Lucy Mongeer, left, and Susans Podsiadlik share a laugh during a meeting of Threads of Hope. After a diagnosis
About 1 in 3 people have a probability of being diagnosed with cancer in their lifetimes, according to the American Can- cer Society. Skin and breast cancer rank as the most common cancers affecting women, and women have a 1 in 8 chance of developing breast cancer in their lifetimes, the ACA reports. Here in the Twin Lakes community, 500-600 people are di- agnosed with cancer each year, Melissa says. “You’re a survivor on the day you’re diagnosed,” she says. Those numbers point to why it’s important to have screen- ings, such as mammograms, for early detection. Typically, women 40 and over should get mammograms
once a year, says Leslie Goeke, coordinator for the Baxter Re- gional Breast Imaging Center. Some women should get mam-
mograms earlier than 40, so women should talk to their doc- tors to determine when they should get their mammograms. Emotions are unpredictable after a cancer diagnosis. “A lot of people feel like, ‘I got this, I can handle this on my
own,’ ” Melissa says. “With cancer comes every stage of grief. You and your loved ones experience grief, and it doesn’t come in any order. Sometimes it’s all at once. It’s a lengthy process.” It’s completely normal to feel shock, denial, anger, sadness,
depression, fear and anxiety. It can be difficult communicat- ing with family members and friends, especially when they are going through the stages of grief themselves. “They don’t know how to help you and you don’t know how
to tell them how to help you,” Roxy says. “They just want to fix it and make it better, and you can’t fix this.” Or family members and friends simply just don’t know
LIVING WELL SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2019 23
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36
