Tag: surgery

Each one of us has a story

You should have seen my face when the nurse told me I had to go home with a catheter. I was less than cheerful. Yet, I obeyed, because what choice did I really have?

Last week’s hysterectomy was a smashing success, minus the bag of my own urine I have had to carry around for the last five days.

God always seems ... Read More

Have you ever been encouraged by someone else’s story? I bet you have. It’s a special brand of kindness to share our vulnerabilities because it reminds others in their scariest moments that we’re not alone.

Fargo resident Pat Pobst recalls a time many years ago that she needed to draw on another family’s story.

“Back in the late 1980s, The Forum ran ... Read More

It’s been a few years since I’ve talked about my boobs so I thought I would spend my time with you today revisiting that topic.

In May of 2015, I was diagnosed with breast cancer on my 40th birthday. No signs or symptoms, it was found during a routine annual exam. (We interrupt this story for a public service announcement: Women, ... Read More

Have you ever bitten off more than you could chew?

I’m not talking about the Christmas ham — I’m talking about a project you thought you could handle, but couldn’t. That’s what happened to Oscar Bergos from Moorhead, Minn.

Luckily, kindness pulled up to save the day.

“About 15 years ago, I had a cottage out near Detroit Lakes, Minn. Although I was ... Read More

In the beginning of January, Rebecca Somers boarded a plane in State College, Pennsylvania, heading for Detroit, Michigan.

She had no idea that what she was about to witness on that airplane would give her a voice reaching hundreds of thousands of people, reminding them to hold onto kindness.

Here’s her story.

“True story: As I sat on the plane, I talked with ... Read More

So a funny thing happened after I had breast cancer. My daughter’s little “Let’s help Mom” sewing project exploded into something that none of us could have ever asked for or imagined.

Let’s recap.

May 2015: Diagnosed with Stage 2 Lobular Invasive Carcinoma (breast cancer).

July 2015: Single mastectomy.

August 2015: Doctor declares me “Cancer free”; Puts me on Tamoxifen for ten years ... Read More

2018. That’s the date (or at least year) set in my mind for the release of my new breast cancer book. This is the book that shows what the process of reconstruction looks like on a real woman’s body — my body.

But I am only one. One voice, one body, one choice of the many reconstruction options. That’s why I ... Read More

It is finished. The reconstruction is done. My breast cancer journey is over.

Scratch that. I’m not sure it’ll ever really be over. As long as I have to deal with tingling toes and hot flashes and my hair thinning out as a result of my anti-cancer medication, the reminder of this ordeal will be in the back of my mind.

That’s ... Read More

Little Jordan Phillips is $645 and one day away from being the top fundraiser for the Komen Athens Race for the Cure. As a mom, how can I not throw the net out there one more time to say, “Anyone else?”

Is there anyone else out there who was thinking they’d like to make a donation but never quite ... Read More