March 2-3, 2025

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 Let me begin with this -  I'd never had a mammogram prior to starting this journey, but my GYN had shown me how to do a self exam years ago. If you don't know how to do a self breast exam, have your GYN show you. It's simple and easy to do. It's something that can be done in the shower.

Let's go back to March 2, 2025... I was laying in bed on Sunday night/Monday Morning (middle of the night) getting over a mild case of something respiratory that Nathan had shared with me. Sleep was off and on that night and I was watching TV in bed. I threw my right arm over my head onto my pillow and my left arm across my chest. I  just happened to feel something different with my finger tips. Brain on alert and fully awake at that point, self breast exam was under way. Sure enough, lump in the right breast. Needless to say, there was no further sleeping that night and tears and prayers ensued. I knew immediately what the outcome was going to be. 

Monday, March 3, as soon as I thought doctor offices opened, I was on the phone. I started with the mammography center in Roanoke - need a referral from my primary doctor to make an appointment. Called the one in Bedford - same reply. My appointment with my primary care doctor wasn't until April 14. I called their office to see if there was any way I could get in sooner. One guess what they said....nothing sooner, even tho I told them my concerns.

Feeling frustrated, I looked at my MyChart online. Not exactly sure what I was looking for there since I had no previous visits to anything short of a couple urgent care visits over the years. I'm not a Doctor-going gal unless something is wrong. I know, not exactly the best practice, but my extended family followed the adage of "no news is good news" my entire life. I guess I took it literally to a degree.... 

So here I am looking at my online chart and I notice there's a link at the top that says "Your mammogram is overdue. Schedule now". Ok then, let's click that and see what happens... (that's my philosophy on all things technical). Follow the prompts and just like that, mammogram scheduled. Better yet, only 2 days later! I had circumvented their protocols and gotten my way. Are you surprised? If so, you don't know me that well. 😛


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