy. But do you know when you should start getting these tests in order to help protect yourself from cancer? According to the Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS), most Americans don’t know the appropriate age to start cancer screening tests. The National Cancer Institute developed HINTS to see how the general public accesses and uses information about cancer and has been studying screening habits since 2002. The bad news: Fifty-seven percent of American women did not know they should be getting mammograms starting … Continue reading →

My Mammogram

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I tend to just put myself out there when I write. Sometimes it works for me, other times it doesn’t. Today I’m going to put myself WAY out there, so if you’re the type who gets uncomfortable reading about “woman things” then just move on to another blog. When I turned 35, I had a very special rite of passage. You see, when every woman on your mother’s side of the family has either had breast cancer or a lumpectomy, doctors recommend that at 35 you have a baseline mammogram done. A baseline mammogram is basically a picture of your … Continue reading →