Be vigilant and get to know your body well!

When I was 5 or 6 years old, I went to a hospital to visit my mother. Father said my mother just had a surgery to remove a cyst on her stomach. In 2007, I knew it was an ovarian cyst when my mother had her utero removal operation because she developed other cysts in her utero. That year, my mother said that she had several boobies surgery to remove cyst miom (or whatevs) since she was 23 years old in 1984.

Since that year, I never stop doing monthly Breast Self Exam (BSE - periksa payudara sendiri/Sadari). Sometimes I check them sporadically because I thought, "Well, they were okay last month, so why on earth I have to squeeze them like this?" In fact, they were okay, until I found a lump on December 2011. It seemed to come out of nowhere but it was very easy to feel, in my lefty and just 10 o'clock from the nipple. At first, I ignored it thinking that it will disappear one day.

Approximately 2 months later, I felt that lump kept getting bigger and bigger. I also found another lump inside my right breast, it was painless. Since then I thought about those lumps a lot and wouldn't quit thinking about it so much until I see my gyno or have a mammae USG or have it biopsied.

The small lump kept growing that until I felt pain. The last 2 months I kept thinking about the lump and I felt so afraid already and thinking that it might be a cyst. Or breast cancer? I need to see a doctor, but I was afraid. What if the doctor says they must be removed? I am not afraid of surgery, but hello, I must admit I have perfect shaped boobies.. and a breast surgery will make them look ugly.

I had to admit that it took 100 nights to convince myself that everything will be just fine and any kind of breast surgery, if needed, will not affect my future life (#IfYouKnowWhatIMean). It took 6 months for me to go to a doctor, and he directly sent me to an Oncologist. So last week, I went to an Oncologist and had a mammae USG. My Oncologist is not concerned about waiting long enough again after mammae USG result indicate a benign finding. He sent me to an operation room on Thursday morning to have them removed. Meet my little fellas:

These days, women can't wait until age 40 or 50 to begin screening for breast tumor/cancer with mammograms. Whether you have a family history of tumors/cancer or not, if you value your life on earth in any way, I hope you are being vigilant and getting to know your body well enough to know when you feel something different when conducting a self exam. One way to make lumps less frightening is to get to know what your breasts normally feel like and simply being aware of what is normal for you. If you feel a lump that seem to get worse or more obvious over time, do not hesitate to see a doctor.

BSE is inexpensive and noninvasive. Here are some links that provide instructions on performing a thorough BSE:

• Youtube: Breast Self-Exam How-to (Part 1 of 2) - HealthiNation
• Youtube: Breast Self-Exam How-to (Part 2 of 2) - HealthiNation
• The Five Steps of a Breast Self-Exam (Breastcancer.org)
• Breast Self-Examination (WebMD)

Ladies, don't ignore signs of trouble. Don't delay, forget about or willingly choose not to perform critical self exams. Please be vigilant with your health because you are loved and you have a purpose to walk on earth so please don't contribute to cutting your own time on earth short. If you haven't done a self-exam in a while, do it now :)

With ♥,
Me.