So what does all that pink crap really mean?

Pink was my favorite color. Along came breast cancer and its pink ribbons on everything - socks, t shirts, cars, food packaging, store windows, etc. Then the world is bathed in pepto bismol for the month of October (instead of orange and black). Millions wear a pink bracelet. Thousands wear little pink ribbon pins to declare their medical history.

And what has changed? Not a hell of a lot. Some companies got rich making a lot of pink crap. Everyone knows what color ribbon stands for breast cancer. Everyone will say the words 'breast cancer' instead of whispering it as a death sentence. Teenage boys can say the word 'breast' with the word 'cancer' without snickering. The world is full of people who know about breast cancer but are sure they will not get it.

We are aware of breast cancer thank you. We do not need more awareness. We need a cure. I know I am being redundant but awareness is overdone for breast cancer. Can we talk about other kinds of cancer? There are lots of cancers out there. Some grow tumors. Some grow in your blood. Some grow in your lymph system. Some case a lot of pain. Some you don't feel until its way to late. Some cannot be operated on. There are millions of people in this country who have been down the cancer road and are waiting, not very patiently, for the day they do not need to fear their cancer's return because there will be a cure.

The pink crap has brought us a pepto colored world where people can talk about breast cancer but where we still can't make it go away.

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I'm ready for my annual 'I Survived Pinktober' T-Shirt

Today is the end of Pinktober. I will celebrate Halloween. I have candy hidden for the trick or treaters. I might wear my feather boa when I answer the door (that's the only costume I came up with this year - it will go nicely with my Sunday evening at home sweatshirt & jeans). I will also remember those who did not make it.

But I will also celebrate the end of Pinktober. As this opinion notes, there is a strong disconnect between the pink products and the pink cause. Neither of which we really need. We do need more cancer research. Skip spending money on pink products and send in your checks to cancer research.

If you buy pink encased lipstick celebrating Pinktober, did you know that lipstick could very easily contain chemicals which are known carcinogens? Or all those plastic thingies are made out of petrochemicals which are also known carcinogens? Think before you pink.

As you know I do not consider myself a cancer survivor but I do consider myself a Pinktober survivor. For that I need a t-shirt.

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I am not alone in this pain business

But first color me appalled about pink tire caps! Yes the little caps on your tire valves are available in pink from Tirecraft.

Apparently 76 million Americans live in chronic pain. The word chronic means its not going way anytime soon. While its nice to know I am not alone, I find the results of the survey interesting.
- 48 percent of respondents don't believe that proper treatment can ease chronic pain. - Did they even talk to their doctor? My husband always says to me that the doctor can never fix his sore shoulder, etc. But then he goes to the doctor, tells him about it, and they send him for PT and voila he is fine.
- 41 percent believe pain is a normal part of aging, and 10 percent simply ignore the pain. - I'm all for ignoring pain as long as possible
- 36 percent would refuse doctor-recommended or doctor-prescribed pain medication for fear of becoming addicted. - Um, its not like you are a street junkie if you are taking your prescribed medication. If you have concerns about becoming addicted, talk to your doctor. They will help you with your concerns.
- 34 percent believe pain medications that cause side effects are worse than pain itself. - I hear this one a lot. I know people like this. Its stupid. Take the damn medication. If it doesn't work for you or if you have the side effects, you can switch to another pill.
-31 percent would not speak to a doctor about their pain for fear they could not afford treatment. - Well if you have financial issues, talk to your doctor. The first steps I was given was PT. You can learn exercises that might help you and then do them for free. Tell your doctor you can't afford a lot and see what they can suggest that is free.
- Only 18 percent would speak to a specialist if they were suffering chronic pain. - Why? Is the magic genie going to grant you three wishes to relieve your pain? What's wrong with a specialist? I see lots of specialists.

A medical doctor is a human being. They don't want you to be in pain. They will help you as much as they can. But since most do not have ESP you need to talk to them about your concerns. Don't live in pain.

Additional note: In response to a comment below, I want to add that if someone is willing to live with their pain that is one issue. But if the pain interferes with their daily life and they are stuck on one of the reasons above, that is not a good reason to live with it. But if you talk to your doctor and they tell you what your options are, it is your choice to follow them or ignore them.

Crap, am I making sense?

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Chemo brain or cancer brain?

So maybe it wasn't chemo that made me a space shot... Maybe it was having cancer itself that did it. So if I went through it twice, I am at two levels of spaceshotness. I asked my husband to confirm this and he said 'for a spaceshot yes, this would make sense'.

The real term is cognitive impairment. As discussed previously, they are several arguments for or against this. Is it just what happens to your brain while aging? Is it a symptom of PSTD? Is it a side effect of menopause for women? The answers may never be known because they probably will never be able to pin it down

But I digress. We are almost halfway through pinktober, well just over 1/3 of the way. I see the trend this year as to people questioning awareness vs. research. I have seen glimpses for this, not just with Dr. Love's interview. I have seen more pink objects than I care to count.

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Needed: not awareness but research

The world is bathed in peptobismol pink through the month of Pinktober - formerly known as October. We are all aware of breast cancer now. We don't need more awareness, we need research. We should stop spending money on pink paint, pink ink, pink fabric, pink dye, pink thread, pink silk screening, etc.

Dr Susan Love, a respected breast surgeon and founder of the Dr. Susan B Love Research Foundation, explains it concisely. In the US, we give researchers funds and tell them go tell us what you find. What we need to do is give them funds and say 'find a cure'. We need to give them a goal to attain - some direction as it were.

She says it for me. This is what I think of Pinktober.

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I'm back

What's on my mind? A lot I guess. I am sick of pinktober. I was in the grocery store there were so many products with little pink ribbons. I felt like the store was dipped in pink. Is buying a bag of chips or can of soup with a little pink ribbon on it contributing to a cure for breast cancer? I don't see the connection.

If I put on my psychology hat for a moment, I can say this all goes back to my refusal to call myself a cancer survivor. I am not a cancer survivor. I am a person living with cancer. I only survived a bunch of doctors appointments - somewhere over 150 in the past three years alone. I am no psychologist or psychiatrist but perhaps there is a tie in.

The local weekly newspaper last year for the month of October published their issues on pink paper and interviewed breast cancer people each week. I declined last year but this year I am actually being written about as someone who blogs to deal with cancer and other health issues. (More about that when its published.) But what does a pink newsprint have to do with breast cancer???

Maybe pinktober makes me cynical? I'll just be a cynic for the rest of the month. That works.

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I am braced for Pinktober

Here it is again. October used to be full of hay rides, apple picking, Halloween costumes, and more outside fun things in the crisp cool days. But now it has been replaced by Pinktober where we will be flooded by all things pink. Here is a list of a few things I have already seen:

- A book display of a bunch of novels where all were issued with pink ribbons on the covers and and some unknown percent of their proceeds will be donated to breast cancer research.

- An (little bitty) ad for a dress at Macy's where they will donate 5% of the (undisclosed) sale price of the dress to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation - I don't know who this organization is. I looked it up and the dress retails for $99 so $4.99 will be donated for each dress sold.

- A local store is having a breast cancer sale on Sunday. An unspecified percentage of sales will be donated to breast cancer research.

- Eggland's best eggs are supporting breast cancer as well. They will have little pink ribbons stamped on each egg.

This is all I can remember but I am sure there is more and its 630 am on October 1. I can't wait to see what else I am exposed to during the month. I am sure I will see pink ribbons on EVERYTHING!

I think the point is good. Raise awareness of breast cancer, the most common cancer in the US for women. But it can be over done. Everything is pink. It gets a bit ridiculous.

The other issue is that all these things say they are raising funds for breast cancer research but you need to check the fine print. A list of questions and answers is found on the website www.thinkbeforeyoupink.org but I will summarize below:

1. How much money from your purchase actually goes toward breast cancer? Is the amount clearly stated on the package?
2. What is the maximum amount that will be donated?
3. How are the funds being raised?
4. To what breast cancer organization does the money go, and what types of programs does it support?
5. What is the company doing to assure that its products are not actually contributing to the breast cancer epidemic?

Check their site for more information but the real point is you might be better off just sending a check directly to a solid foundation instead. In the meantime, I'll just be braced against the wave of pink.

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Flavor of the month

This month is childhood cancer awareness month, thyroid cancer awareness month, and I believe at least another cancer awareness month. But beware, October is no longer the month of orange and black for Halloween but Pinktober for breast cancer. We will be bombarded with pinkwashing events and deals. Well, whoop-de-dooh. What does this get us?

NOTHING. Cancer doesn't only happen in a specific month. Cancer happens year round. People are diagnosed daily with all different kinds of cancer. Cancer awareness is a good thing. In some ways I am grateful for it. Cancer awareness has reduced cancer from being the C-word to something that is openly talked about.

President Nixon declared a war on cancer over 40 years ago (which is the longest war in US history)... Betty Ford, and every other person who has openly said over the years that they have cancer, should be lauded for helping raise awareness about cancer.

Its not the flavor of the month. Its life for some of us. I won't be participating in Pinktober any more than I am participating in thyroid cancer awareness this month. I don't participate in any monthly activities because September and October are no different than any other day in my life.

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