Update: Read through to the bottom of this post if you want to be entered in the drawing to win this journal!
Who here has a pocket folder full of information and notes that you put together when you were first diagnosed with breast cancer? A 3-ring binder? A manilla folder hanging in a Pendaflex file?
Well, take a look at this …
A Survivor’s Guide for the Breast Cancer Journey, by Kim Regenhard, was released in April 2008.
The journal, from RiverStone Journals, and in collaboration with Day-Timer, is specifically intended to help women newly diagnosed with breast cancer understand, organize, plan and …read more

Of course, next week I’ll share why survivors like to go to bed early, but for now … this is where I’m at.
Ten Reasons Why Breast Cancer Survivors Like to Stay Up Late
10. The quiet of the night allows us to hear ourselves think, often for the first time all day, and for better or worse, we have to think about our lives.

9. Primetime television allows us to get sucked into other people’s dramas, and let us forget about our own.

8. Late night television offers even greater escape from painful thoughts we don’t want to ponder before bed.

7. The stars …read more

Have you ever heard people tell you that you have everything within you that you need to heal yourself? Well, Angela Cambouris is a woman who believes it — she’s living proof. I’m honored to share her survivor story with you!
My story is rather long as it begins in 1989 when I knew that I had a lump that I did not address until 1990. I was never well endowed and you could actually see it. As I was always interested in vitamins and exercise and had never had any health issues, I assumed that it was simply a cyst …read more

Last night I posted Connie Pombo’s survivor story. I also had the honor of asking her a few questions about survivorship … here’s what she shared:
What was the worst part of your experience with breast cancer?
The worst part of my cancer diagnosis was knowing that I might not be alive to see my children through safe passage into adulthood; they were just 9 and 14 when I was diagnosed. But on a more personal level, I had a difficult time with all the choices: lumpectomy, mastectomy, chemo, radiation. I wanted someone to tell me what to do, but …read more

On any give day you might find yourself speaking to a survivor when things suddenly go sour. Especially if you are married to the guy or gal. Let me share with you what just happened to me.
Scene: I’m in the kitchen preparing breakfast for the kids before school. My husband calls from his hotel room in DC where he has been on business for the last three days. After the niceties (”Everyone say ‘Hi’ to Daddy!” and “How’d you sleep?” and “What’s on tap for today?”) here’s what basically transpired:
Me: “Is there an iPod around here that I can use …read more

I just learned about an American Cancer Society Breast Cancer Podcast Series called “Journey to Recovery“.
In the series, Dr. Margaret Kemeny, a world-renowned oncologist in New York and one of America’s first female cancer surgeons, speaks from a clinical point of view along with a narrator and six survivors. Together, this team of people addresses issues throughout the series concerning: diagnosis, treatment, surgery, chemotherapy, radiation … and life beyond breast cancer.
The primary purpose of the podcast is to let women dealing with a diagnosis learn that they are not alone — and to help make some sense of the clinical …read more