Hump Day

Good evening, ladies and gents! Hope your Wednesday was full of sangria, laughs, and sunshine like mine was! Today my spirits were high and there was a smile on my face! I didn't even mind the terrifying afternoon thunderstorm we had today. I swear thunder gets louder with every Florida storm. 

Question of the day: Do I get to keep my nipples? Some of you are probably reading this thinking.. gross or what the heck?!! This is actually a  super common question! See, when you are getting this surgery you can either keep yours, which is called nipple-sparing, or have yours removed. The plus side to having your nipples removed is that all the cells inside them are taken away, leaving you with an even lesser chance of ever getting breast cancer. No, this doesn't mean that people who do this simply don't have nipples. They're rebuilt and you literally cannot even tell they're not their natural ones. Nipple-sparing, which is what I am doing, leaves a very small chance that the ducts and nerves in your nipples can still get cancer. 

Wait.. you're getting this surgery and there is STILL a chance you can get breast cancer? Yep! This surgery makes it so I am at or a little below the national average for Americans who get breast cancer.  Statistically, I am at the smallest risk, but the doctors do still have to warn us!

I read a study today that said people with the BRCA gene mutation eventually have an 80% chance of getting breast cancer (meaning the older you get, the higher the risk). Holy guacamole. If someone told you that you had an 80% chance of winning the lottery, you'd be RUNNING to the closest 7-11. Hence my desire to get this over with! 

I have also been asked how much the test costs. When I got the test my insurance covered almost all of it and my out-of-pocket cost was $299. Some insurance companies will cover the total cost and if they don't cover any of the cost I suggest you changing insurance companies because yours sucks. 

The good news is that my insurance covers 100% of the cost of this prophylactic bilateral mastectomy! Thank god! I would be interested to see what the cost would be... but I am guessing that it would be close to if not more than $20,000. That's a car. Don't let the numbers freak you out though, because your life is worth way more than $20,000, y'all.

I received the most incredible gift in the mail a couple weeks ago from a dear friend of my moms, Kathryn Boyd Loftus. She is a cancer survivor and an all around amazing woman! I would most certainly be lost in this journey without this magnificent lady. 

I am obsessed with Alex and Ani bangles.. my arm party is super serious. There is a pink bead, a purple one, and a teal one! The pink bead stands for breast cancer, the teal bead stands for ovarian cancer, and the purple bead is the signature color. The charm reads 'previvor' and I am so so proud to wear it each day! 

If you are interested in this bangle check out the previvor website! My Destiny is a nonprofit organization providing financial support for those at risk for developing breast cancer. The website has tons of useful links and information for the curious. 

My song of the day is literally MY JAMMMMM right now. Sorry if you're not into reggae-- I will branch out, just in a reggae mood lately! This song reminds me to believe in yourself and 'remember what you put out there is building you'.

(Remember, this is a picture. I'm still not cool  enough to have the rights to put peoples music on my blog... yet)

Soja-- I Believe. Go download or at least listen to it! If you're not dancing around by the end of the song, you probably didn't have enough coffee this morning and are too tired to function. 

I hope everyone had a happy hump day! See you tomorrow :)