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Tag: Susan G. Komen

Race For The Cure

Race For The Cure 2010

Sunday morning I crawled out of bed at 5:45 a.m.  I was both excited and nervous knowing that in two hours I would be running my first 5K run at the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure.  I was pretty sure I could force myself to run the entire 3.1 miles on my treadmill in my 70 degree basement, but I didn’t train outdoors and I was worried about the heat and humidity combination.  However, I took a peek at my pledge page just  before I went to bed Saturday night and this is what I saw:

Race For The Cure

I have some incredible friends and family members. You guys not only doubled, but tripled my fund raising goal! I thought I would be lucky to hit $160, but never in my wildest dreams did I think I would see the balance rise to nearly $500! I wasn’t about to let you guys down.

My mom and my niece Caitlin got up early to cheer me on (and give me a ride) and I was glad to have them there. My nerves started getting the best of me just shortly before the race started. I decided to hit the port-a-potty line and by the time I got out had only about five minutes until start time.

When I got to the starting line, quite a few people had already started walking, but I waited for the official start to take off. The first thing I realized was that I should have trained for hills. Funny how it seems a whole lot more hilly when you’re on your feet than when you’re in a car!

I got a pretty good start, but tired out a lot faster than I thought I would. I blame it on the combination of the hills and the sun beating down on me. I had to stop and walk much sooner than I wanted to, but I knew if I didn’t I’d never make it the whole way. I ended up walking most of the uphills and running as much as I could on the downhills and flat areas.

I was getting pretty worn out by the time I got near the end, but I was determined to finish it out running. As I turned the last corner I took a short walk break, then ran toward the finish line. I finished at 45 minutes, 56 seconds, which was much better than I was expecting.

Overall it was a great experience and one I definitely plan to do again. Next year I’m going to raise the bar and increase my fund raising goal. I may even try to run the timed race next year. I’m going to start training next week. I see a lot of hills in my future!

To all of you who donated, THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart. It really means a lot that you would donate to a cause that is so important to me, and more importantly, that you believe in me.

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Racing For the Cure

On Sunday, August 8th, I am running in Kansas City’s Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure.  Those of you who know me well know that I am not a runner.  Not at all.  In fact, if you told my high school volleyball coach that I was about to run a 5K, I’m sure she would burst out laughing.  I nearly died every time we had to run during practices and I really haven’t made an effort to try again until this year.

I set out in January of 2010 with one goal – to run the Komen Race for the Cure.  I’ve wanted to participate for years but have never committed to it for one reason or another.  I always thought I would be walking it, but for some reason I decided I wanted to run it.  I started training in the Spring, giving myself plenty of time (so I thought) to be ready for a 5K by August.  I had a few setbacks along the way, but I’ve run more miles this year than I ever have in my life.

So why am I doing all this?  The Susan G. Komen Foundation is something I believe in.  I don’t know a single person in my life who hasn’t been touched by breast cancer.  Whether it be your own mother, grandmother, wife, aunt, cousin, niece, daughter, co-worker, friend, or friend-of-a-friend, everyone has had someone in their life that has dealt with this disease.  The best way to combat it at this point is early detection.  There are amazing people out there that are working toward a cure every day, but until we find it we must rely on early detection.  Funds raised from Race for the Cure are used to provide education, screening and treatment services for women in the Kansas City area.

By running in Race for the Cure, I feel like I’m doing my part to help provide these important services.  There aremany women in my life that have survived breast cancer, thanks to the treatments that are now available.  Wouldn’t it be great to know that there was a cure out there?  I would love to see it happen in my lifetime and we get closer and closer every day.  Wouldn’t it be wonderful to know that our daughters and granddaughters would not have to live with the threat of this disease?

As of today, I am 62% of the way to my fund raising goal of $160.  I really want to meet that goal, and even surpass it if possible.  Nothing will motivate me more to run than knowing that I am making a difference.  Will you help me make a difference?  Can you donate $5, $10, $20?  Even a little bit will help me get closer to my goal.

If you’d like to donate online, please click the following link and fill in all of your information: Donate to Race For The Cure

If you would like to donate, but would prefer to write a check or pay in cash, please leave a comment with your e-mail address and I’ll get the proper information to you.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for reading this and for any donations you may send.  I couldn’t do this without the support of my friends and family.  I’m so lucky to have all of you in my life.

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Because Your Boobs Are Worth It

pinkribbonLast Friday I had an appointment with my OB/GYN.  It was just my regularly scheduled yearly exam to check all the girly bits so I didn’t think anything of it.  I had a few questions to ask her because of some pain I’ve been having that I though may be related to PCOS, but otherwise I’ve been pretty healthy since I’ve seen her last.

Just as I expected, everything turned out just fine.  Since I do have a history of having ovarian cysts and I’ve been having pain, she scheduled me for a pelvic ultrasound.  Then she brought up having a mammogram.  Most women don’t have their first mammogram until they are at least 35, sometimes 40.  But, with my mom’s history of breast cancer, my doctor wants to take all precautions and I’m totally fine with that.

My doctor had the nurse check with my insurance and she scheduled me for a mammogram on Monday.  I was expecting to have a little more time to prepare myself, but might as well just get it over with, right?  I wasn’t really nervous, but wasn’t exactly ready to get my boobs all squished and flattened either.

When Monday came along I headed over to the imaging clinic for my mammogram.  It wasn’t exactly pleasant, but it wasn’t the most horrible thing I’ve ever had to do either.  It was quite uncomfortable, well okay it hurt, but only for a few seconds at a time.  And then it was over.

The good news is that everything checked out just fine for me.  Now that I have my baseline done, it will be much easier in the future to detect any changes that might occur.  I’m glad that I got it done.  The next time it won’t be so bad because I’ll know exactly what to expect.

The bad news is that so many women don’t get mammograms.  Either they don’t have insurance and can’t afford it, or they just keep putting it off until it is too late.  The reality is that mammograms don’t catch everything, but having regular mammograms does greatly increase the chances of a lump being caught in time to do something about it and possibly save your life.  That makes the pain a little more worth it, don’t you think?

Coincidentally, I received an e-mail on Monday from my friend Amy telling me that she is again participating in the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure on September 20th.  On top of providing education and mammogram screenings for uninsured and under-insured women, the Komen foundation is the largest private funder of breast cancer research in the world.

Even though money is pretty much always tight these days, I try to squeeze out a little each year to donate to Race for the Cure.  Not only am I supporting a cause I absolutely believe in, I also get to support the fund-raising efforts of one of my very best friends.  If you would like to help, you can donate to the Portland Race for the Cure through Amy’s page.  If you do, I’d love for you to leave a comment or send me an e-mail to let me know.

And by all means ladies, get those mammograms.  It just may save your life.

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