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I’m Not a Badge of Honor
People love to call women like me strong. Ugh. Annoying. “You’re so strong.” “I don’t know how you do it all.” “You’re Superwoman!” Here’s the reality though: most of the time, I don’t want to do it all. I just don’t always have a choice. When I was diagnosed with breast cancer, the world didn’t…
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Shuffling Back to Fine
You know what doesn’t get enough credit? Feeling fine. Not amazing, not life-alteringly happy, just…fine. Okay. Not like you’re one wrong sneeze away from a nuclear-level emotional meltdown. That’s the vibe I’m riding into this summer, and honestly, I’m here for this. After what has felt like a lifetime of surgeries, medical appointments, and falling…
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Eight Weeks Post-DIEP: The Hunger Games
Hello again, friends. After a brief unintentional blogging hiatus (read: recovery haze, surgical drains, snack-fueled mood swings, and a short stint as a human pin cushion), I’m back—with sass, some leftover surgical tape stuck to places I can’t see, and enough opinions to fill a medical journal. Eight weeks post-DIEP flap reconstruction surgery, and while…
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In Too DIEP to Call It a Tummy Tuck
Let’s talk about DIEP flap surgery. Or, more accurately, let’s talk about what DIEP is not, because there seems to be a fair amount of confusion, especially when people hear that it involves the removal of fat from the abdomen. First and foremost, DIEP (Deep Inferior Epigastric Perforator) flap surgery is not a tummy tuck.…
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Healing After Breast Cancer: The Reality of Recovery
In June 2024, I heard the words no one wants to hear: “You have breast cancer.” Two months later, in August, I underwent a bilateral mastectomy. And now, six months later, I’m still healing—physically, emotionally, and mentally. Because here’s the truth no one really prepares you for: healing doesn’t follow a straight line. It’s not…
Playfully True: Notes from a Not-So-Graceful Life 