October Breast Cancer Awareness Month – “I’m Gonna Love You Through It” [VIDEO]

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and thanks to our partners at Mount Desert Island Hospital, we have turned our website pink for the entire month.

It's no secret that I HATE cancer. I have had cancer twice, and unfortunately we all know someone who either has had cancer, or is currently battling cancer. It seems that we are living in a cancer cluster.

The best thing you can do during the month of October if you are a female is to perform a monthly breast self exam. If you are the husband or boyfriend, ask your partner if they have done it. If you are due for a mammogram, schedule it! Don't wait. It's uncomfortable for a moment or two, but the best way to survive breast cancer is through early detection. Get in the habit of checking your breasts the same time every month. If you're not sure how to do it, google it! There are lots of YouTube videos that will show you what to do. Next time you go to the doctor, ask him or her to show you how, and then have them watch you do it to make sure you're doing it properly. And importantly, if you feel something "weird" don't hesitate to call your doctor.

Back in 2011 Martina McBride released this amazing song, "I'm Gonna Love You Through It". It was shortly after I had my nasal cancer, and I remember crying when I watched it. It celebrates those battling and honors the caregivers. When you are battling that has to be your singular focus. With the treatments and the side-effects sometimes that's all you can focus on. Get through today. But life goes on, and that's when the caregivers come in, cooking meals, transporting children, all of life's daily activities.

I remember having a chest x-ray after having nasal cancer, and getting a phone call from my doctor telling me there was a spot, and I needed to head back to the hospital right away and have another x-ray. I remember hyperventilating for a moment and crying thinking I can't go through this again. But I then took a couple of deep breaths and thought I beat it twice, I would do it again. Thankfully it was just a smudge on the x-ray.

To those battling, and to those who have lost loved ones my heart is with you