...that, right now, hits me close to home.
Whether it's sunny, raining, snowing, cloudy, or partly cloudy...whatever the weather is, WEAR SUNSCREEN EVERY SINGLE DAY OF YOUR LIFE.
The SPF should be at least a 15. I wear a 25 SPF on my face every day. I am allergic to chemicals so I have to wear a sunscreen that is a bit chalky and, when you first put it on, a bit greasy, HOWEVER, it soon turns matte and any other makeup I may add to it, works well over it. It acts as a primer....
but more than that....
IT ACTS AS A LIFE SAVER.
Exactly 3 weeks ago, I went to the dermatologist because, after having burned the top of my right hand on a grate in the oven, I developed a half inch lump in the exact spot of the burn. At first, I thought, well it has to be a pimple because it formed at least a week after the burn. But that wasn't it. It was a very hard "nodule" and it would not aspirate. I put compresses on it. It actually turned quite ugly looking.
So, three weeks ago today, the dermatologist took a biopsy of that area, removing the lump from my hand. Now, I've had things removed before and never panicked. The doctor either knew right then and there that it was benign or she sent it for testing "just as a precaution" but nothing ever came back as cancer. I wasn't nervous for the past 3 weeks. I'd been through this before. I was fine.
NO, I was not.
I have squamous cell skin cancer. I am the perfect candidate...light skinned, freckled as a child, blue eyes (light eyes are a factor) and light brown or blond hair. I had a youth filled with sun exposure. I have tan lines all year, even in the winter. NOT GOOD!
Dear Fibro friends, take my word, no matter what the weather is, please use sunscreen every day of your life on every part of your body. I noticed today in the grocery store, that they even have a daily body lotion with SPF 15 and I am going to invest in that again. Because usually I slather on the thick stuff when I go for a walk, but I'm going to wear it no matter what.
But honestly, it's all a little too little too late. The damage is done. This form of skin cancer is most common in people 50 - 70. I'm a year early at 49.
I do not want to scare you or paint a picture of gloom and doom. ANYONE who gets a report with the word "CANCER" in it, is going to gasp at first, maybe cry a little and have some anxiety.
But I quickly did some "brief" reading on the Mayo clinic site which says that this is VERY treatable and, if caught early, OF no concern. I caught it within 2 weeks of the "burn". The funny part of this is that what brought it out, was burning my hand on the grate of the oven. Had I not done that, I probably wouldn't have developed the nodule or know that these cells were present. So, it may be a blessing in "disguise".
Either way, I will be OK, per the nurse who scheduled my surgery for September 26. I asked her if that date was "soon enough" and she said "Yes" emphatically. That helped too.
So, as I get closer to that date (a month from now), I will probably preach more on the benefits of sunscreen.
Tanning needs to be outdated. We are not beautiful years later when our skin becomes wrinkled prematurely, has "age" spots on it, and/or looks leathery. We need to go back to the days of "pallor" and "parasols"! What do you think? Should I start a new "trend"? Believe me, I might, simply out of fear.
However, I assure you, I am calm at this point in time. I do not feel that God is done with me yet. I also feel that if it were THAT serious, the doctor wouldn't be making me wait 4 weeks for my surgery.
Please, my dear Fibro friends, you have enough on your plate. Don't add this to it.
Wear sunscreen, preferably SPF 25 and above, every day. Wear a hat, if you will wear one. Actually, I think this goes beyond vanity. It's time to care more about our lives than the vanity of wearing a hat we might not like or think is "fashionable". Do what you know is right.
Do it for me! Do it for YOU! Do it for your family and friends! They need you.
For now, it's getting late on the East Coast of the US, so I'm going to start to wind down my day.
Let's all get to bed a bit earlier tonight. Let's all try to get up a bit earlier tomorrow. I still advise getting some sun, but always "protected" from it. It has it's benefits too, among them Vitamin D, which many of us lack.
Until tomorrow.......
Blessings................
Mo M.
No comments:
Post a Comment