Posts Tagged ‘ breast cancer awareness month ’

SkinnyScoop Tastemakers

October 21, 2011
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We are thrilled to be included in SkinnyScoop’s new Tastemakers program. SkinnyScoop is of our favorite sites because it taps into the collective wisdom of women who willingly share their knowledge, and ecommended products, go-to resources and tips on this “virtual cheat sheet for everything.” Tastemakers provide content in a range of categories including, Balance, Amuse, Covet, Nurture and Energize. We hope you’ll check it out. And while you’re at it, take a look at our list of ways to observe Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

Video: Five Ways to Observe Breast Cancer Awareness Month

October 3, 2011
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Check out this video we found on YouTube, inspired by our post: Five Ways to Observe Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

Five Ways to Observe Breast Cancer Awareness Month

October 3, 2011
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Army of WomenOctober is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. According to the National Cancer Institute, there are approximately 230,000 new cases of breast cancer diagnosed each year and 40,000 breast cancer related deaths annually. Forget the pinkwashing and please spare us the foolish Facebook memes, and do something meaningful. Here are five ways to observe Breast Cancer Awareness month.

 

Blog for Breasts Oct. 1

September 16, 2010
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Updated: Equal Coverage for Equal Premiums

October 15, 2009
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DeniedSeven years ago, after 32 hours of labor, my doctor recommended I have a Caesarean section. My cervix didn’t dilate and a c-section seemed to be the safest way to deliver my baby. Today, the very decision I made to keep my child safe could be the same reason I can’t provide insurance for him.

As you know, earlier this week the Senate Finance Committee voted to move forward on a healthcare bill known as the Baucus Bill. Now, it must be merged with a separate proposal from the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee before it can go to the full Senate for a vote. There is still plenty of work to do. Over the coming weeks, our legislators will continue to examine discriminatory insurance practices and a public option.

Ladies, if you haven’t been paying attention to the healthcare discussion in this country, you need to start now. Here’s why:

- C-sections, evenly medically mandated ones, are considered pre-existing conditions by some insurance companies

 - Domestic violence is considered a pre-existing condition by some insurance companies –no not for the batterer, for the victim

- Only 20 states require private insurance companies to cover routine mammograms*

- Women often struggle to find coverage for maternity care. And then they often lose valuable income while on earn maternity leave.

- Women, on average, earn less than men and the wage gap has widened. Our dollars need to stretch further.

- Yet women often pay 30 – 40 percent more for health insurance policies than men do.

I am not a pre-existing condition. I am 51 percent of the population. I am in control of 85 percent of consumer buying power. I am strong—I am able to grow a life inside of me, care for that baby on little to no sleep, recover from abdominal surgery and return to work all in less than three months. I am a breadwinner. I may not make as much as the guy in the office next to me who didn’t give birth, but I’m working on it. I am a registered voter. And I demand equal coverage for equal premiums.

Ladies, click here to tell Congress YOU are not a pre-existing condition. Demand equal care for equal premiums.

Thank you to RH Reality Check for alerting us to the “I am not a pre-existing condition” campaign. Read more here.

*From the National Women’s Law Center Reform Matters fact sheet

Why I Hate Breasts

October 2, 2009
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breast cancerBreasts. I hate them. They are nothing but trouble.

A few months ago, I found a lump in my right breast. As I waited to see my doctor, I imagined what might happen. Best case scenario: there would be no lump. I’d have imagined it and would get felt up for no good reason by some man who couldn’t even remember my name. It wouldn’t be the first time. Pretty darn good scenario: It would be a cyst and I would have to lie topless on a table surrounded by strangers with big needles who wanted to aspirate it. Aspirate, you see, is a fancy word for lance. Worst case scenario: my breasts would kill me. After all, breasts killed my aunt and they killed an estimated 40,000 American women last year alone.

I was lucky. It was a cyst. But may I just say I think it sucks that I have these two potentially deadly inconveniences hanging off the front of me. I didn’t ask for them. And had I been given a choice, I would have said, “No thanks.”

No thanks, I don’t want to spend money on bras at $30 a pop for the rest of my life. My idea of accessorizing isn’t a sports bra, a lace bra, and a bra that works under white t-shirts. I’ll spend my money on shoes thank you very much.

No thanks, I don’t want men looking at my chest instead of my face when I talk to them.

No thanks, I won’t miss getting mammograms. I can always just walk naked into a crowded room if I have an overwhelming need to experience discomfort.

No thanks, I think I have enough PMS symptoms. Moodswings, pimples and cramps are good enough for me. I don’t need tender breasts every month too.

And no thank you, I don’t need my body parts to relocate after I have children. My c-section scar is memento enough.

Now before La Leche comes after me, let me just say that I nursed my children. I am both appreciative and awed by the fact that my body could grow and then nourish a human life. But why did it have to be breasts?

But breasts it is. So please, remind the women in your life to get an annual mammogram and give them a hug. Just don’t try to cop a feel while you do it.

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