What do you do when the check engine light comes on in your car? Does a small panic set in? Do you think “oh no!”? Do you let your significant other know right away? Do you make necessary arrangements to check out what the “problem” is?
How about when your personal check engine light comes on? What do I mean by that? As women, we tend to ignore aches, pains, etc. when they happen. We self-diagnose and put off these “self-check engine light(s)” and continue to do what we do…take care of/handle/etc. ______________ (fill in the blank).
Let me give you some true-life advice. Do not let your light go on without attention. I am not advocating being a hypochondriac; however, due to me not heeding my self-check engine light in late 2015 early 2016, on June 1, 2016 I had surgery to remove a cantaloupe size malignant ovarian tumor and was diagnosed with stage 3C Ovarian Cancer. I could have been knocked over with a feather. The symptoms were there and I “poo-pooed” them off and self-diagnosed and dismissed these symptoms as just being part of an active woman. Based on my DNA and genetic testing (while undergoing 19 weeks of chemotherapy), I was also diagnosed with the BRCA1 gene mutation. I won’t go into detail as to what all this means (all this information is on the internet). Could my getting ovarian cancer have been prevented? According to my genetics, NO; however, if I would have known more about my dad’s family history, I could have been more in tune with what was possible to happen in my life; thus, my personal check-engine light when it illuminated.
I have been in remission for 36 months. With the type of cancer I was diagnosed with, the average time frame for another occurrence is 12-15 months (GREAT NEWS). As of May 14th, I had a rare reoccurrence of the ovarian cancer that appeared in my brain; however, I am blessed and happy to say with brain surgery, radiation, positive thoughts, and prayer, I am doing fantastic! I credit this to paying attention to my personal check engine light. Are you paying attention to yours?
