Here’s Your Friendly Reminder…

October seems to be swathed in a bath of pink these days. For me October is a tough month… there is a part of me that loves the changes in the weather, the cooler crisp air and days that require an additional layer or two. But ultimately its the constant reminders of the horrible disease that has us looking at pink EVERYTHING everywhere we go that makes this a tough month for me. I lost my Nana to cancer. She was diagnosed with Breast Cancer when I was barely a teenager, and it was cancer that took her from me at the age of 19.

My Nana taught me pretty much everything I know about crafting, sewing and crochet. Those are the skills that have gotten me to where I am today. Skills that have served me for many, many years and will continue to benefit my life in the future. I can honestly say I don’t know where I’d be today with out her influence in my life. And I can only imagine where life would have taken me if I’d had her guidance and wisdom for a few more years.

I miss her every day. I will continue to miss her until the end of my own days and I wish, more than anything, that I had more pictures of her and I together.

So here’s a friendly reminder… Lessons I learned from my Nana and her life…

• Tell the ones that matter that you love them. every chance you get. Once a day is not enough… because they might need to store up those “I Love You’s” for the future.
• Learn every skill you can, even if it seems like you’ll never master the technique. Keep at it! You never know when it will come in handy.
• Take pictures with your family. Every. Single. Chance. You. Get! Don’t always be the one behind the camera
• Take care of your body. Be aware of your body. Stay in tune with your body. Trust your body. Lumps, Bumps, tired all the time, feeling “off” — get it checked out!
• Plan for the future, but enjoy every second of today.

As we all know, October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Its an annual campaign to increase awareness of the disease, offer information and support to those affected by breast cancer and raise funds for research into its cause, prevention, diagnosis, treatment and cure.
The facts about breast cancer

• Breast cancer is the second most common kind of cancer in women, with skin cancer being the first
• About 1 in 8 women born today in the U.S. will get breast cancer at some point in their lives
• Approximately 231,340 new cases of breast cancer are diagnosed in the U.S. each year
• Breast cancer patients with employer-sponsored health insurance spend $6,553 out-of-pocket

Things to think about this October:

• Early detection is key. When was the last time you did a self exam? I check at least monthly, if not more often for any changes, lumps or bumps or unusual tenderness. Don’t wait until you *think* you’re at risk, women in their 20’s should be doing this too!
• Even though breast cancer is the second most common cancer among women in the US, MILLIONS of women are surviving the disease because of early detection and improvements in treatment.
• Consider insurance policies that can help ease worries about the financial cost of breast cancer if it were to occur.
• When caught early, the survival rate for breast cancer is as high as 99 percent, but the diagnosis can be accompanied by an expensive treatment regimen. Aflac’s cash benefits can help policyholders pay the out-of-pocket costs associated with costly cancer treatments.

A cancer insurance policy can provide a lot of peace of mind and support! It can be used, not only for treatment expenses not covered by major medical insurance, but also for extra child care that may be needed, transportation to and from the doctor or treatments, and even everyday living expenses, such as mortgage payments or groceries.When someone does end up being diagnosed with breast cancer, or any cancer, they’ll want to be able to focus on recovery not finances, and a cancer insurance policy can help you do just that.

For Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Aflac will be partnering with the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) again for its second annual “This Duck Wears Pink” campaign. Aflac is selling a variety of campaign-related merchandise including the plush duck, hats and a breast cancer ribbon pin, with all the net proceeds going to the AACR for the specific purpose of funding research aimed at finding a cure for breast cancer.
Aflac supports the groundbreaking work of the AACR – the first and largest cancer research organization in the world with a membership of more than 35,000 professionals residing in 101 countries working on the front lines of the effort to eradicate cancer. The AACR backs every aspect of high-quality, innovative cancer research. You can donate and shop for merchandise here.

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.