Teri’s Blip in the Universe

Z is for Zeeeee End! :o

Teri Smieja — Sat, 30 Apr 2011 22:03:08 +0000

Ok, so titling this Zeeeee End, was a bit of cheat to use the letter Z. So while I was being silly, it really is The End. I made it alive through the A to Z blogging challenge – all the way to Z!

Besides coming to the end of the blogging challenge today’s blog entry also marks my last entry here at

Teri’s Blip in the Universe.

I never in a million years guessed this blog would turn into what it did – nor did I think I’d ever have any readers outside of a few relatives or friends that I pestered to read it! I certainly didn’t think that it’d end up being a resource for people all over the world – in the beginning I simply needed a place to vent and get my thoughts and feelings out of my head and into print to try to make some sense of them.

I’m incredibly proud of what I’ve done with Teri’s Blip in the Universe! It’s heartwarming to know so many people have been touched or helped by what I’ve done. It’s really quite astounding when I think about the whole thing. If I’ve learned anything through my blogging experience it’s that, yes, one person can make a big difference! You don’t need to be rich, live in a big city, have a college degree, or know someone famous. You just have to care. Plain and simple, you just have to reach out and care about people, and share, openly and honestly. People can feel that sincerity and enthusiasm, and I do believe that’s what’s made this blog, and other BRCA related things that I’ve done become so successful.

I plan to keep this blog online as it’s still a great resource for others who are in my shoes. While I won’t be putting up any new posts here, I will still be active on the BRCA Sisterhood on Facebook, and I will still gladly respond to any comments or questions that are left here. You’re also always welcome to email me at terisblip@verizon.net, if you prefer to keep your comments private, and I will get back to you.

If you’ve been a follower of my blog, I want to say thank you, so much for being here with me through my journey, my struggles, my triumphs. Your support of me has been more than I could have hoped for!

If you came here searching for answers, there is a tab at the top of the page labeled “BRCA Informational Posts“ and there is also a search feature on the top right of the page that can help you find what you’re looking for. There are also many other BRCA blogs, which you can see over there in my blogroll. —->

A few other BRCA resources:

BRCA Sisterhood on Facebook

Facing our Risk of Cancer Empowered (FORCE)

Previvors and Survivors

Bright Pink

Previve

Bye now, and thank you so much!!!

Y is for this Year in Review

Teri Smieja — Fri, 29 Apr 2011 15:10:32 +0000

Okay, so we’re not anywhere near a year into 2011, but with only two blog posts to go in the A to Z challenge, and for this blog, a little bit of this year in review seems like a fun way to use the letter Y today.

Some Interesting (to me anyway!) things about Teri’s Blip this year:

As of April 28th I’ve had 13,991 visits to my blog. I’m not sure how many hits other people get, but this seems decent to me!
Since March 2009 when I started this blog I’ve had a total of 72,220 visits here.
Considering that I’ve had only 3,498 comments left compared to 72,220 visitors, it’s obvious that most of my readers are lurkers rather than talkers. Oh, that total is not counting the 1,572 spam comments that Askimet has caught for me.
Not everyone who comes to my blog shows up looking for BRCA information. WordPress has a fun feature that shows me what words people are using to in their search engine to get here. Sometimes what I see here skeeves me out totally, and other times it just makes me laugh. Some non-BRCA searches have been:

* Kind of gross, but the number one, most searched for phrase is “breasts not covered” – so I guess it’s people looking for soft porn or something. It’s not that kind of website, people!

* The second most searched for word is “libra” – a long while ago I wrote a post called The Zodiac and Wolves. I included a picture of a naked painted woman with the balancing scales. It brought in a crazy amount of views (in fact, I wrote that back in 11-2009 and it still ranks #2 of the amount of traffic that came to my site from it!) Once I figured out that the only reason for the increased views was because of that picture (and not anything else I had to say) I removed it and replaced it with a different photo. I didn’t want hits that I didn’t deserve. Yes, I’m weird like that.

* I get a lot of hits from people searching for other people (most on my Facebook friends list) – I guess they wind up here because those people have left a comment on my blog at some time or another. Sort of stalker-y..

* “Guttural sound”. Yes, more than one person has typed this into Google and ended up at my blog. M’kay!

* “Dr. DellaCroce’s wife”. This one is a bit creepy – Dr. D is my plastic surgeon at NOLA, not sure why someone is trying to find info on his wife. Again, a bit stalker-y!

* “Hospital Gown Open Boobs”. Also “sexy nude women who had a hysterectomy”. Seriously, there are a lot of pervs out there.

* “Hooter’s Girls”. Not sure how anyone ended up here with that one, but they did. Interesting!

* “Rude optical illusions”. Uhhhh?

Okay, enough of that stuff. Most of the searches are legitimately BRCA, cancer or reconstruction related, but obviously there are some that raise my eyebrows at times!

I’ve published 320 posts since I started blogging.
My top post, or the post that has gotten the most hits, this year has been “Pictures of Women after Mastectomy“
My number one referring site is Networked Blogs from Facebook – so most of the people coming to my blog are doing so through my blog auto-posting on Facebook. Never underestimate the power of social networking!
My number two referring site this year is from a friend of mine, Janine. Her blog is called “Cut the b*tches off” – that’s the power of blogrolls in action!
On my blogroll, the link that’s been clicked the most is The BRCA Sisterhood Reconstruction Photo Site. Cool!

Okay, so that about wraps up my Y post. Don’t forget to check back here tomorrow for my final post – Zee End!

Teri

Run for Her 5 K

Teri Smieja — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 20:58:12 +0000

Looking for something to do on November 14, 2011? Look no further! It’s the 6th Annual Run for Her 5 K Run & Friendship walk to support ovarian cancer awareness and research. For more details and to sign up, click here and watch the short video below. Thanks!

X is for X-ray

Teri Smieja — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 15:24:14 +0000

I’m taking a really easy way out with my X post for today – I had every intention of writing this up in my own words, but you know what they say about intentions….

Instead, because I’m short on time and motivation (and suffering from something like senioritis as my blog is coming to an end) I’m going to share a very interesting link here, about how chest x-rays may even further increase the risk of breast cancer for BRCA mutants.

Click Here —> Susan G. Komen for the Cure | Chest X-rays Might Increase Breast Cancer Risk for BRCA 1 and 2 Carriers.

W is for Wordless Wednesday

Teri Smieja — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 15:24:42 +0000

V is for Victory

Teri Smieja — Tue, 26 Apr 2011 17:09:50 +0000

Victory can pertain to many things. In today’s post I’m talking about the feeling one has after doing what very well may be the hardest thing in their lives, to beat a future enemy.

…..

Victory

1.a success or triumph over an enemy in battle or war.

This is what Previvors do when they decide to have prophylactic surgeries before any sign of breast or ovarian cancer presents itself.

…..

We put our bodies through hell to avoid a much worse hell on down the line. Many previvors wake up from their surgeries feeling victorious. I personally have been through a whole range of emotions and back again throughout my time of knowing I’m a BRCA1 mutant. Out of all of the emotions I’ve had to deal with, the feeling of victory has probably been the best!

…..

The feeling like I could climb to the top of a mountain and shout at cancer “Screw you, buddy! I win!!!!” is a truly empowering and victorious feeling! When I think about what my body and emotional state have been through these past few years – to know that somehow I found it within to have the inner and outer strength to have my healthy breasts and reproductive organs removed, to go through the trauma and pain of all of that and come out the other end alive and above all happy is a feeling unlike any other.

…..

While I am aware I didn’t completely eliminate my predisposition to breast and ovarian cancer, I can live just fine with that remaining 2% – 5%!

…..

What sort of things leave YOU feeling victorious?

…..

When is the last time you wanted to shout your triumph to the world?

…..

U is for Uterine Cancer

Teri Smieja — Tue, 26 Apr 2011 16:46:42 +0000

This is my U post for yesterday – A day late, but better than never!

U is for Uterine Cancer. Some studies show that BRCA mutants have an increased risk of uterine cancer (also known as edometrial cancer) and other studies show that we aren’t. This makes me a little nervous! It’s one of the reasons I elected to get rid of my uterus along with my ovaries and fallopian tubes.

Though on a slightly unrelated side note, I now can’t help but wonder if it would have been okay to have just my fallopian tubes removed and not my ovaries! After reading this study that ovarian cancer starts in the fallopian tubes, not ovaries. Though this thought was out there when I had to make my decision of exactly what to have removed, I felt it best at the time to just get rid of all of it.

I’ve known of several BRCA positive women who’ve been diagnosed with uterine cancer, so it’s hard for me to not wonder about the connection to our BRCA genes.

The good thing (if you can call anything about cancer good!) about uterine cancer is that it’s typically caught early enough to be treatable.

Uterine Cancer Symptoms (according to PubMed health):

Abnormal uterine bleeding, abnormal menstrual periods
- Bleeding between normal periods before menopause
- Vaginal bleeding or spotting after menopause
Extremely long, heavy, or frequent episodes of vaginal bleeding after age 40
Lower abdominal pain or pelvic cramping
Thin white or clear vaginal discharge after menopause

I’ve come across a few articles that bemoan a woman’s decision to have prophylactic surgeries to lesson their breast cancer risk when drugs like Tamoxifen are available. Well, yes, this chemopreventation drug may help decrease our breast cancer risk, but a not so lovely side effect of it is uterine or endometrial cancer when used for five years or longer.

So in a way so much of what we do and decide feels like a crapshoot.

crap·shoot

1.Informal . anything unpredictable, risky, or problematical; gamble.

We make the best decisions we can based on educated guesses that we form on current scientific data. I do believe it’d be detrimental to our emotional selves to go down the regret path. “If only I’d waited XX amount of time, I could have made a better choice!” As BRCA positive women, or BRCA mutants as I fondly refer to us as, we often feel like ticking time bombs and our choices are made in an effort to get to the cancer before it gets to us. While we know for a fact we have a highly increased risk of certain types of cancer, we can’t know FOR SURE if or when it will happen. All we can do is weigh our options against what we know and make the decisions we feel are best for ourselves and our families.

I do live in hope that one day it will be easier – hopefully for our children, and very hopefully for our childrens children!

U is for Utterly out of free Time!

Teri Smieja — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 21:07:46 +0000

I’m going to do my best to get a real post up later but for now my little one is resisting his nap and I just don’t have the free time to write. It may be after his bedtime, or maybe tomorrow (gasp!) but I’ll do what I can!

Have a great week, ya’ll!

T is for (almost a) Thousand

Teri Smieja — Sat, 23 Apr 2011 16:15:49 +0000

The BRCA Sisterhood logo was made by a BRCA sister, Rachel Harrison

When my good friend and BRCA sistah, *Karen Malkin-Lazavoritz and I started up the BRCA Sisterhood on Facebook we had no idea how successful it would become! As of today we need less than 20 more members before we reach 1000 members – that’s ONE THOUSAND! In my mind that is HUGE!

While Karen and I can claim the credit for coming up with the idea of starting our group, there’s no way it would have become the success that it is without all of the wonderful, caring and supportive officers and members! The members truly are what make the sisterhood – a sisterhood!

While our name is the BRCA Sisterhood, it’s a support group for more than just those of us with BRCA mutations. It’s also for those with other mutations that cause a high breast cancer risk such as the HER mutation, Lynch Syndrome, unknown mutations or those who have a high cancer risk in their family history. We also have a few members that have joined not because of their own high-risk status, but because they want to be supportive of a friend or family member that has one. Our members also include those who’ve had prophylactic surgeries to reduce their risks, as well as those who are going with increased surveillance.

While Teri’s Blip in the Universe will soon come to an end (the blog will remain up and running, but they’ll be no new posts), the BRCA Sisterhood will continue going strong, as will my part in it.

I know many of my BRCA sisters agree, having a place of support is invaluable while dealing with the special types of problems that those of us at high-risk of hereditary cancers have. If you haven’t had a chance to check us out yet, please do!

me & Karen

Stop on by and say hello and you’ll be warmly welcomed into our fold. Another positive of joining a support group – you don’t just get it support and friendship, you give it too. Something about helping another person along in their struggles (whether it’s with advice, sharing your experiences or just lending a sympathetic ear) is a truly rewarding feeling. Sometimes when you go looking for help, you end up being the one to give it, and that, my friends, is a truly amazing thing.

* If you want to see Karen, semi-live, just check her out here in this very touching (I cried buckets!) ten minute documentary.

S is for Stats & Site Meter

Teri Smieja — Fri, 22 Apr 2011 16:15:43 +0000

When this blog first started to really take off, I admit that I was a bit what I call ‘stat obsessed.’ I just couldn’t help myself! I’d check my stats constantly to see how many page views I was getting. I also use something called Site Meter which is a fun and free tool. It lets me see where those views are coming from. It tells me I.P. addresses, networks, entry pages, locations and more. I’ve since gotten over my stat obsession, but I still think it’s cool to open up Site Meter once in awhile and see where all of my views are coming from. It sort of floors me when I see that my blog is being read from all over the world!

My last 100 views (the number to the right of the location is how many miles away from me they are):

United States

Los Angeles, California

113

United States

Columbia, South Carolina

2,072

Unknown

United States

1,154

United States

1,154

United States

Omaha, Nebraska

1,231

United States

Los Angeles, California

113

Israel

Or Yehuda, Tel Aviv

7,432

Belgium

Mechelen, Antwerpen

5,497

United States

Columbus, Ohio

1,906

United States

1,154

United States

Roanoke, Virginia

2,086

Germany

Friedberg, Hessen

5,660

Finland

5,272

United Kingdom

Brighton, East Sussex

5,362

United States

1,154

United States

Lake Mary, Florida

2,164

Unknown

United States

Savannah, Georgia

2,101

Israel

Kefar Shemaryahu, Tel Aviv

7,422

Iran, Islamic Republic of

7,723

Unknown

United States

Germantown, Maryland

2,213

United States

Mchenry, Illinois

1,638

United States

Rochester, Minnesota

1,452

Australia

Paddington, Western Australia

9,045

China

Beijing

6,183

Unknown

United States

Brownsville, Tennessee

1,589

United States

Port Penn, Delaware

2,301

United States

Port Penn, Delaware

2,301

Unknown

United States

Smithfield, Virginia

2,268

Canada

1,965

United States

Fort Worth, Texas

1,178

United States

1,154

United States

1,154

United States

Silver Spring, Maryland

2,228

United Kingdom

Blackburn, Blackburn with Darwen

5,155

United States

Wabash, Indiana

1,758

United States

1,154

United States

Kalamazoo, Michigan

1,774

Philippines

Taytay, Rizal

7,259

United States

Mountain View, California

272

United States

Mountain View, California

272

United Kingdom

Brighton, East Sussex

5,362

United Kingdom

Brighton, East Sussex

5,362

Unknown

Canada

Sherwood Park, Alberta

1,255

United States

Luther, Oklahoma

1,149

United States

Portland, Oregon

732

Unknown

United States

Denver, Colorado

750

United States

Lansdale, Pennsylvania

2,310

United States

Salt Lake City, Utah

474

United States

1,154

Unknown

United States

Beaverton, Oregon

733

United States

Phoenix, Arizona

350

United States

North Andover, Massachusetts

2,511

New Zealand

Auckland

6,614

United States

Nampa, Idaho

553

Unknown

United States

Durham, North Carolina

2,159

United States

Los Angeles, California

113

United States

Tampa, Florida

2,117

United States

Port Saint Lucie, Florida

2,258

Unknown

Canada

Kingston, Ontario

2,237

United States

Corvallis, Oregon

685

United States

1,154

United States

Minot, North Dakota

1,202

United States

Roanoke, Virginia

2,086

United States

Mc Veytown, Pennsylvania

2,178

United States

Urbandale, Iowa

1,351

Unknown

United States

Anaheim, California

122

Canada

Essex, Ontario

1,915

United States

Mchenry, Illinois

1,638

United States

1,154

United States

Mountain Top, Pennsylvania

2,269

Unknown

United States

Eugene, Oregon

650

Unknown

Canada

Brampton, Ontario

2,073

United States

1,154

Unknown

United States

1,154

United States

Anaheim, California

122

United States

Omaha, Nebraska

1,231

United States

Collierville, Tennessee

1,575

United States

Worton, Maryland

2,275

United States

Wenatchee, Washington

824

United States

Cushing, Oklahoma

1,171

United States

Colorado Springs, Colorado

746

United States

East Machias, Maine

2,682

United States

Pensacola, Florida

1,790

100

United States

Los Angeles, California

113