Melissa Etheridge Breast Cancer Survivor

I love sharing these stories, as a woman we can be so proud of our Survivors. Who would know:

In her 2005 battle with breast cancer, Melissa Etheridge survived a lumpectomy plus five rounds of chemotherapy and radiation. The experience led her to make over her lifestyle: She committed herself to working every day to keep her body healthy and strong. Here, the two-time Grammy Award winner and mother of two reveals how positive thinking helped her endure uncomfortable treatments and what eating habits she's changed since becoming cancer-free. Brace yourself: this is one rocker sure to inspire.

Q: Did you think breast cancer couldn't happen to you?
A: We all have this sense of invincibility. Even though my father, aunt and grandmother passed away from cancer—it was all over my family—I was surprised to hear the diagnosis. The possibility might have been somewhere in the back of my head, but I wasn't walking around thinking this would happen.

Q: What was it like hearing the test results?
A: I had been running along in my life at a fast pace. When I heard it was cancer, I just stood still. My life passed over me like a big wave, and after, I was left there standing. This turned out to be a very good thing. I stopped. I looked at my life, I looked at my body and spirit. I got a new perspective. That's brought me incredible clarity and a lot of peace.

Q: Were you ever afraid you might die?
A: Once I overcame breast cancer, I wasn't afraid of anything anymore. I now have a different relationship with fear. There are only two things in our reality, love and fear. I try to make my choices out of love.

Comments

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Someone once wrote"... when i get really cold, or get goosebumbs all over my body, the whole things really scrunch up, like, my entire areola scrunches itself up into a wrinkled little mound. it looks really weird and ugly, and i haven't ever seen other people's breasts do it. what is wrong with my areola/nipples??" The answer: Well nothing is wrong. This is what my areola does too. It's a normal reaction to the coldness or to irritation / stimulation. The little muscles in the areola do a similar goosebump thing as your other skin can do. People often call this phenomenon "hard nipples". Also note that skin on areola has less feeling or sensation to it than other areas of your body. If the areola was very sensitive, then breastfeeding would probably be quite uncomfortable because the baby pulls and tugs it! The nipples are sensitive but the sensitivity changes with hormonal changes, such as occur at mestrual cycle or pregnancy. Also this v...

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I am still a woman - Confessions of a twice cancer survivor - my journey by Nina Ann McCurley

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