Her Daily News

Just saying the word “mammogram” is enough to make women uncomfortable. For women who have never had one, it is not knowing what to expect. Will it hurt? What does it feel like? How long does it take? How long do you have to wait for results? What look on the radiologist’s face will tell me I need to worry? Like any medical test, the anxiety over waiting and not knowing consumes your thoughts until that call from the doctor.

Mammograms are a necessity, though. Breast cancer is a very real and deadly danger. The mammography pictures can catch a tumor in a much earlier stage than self-exams, helping to improve the chances of recovery. Even people who have no history of breast cancer in the family can be a victim, and at an early age. Karen Lynch was one of those people, and she writes about her experiences on Discussing Breast Cancer.

So what is a mammogram, and what should you expect at your visit? Karen’s first-hand experience can tell you a lot of what you might be wondering. I also found this video from the Winship Cancer Institute describing in detail the doctor’s visit, the test, what you should do, and when you should do it. So watch the video, read about Karen, and then pick up the phone. Most insurance companies will pay for one baseline mammogram between the ages of 35 and 40, and then yearly after age 40. If you do not have medical insurance, organizations and women’s clinics can help you find assistance for the procedure. Please don’t let fear or finances prevent you from having the screening. Your life depends on it.

If you need help finding financial assistance for a mammogram, please contact me using the contact link on the right side of this page. I will be glad to do what I can to find resources in your area.

breast cancer, mammogram, mammography, cancer

Don’t buy it, ladies! This dentist should lose his license, seven kids or no. In the court case in Woodland, CA, Dr. Mark Anderson has been charged with fondling the breasts of 27 female patients. He claims that the breast massage helps TMJ pain. He didn’t bother to comment on the fact that his massage technique includes up-the-shirt under-the-bra contact.

I have suffered from constant TMJ pain for four years on both sides of my face. I will admit that at times, it is the worst pain I could ever imagine. But not once in the last four years has a medical professional, including a specialist who I traveled over 150 miles to see, recommended I or anyone else rub my breasts. Massage can most definitely help. The facial muscles, neck and shoulder muscles can all contribute to TMJ pain and headaches. But the last time I checked, a woman’s breasts are made up of fatty tissue. I find it impossible on myself to compress them enough to effectively massage any underlying muscle tissue, and I wear barely a B-cup.

After reading the article, I searched “TMJ massage” on the Internet. Not one of the articles in the first 20 recommended breast massage for women. If the purpose of the massage is to relax muscles, and you’ve got a creepy dentist groping around in your shirt, chances are you left the office worse off than when you went in.

There are many treatments available for TMJ, and ways you can cope with it at home. You can read about my own experiences with this disorder in Living with TMD: When a Smile Hurts. You can also find many online resources for TMJ massage techniques. But don’t be fooled by a dentist. Breast massage is NEVER a recommended treatment for a dentist to perform. Even if you happen to develop a tumor or cancer of the mouth, let your ob/gyn perform any breast exams. If dentists creep you out anyway, check out The Dentalwork Headache by Rena Sherwood.

The National Institute of Health started Heart Truth and the Red Dress campaign to focus on women and heart health. Heart disease is the #1 killer of women, and women’s symptoms often differ from men’s. Thanks to information campaigns like Heart Truth, the majority of women are now aware that heart disease is their biggest health concern. You are also probably aware that certain risk factors increase your chances for a significant cardiac event. But is your doctor aware of what your risk factors are?

No matter your age, it is important for your physician to know your full history and any information that might put you at increased concern for heart disease. The following information provided by the NIH will help you get started on your discussion with your doctor. If you don’t have a check-up scheduled anytime soon, make an appointment. Preventive measures and early detection are your greatest guard against a heart attack, and studies show that 2/3 of women who suffer a heart attack never fully recover. (more…)

When Mary and Joseph Mwanisawa agreed to travel over 15,000 miles to attend the second annual gala to benefit the Kids of Kilimanjaro school lunch program, they thought they were going to America only to tell their story about how much the program was improving their community. They didn’t know they would also be receiving a full medical examination — the first of their lives.

(more…)

Or, rather, the facts on Ovarian Cancer. Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions invites you to help fight the #4 cancer killer of women. More die of ovarian cancer than all other gynecologic cancers combined! Early detection, research and education can greatly increase her chances of surviving this deadly disease.

(more…)

An article on ScienceDaily.com shows a connection between weight-loss and race. The study shows that Caucasian women are more likely to seek outside help from a nutritionist, personal trainer or support group than their African-American counterparts. So why the difference?

As a Black woman, I can say I agree with this study for the most part. I have tried dealing with weight-loss on my own for most of my life. I do think that at times when dealing with weight-loss issues ethnic factors aren’t always taken into consideration. Factors such as ethnic diet, income level, geographic location and family history have to be considered when you look at effective weight-loss. In my opinion, body type is one major factor. While a specific diet and exercise routine may work well for one body type it may not work well for another. For instance, I have a large amount of muscle mass compared to most women my age. Most of this is due to genetic and ethnic factors. A workout program that would require a great deal of strenght training would only make me bulk up (which I don’t want!) while a program more geared toward aerobic fat-burning or toning would be less likely to create a bulky physiche. So in my opinion, there is lots more to learn about the way our bodies work in order to effectively manage weight-loss across the races.

women, health, weight-loss, exersice, race

This is a case that really makes me wonder how someone could call themselves an “activist” but not be informed enough to get their protesting right:

David McMenemy, 46, was sentenced Friday to 5 years in prison for attempting to burn down a Davenport, Iowa women’s health clinic on September 11, 2006. McMenemy, a Detroit native, crashed his car into a building that he believed to be an abortion clinic and lit a bottle filled with gasoline before surrendering to firefighters. The Edgerton Women’s Health Care Center does not perform or make referrals for abortions, but provides prenatal care and medical services to low-income and underprivileged women, according to clinic officials.

During the sentencing, McMenemy admitted wrongdoing, telling US District Judge John Javery, “It was wrong. Even if it was an abortion clinic, it would still be wrong.” He then added that he planned to distance himself from any anti-abortion organizations in the future.

The judge ordered him to pay $263,252 in damages to the clinic and also to be treated for mental health and substance-abuse.

It’s not like it would have required much more effort to crash into the place and burn it down than it would have to find out what the clinic actually does. He and the guy who burned down the Hummer plant because they are high polluters (and his destruction of the plant actually caused more pollution than the Hummers could have put out in years) should get together and start a “hair-brained activist club”. In it, they will discuss ways ruin the environment and lives by making base-less assumptions and then acting on them through violent explosions.

I am quite saddened about this case. First of all, I don’t think he received a stiff enough penalty. Maybe if we started factoring is stupidity, sentences could be harsher. Additionally, that clinic was probably helping many women. It was probably run by an non-profit organization who does not have the funds to re-build the entire facility and now will have to remain closed (at least for some time) in order to build more funds. In the mean time, countless low-income and underprivileged women will have to seek care elsewhere, possibly further away and possibly not at all. Sometimes when you fight so hard for a cause, you do more harm than good.

women, abortion, clinics, activists, anti-abortion

The abortion discussion in America is often times different from those of other countries. In Mozambique it is a question of protection of women’s lives. Too often women seek abortions in this country, where it is illegal, only to suffer serious injuries and even death because of improper procedure. These illegal abortions are the third leading cause of maternal mortality in Mozambique. For a country with the highest maternal mortality rate in the world, the measure will offer women a chance to seek procedures in proper facilities. The Feminist Daily News has the rest of the story.

women, abortion, Mozambique, international, mortality, maternal

Fertility treatments are definitely a hot topic recently. An article released recently on Salon.com’s Boadsheet caught my eye when discussing what these kinds of treatments mean for women in our society. Both of the women in the article gave birth to sextuplets with the help of fertility treatments only 10 hours apart. So what’s the big deal? Well, its the classic battle of nature vs. science.

(more…)

Gastric bypass surgery has helped millions of women loose weight and fight the battle of compulsive eating. Because of the popularity of the surgery in recent years, it has almost seemed like a miracle cure for the severely obese. But one issues has been found creeping in the background of all the hype surrounding the benefits of weight loss surgery. ABC Nightline did a story shown on Yahoo! News bringing to light the growing problem. The underlying addictions that effect those who had compulsive eating problems prior to their surgery. What happens when these women transfer from one addictive behavior to another? What they are finding is a new battle with a different opponent.

Transfer addiction is relatively new on the scene of side effects of gastric bypass surgery. But the issue is seen as a rising concern by those conducting Bariatric meetings, designed as support group for those who have undergone the procedure. What they are seeing is a rising number of patients who transfer their addiction from food onto something else. The most common examples are alcohol, shopping and sexual addiction. Many of the patients say the were not warned about possibility of this possible side-effect before the surgery. This could possibly be because the procedure itself is still in its infancy and the long-term side-effects are not known yet.

What is known is that more information needs to be collected in order for the problem to be properly addressed. In the mean time, the majority of the women interviewed said if they had to do it over again, they still would have had the surgery but would have addressed their addictive behaviors beforehand. As the number of people going under the knife to loose weight rises, the problem can only be expected to grow. Will doctors give their patients the necessary education to help patients address the problem before they have surgery? My belief is that because of the life-altering effects of this type of surgery, there should be a screening process for potential patients. A simple psychological work-up, much like what is required for those seeking gender reassignment, would help these women address potential issues ahead of time. Sounds like a simple solution right? Lets see if the medical community answers the call.

Sources:
Transfer of Addiction - Yahoo! News with ABC Nightline

Gastric Bypass - Medicine Plus

Bariatric Partners

women, surgery, gastric bypass, addiction, bariatric