Wednesday, May 28, 2008

It's Eggplant Day

Several weeks ago, as I was standing in line at the grocery store check out counter, I encountered a lady who was buying an eggplant and a few other items. I don't really know why, but I asked her what she was going to do with the eggplant. I explained that I had never bought an eggplant and was curious to know how she prepared it. Turns out she wasn't planning on preparing it at all. She was a mammographer and was going to use the eggplant to practice using the new digital imaging machine that the hospital had just gotten for taking mammograms! I really didn't know if that should comfort me or worry me, but I figured if a vegetable could withstand the pressure exerted from this machine I could too.

Well today I am going to find out! It's mammogram day for me. This is not a day I look forward to, but my hope is that with the newer, gentler digital machine I will have less to fear. Of course, it's not just the pain of the squashing most of us fear about mammograms. Perhaps like me you worry about the unknown, the possibility of finding out some bad news. About 9 years ago when I had my first mammogram my doctor called me with unsettling news. I ended up having to have a sonogram and a biopsy. Nothing was wrong after all, but it wasn't a fun ride!

I say all this to say, "Get your mammogram!" No, it's not a pleasant experience and you may even get some unpleasant news, but it allows you to walk in the light instead of the dark. It gives you the info you need to take care of yourself and live. And if an eggplant can take it, so can you!

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