Once again Angelina Jolie-Pitt made headlines with her New York Times Op-Ed article “Diary of a Surgery” addressing her decision to undergo prophylactic surgery to remove her ovaries and Fallopian tubes. She chose to have the operation after her physician informed her that inflammatory markers from a test may point to ovarian cancer. Jolie-Pitt’s mother, grandmother, and aunt all lost their lives to cancer. In 2013 Jolie-Pitt , in another The New York Times op-ed “My Medical Choice,” revealed her decision to undergo a prophylactic bilateral mastectomy with reconstruction as a safeguard against breast cancer. As a carrier of the BRCA1 gene mutation she had
Read more →Ears will be burning and so will my show topic December 29 on Fearless Fabulous You! on W4WN– the Women for Women Network. My guest is Barbara Musser, who served as my “sexpert” in my first book, “Getting Things Off My Chest: A Survivor’s Guide to Staying Fearless & Fabulous in the Face of Breast Cancer.” We will dedicate the show to addressing questions about intimacy and sexuality, not only after cancer but also during and after menopause, divorce and a myriad of stages in one’s life where you may need some additional mental lubrication -and a bit more – to reconnect with your sexual
Read more →Unless you are living under a rock, albeit painted pink, you know that October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Social media sites are awash in pink photos. Everyone from N.F.L. football players to everyday moms are donning pink sneakers and stepping out to raise awareness and funds for numerous causes. Pink parties with pink cupcakes and punch and balloons and branded pink gifts are being hosted coast to coast. And pink is showing up on Delta airplanes, Minnesota National Guard army tanks, scooters and drill bits. Men don pink tutus for videos and pink ties for more conservative appearances. Women wear
Read more →I asked my husband, David, to touch his crotch this morning. He gave me a strange look and shook his head, “No.” But maybe if he reads this post he will reconsider, along with other men. (We know you probably touch your privates in private anyway!) #FeelingNuts is an initiative to promote Testicular Cancer Awareness by encouraging men to examine their privates for any irregularities. Much like the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge which raised both awareness and millions of dollars to help support research for a cure for ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), #FeelingNuts is about bringing awareness to and opening the conversation
Read more →With close to 30 years working in the public relations profession, sometimes with mixed feelings about my career choice, I am going to get this off my chest loud and clear: The next time someone disparages the public relations field or publicists in front of me, I am going to speak my mind and not mince words. “Power to the PR People.” I am in the middle of promoting my book, Getting Things Off My Chest: A Survivor’s Guide to Staying Fearless and Fabulous in the Face of Breast Cancer.” The experience has given me new respect for skilled publicists.
Read more →Yesterday I stopped in my local drugstore to buy a birthday card for a dear friend. I paused in front of the rows of Father’s Day cards, and my heart skipped a beat. “No need for this section,” I thought to myself. Yet, greeting cards and letters are some of the special mementos I have left of my father, Mel Young. When my husband, David, and I flew to Chattanooga to pack up my father’s office after he died in November 2009, we found a file drawer filled with all the Father’s Day and birthday cards I had sent him over the years along with hand written letters
Read more →