Something short and personal…

This Sunday, I found a lump in my left breast. It is small, and, as I check myself frequently, it is very, very new. Now I am on hormones, (estrogen and progesterone) and sometimes small lumps develop during the growth process. So this might be okay and there's no harm in it being there. Still, I prefer to be on the safe side, because a lump this sudden could have also been a blood clot, and those are deadly. If they don't end up in your heart and cause a blockage (instant death), they end up in a lung and make you drown in foamy blood. (ditto, but actually worse than option A.)

I went to the doctor yesterday, and he prodded around my underarm and breast, but he's satisfied the lump is not a blood clot, and is not life threatening. He's set me up for an appointment to have a breast exam and chest X-ray, so we'll see how it goes. For now, I intend to treat it as a possible side effect of my growing chest, which is itself an interesting side effect of transitioning. Long after I think I'm "done" my body is till going through changes, and part of that growth is in my chest. Which is great, because clearly I can't coast through life on my spectacular ass.

But if I can be serious for a moment, ladies, men, reach up right now, and touch your chest. Rub yourself down firmly, and really get to know the shape of yourself. Maybe you don't have a lump now. But if you do a little self check now and then, you'll know what your chest should feel like, and you will know right way when you feel something that shouldn't be there.

Men, pleas,e take this seriously. You can get breast cancer too, even if you do have D cup moobs. Maybe it makes you feel weird to roll around your chest, but this really is important. I'm telling you, I check chest once a week, at least, and this lump came out of nowhere.

Ladies, men, check your chests. Do it now, and then do it frequently. If you do this, you increase the chances of early detection, and you make your treatment option much more diverse. So please, humor a crazy old lady, and touch yourself.

Now think of me naked. What are you wearing? Hehe. Okay, I'll shut up now.