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Test Those Breasts ™️
This podcast by Jamie Vaughn is a deep-dive discussion on a myriad of breast cancer topics, such as early detection, the initial shock of diagnosis, testing/scans, treatment, loss of hair, caregiving, surgery, emotional support, and advocacy.
These episodes will include breast cancer survivors, thrivers, caregivers, surgeons, oncologists, therapists, and other specialists who can speak to many different topics.
Disclaimer: I am not a doctor and not all information in this podcast comes from qualified health care providers, therefore does not constitute medical advice. For personalized medical advice, you should reach out to one of the qualified healthcare providers interviewed on this podcast and/or seek medical advice from your own providers.
Test Those Breasts ™️
Episode 70: Transforming Crisis into Strength: Travis Brady's Story
Ever thought a simple health scare could redefine your life's priorities? Meet Travis Brady, our resilient guest who was misdiagnosed with appendicitis, but soon found herself facing stage 3A ER/PR positive breast cancer. Her journey from self-neglect to becoming her own health advocate is not just inspiring; it's a wake-up call for all of us to prioritize self-care. Travis's story underscores the critical lesson of putting on your own oxygen mask first—a concept she embodies through her fight and survival.
Join us as Travis recounts the tumultuous path from her initial misdiagnosis to the discovery of a rare ovarian vein thrombosis, and ultimately, a severe breast cancer revelation. Amidst the chaos of relocating her family across the country, her world turned upside-down. Yet, through surgeries and grueling chemotherapy sessions, her determination to seek second opinions and make informed health decisions showcases the profound impact of being your own advocate in the medical maze.
In the latter part of our conversation, Travis introduces her book, which will be released on October 8, 2024, "Make Room for Healing: 40 Tips from a Breast Cancer Survivor," a heartfelt compilation of practical advice and personal wisdom. Her mission? To ease the journey for others facing similar battles. We also touch on critical topics of breast cancer prevention and awareness, emphasizing informed decision-making about hormone treatments and the invaluable support of the breast cancer community. Travis's journey is a powerful testament to the strength and resilience of survivors, offering hope and guidance to anyone navigating their health challenges.
TravisBrady.com
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I am not a doctor and not all information in this podcast comes from qualified healthcare providers, therefore may not constitute medical advice. For personalized medical advice, you should reach out to one of the qualified healthcare providers interviewed on this podcast and/or seek medical advice from your own providers .
Hello friends, Welcome back to the Test those Breasts podcast. I am your host, Jamie Vaughn. I'm a retired teacher of 20 years and a breast cancer thriver turned staunch, unapologetic, loud supporter and advocate for others, bringing education and awareness through a myriad of medical experts, therapists, caregivers and other survivors. A breast cancer diagnosis is incredibly overwhelming, with the mounds of information out there, and other survivors A breast cancer diagnosis is incredibly overwhelming, with the mounds of information out there, especially on Dr Google. I get it. I'm not a doctor and I know how important it is to uncover accurate information, which is my ongoing mission through my nonprofit. The podcast includes personal stories and opinions from breast cancer survivors and professional physicians, providing the most up-to-date information. At the time of recording Evidence, research and practices are always changing, so please check the date of the recording and always refer to your medical professionals for the most up-to-date information. I hope you find this podcast a source of inspiration and support from my guests. Their contact information is in the show notes, so please feel free to reach out to them. We have an enormous breast cancer community ready to support you in so many ways.
Speaker 1:Now let's listen to the next episode of Test those Breasts. Well, hello, friends, Welcome back to this episode of Test those Breasts. I am your host, Jamie Vaughn, and today I am extra thrilled to have my guest, Travis Brady, on my show. Hello, Travis. Travis is a surviving and thriving past her stage 3A ERPR positive breast cancer diagnosis in 2016. She wrote make room for healing 40 tips from a breast cancer survivor to pay it forward all the help she received when undergoing treatment. Brady lives in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, with her husband and daughter, and to learn more and we're going to talk about this a little more in the episode but to learn more, if you want to go right now to her website, go to travisbradycom. Well, welcome, Travis. It's nice to see you again. You know we've had a conversation in the past and we just really came to an understanding of who each other were and I really wanted to interview you just based on your experience and what you're doing in your survivorship.
Speaker 2:How are you doing today? I am well, I'm very well and I'm excited to be here and connecting with you. Yeah, Great.
Speaker 1:Well, you know, you and I were talking too that you guys just had an interesting storm, Hurricane Debbie. How's everything?
Speaker 2:going there. I used to live in California. So now I say I've traded the earthquakes for the hurricanes.
Speaker 1:Okay.
Speaker 2:The hurricanes I know are coming.
Speaker 1:Yes, yeah, and also the fires. You know we were just talking to like we get a lot of fires out here, so now we're sort of surrounded by fires. Well, I'm glad that everything's okay. I know you had to rescue your daughter from her camp and everyone's safe. So, yes, great, all right. Well, listen, I just really would like you to share with our audience, first of all, who Travis Brady was before she got the diagnosis of breast cancer.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so I was diagnosed in 2016, at the age of 45. And probably like most people, I did not see this coming. It was something that came out of nowhere, and the person that I was before the diagnosis was someone who was always in a hurry, always in a rush, someone who did not put my own health first I put everyone's needs before mine and my health and, in general, was someone who, even though I said and I tried to practice presence, didn't really get that message and feel that until I was in active treatment and understood what that meant on a day-to-day basis, raising a child.
Speaker 1:You know that's really interesting because anytime I ever ask that question it seems to be a common theme. You know, I've interviewed a couple of men as well. I feel like sometimes that was their reality too. But I primarily interview women who are survivors, and it seems like this is the case with every single one of those women, and including myself. I was the same way and just taking care of everyone else and go, go, go, go, go and pushing it to the limit. But there's one common theme that I have run across is that women tend to know their bodies Like in hindsight. We all may have felt something. Intuition may have said something Like for me, I had zingers in my breasts, I've had burning sensations and you know I knew in my head what is that. But then I didn't go in for you know a month or two because I was just.
Speaker 2:My mammogram wasn't until June, yeah, you didn't care of other people, so similar. There's a couple of things. One is when I was researching for the book, I actually found information around a breast cancer personality. In digging into this idea. I mean, I was just curious about it as I was putting the book together and thought is this real? Is this really something that I have? Is this something other people have? When I looked at the research, it was actually debunked in terms of the test that they did for this, so it wasn't solid. But once I started reading it I thought this is really interesting because, to your point, I've talked to a lot of survivors and there is that common theme of sort of putting everyone else first before taking care of yourself.
Speaker 2:And I remember in going through treatment and starting to look at health differently and advocating for myself differently and being pushed to the wall by doctors at certain points, etc. I remember one of my aunts and I have awesome aunts in my family she said to me she said you know you remember when you're in the plane and they take you through the safety protocol, they say you always have to put on your mask first before you give it to your child. She said that's what you need to remember when you are raising your child and taking care of yourself. So when I was diagnosed, my daughter was just turning three. I just simply lost all care for myself, from exercise and food to actually joy and sticking with the things that give me joy to make sure that I was uplifting myself. I just all of that had gone by the wayside, and really being in active treatment reminded me. No, this is my life, I am taking care of her and it is my duty and responsibility to raise her, and I want to be connected to her and raise her in a conscious way, but I also have to care for myself, and to your point. So my wake-up call was actually playing with her.
Speaker 2:She and I were playing on the bed in January of 2016, and I was tickling her and she accidentally kicked me and kicked me right here, and I reached up and I thought how there was something that she hit that hurt, but it was way up here underneath in my armpit, and I thought, oh, that must be a swollen lymph node.
Speaker 2:I mean, it never crossed my mind that it could be breast cancer, not even for a moment, but I did think you know what I should call my doctor and I made an appointment and I was supposed to see her in February with my OBGYN. And I got a new job in the meantime of all of this and I was sitting in a board meeting when I got the notification that I had that doctor's appointment. I completely forgotten it and I have never done that in my life and it's just so interesting to me that it's just. It's a perfect example of how I wasn't looking out for my health in those moments and I was putting the job first, you know, daughter first, husband first, whatever first, and that life for me doesn't exist without that care of my health.
Speaker 1:Boy. That's really interesting. Number one what a great piece of advice from your aunt, I mean, because it is true, we can't live a healthy life and we can't take care of our kids unless we're healthy, right, so that's a great piece of advice, but also, in hindsight, the whole thing about your daughter kicking you and you thinking that it's your lymph nodes. This is really stupid, but I didn't even know anything about lymph nodes before breast cancer. I didn't even know that. I know I'd heard people say things about having lymph nodes removed for breast cancer, but I just never really put two and two together as to the importance of that or the significance of that. And then also forgetting that you had a doctor's appointment.
Speaker 1:The most of the women that I know well, we're multitaskers, right, so we remember things, like for me. I always have to remind my husband what we're doing, as I always put it on my calendar, and sometimes he does, sometimes he doesn't. But when we realized that we forgot something for me, it made me very uneasy. It always makes me feel uneasy when I have forgotten something really important, like a doctor's appointment or like a meeting for work or whatever. So tell us about how you found out. Where did that take you? What was your diagnosis? What were your treatments like?
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah. So I was supposed to have that doctor's appointment in February and once I missed it, I made a note to rebook that appointment and I didn't do it. I didn't rebook with my doctor and I sort of let it. I just forgot about it. It wasn't something that I thought that I had an appendicitis and I went into the ER with my husband they could not confirm that it was appendicitis and, as a matter of fact in the emergency room said, hey, we can't confirm this, but the symptoms and your pain, that's what it seems like we should just go ahead and take it out.
Speaker 2:And I thought in that moment I was like wait, wait, wait you're telling me that you're not totally sure that this is appendicitis, but you'd still like for me to do this emergency appendectomy right now, right here, and take this body part out. And because I had had some experience with physicians before, I just said you know what? Is there anything else that you can do? Is there another test? Is there some way to confirm this? They said, yeah, you know what, there is one more test. Fast forward to getting the results of that. It turned out I did not have appendicitis. I actually had a blood clot in my ovarian vein on my right side, right where the appendix would be as well, and it's called an ovarian vein thrombosis. It is very rare, very rare, and because of that I was also seeing a hematologist at the time when I found this.
Speaker 2:So in April, we were actually prepping to leave California, move to North Carolina and I was going to see the hematologist for the last time. He was giving me the all clear. They could never figure out why I had the clot. I don't have any blood disorders, I don't have any other reason for it. They couldn't figure it out. But he said you know you're good, you know you've been on your medication, you're not at risk anymore. And we'd finished our doctor's appointment. I said, oh wait, he was literally walking out the door and I said wait, wait, I have this thing here. Could you feel this for me? And he said sure, and he felt it. And his whole demeanor changed. I mean, everything changed in the room the energy, his face, everything that was happening went from this wonderful moment of being all clear and moving on to my next stage in life to no, I need another doctor to look at this. So then he brought in one of his physicians. She felt it and she's like we have to get that biopsied right away. And because they knew that I was leaving, they got me in.
Speaker 2:That week I had the biopsy and the doctor after the biopsy looked at me and she said you know this cancer, but it's early stage. This is going to be a bump in the road. This is not going to be a big deal for you. She said that and I thought, oh my gosh, okay, this is so heavy and I'm getting ready to move across the country. So it just was a moment in time where I mean getting that diagnosis pulls the rug out from under you, no matter who you are I mean everybody I know says that, no matter who you are. I mean everybody I know says that. But getting it in that moment where I was moving across the country with a three-year-old and looking forward to a new stage of our life, it was a lot yeah.
Speaker 1:I can only imagine my gosh. Good thing you asked at that moment too. Yeah, oh yeah. If I hadn't to your point, if I hadn't done that, I would have gone months without doing anything about this, Right?
Speaker 2:This tells me a lot about you. To your point, if I hadn't done that, I would have gone months without doing anything about this right.
Speaker 1:This tells me a lot about you. First of all, you advocated for yourself as far as getting your appendix out. Really, you don't know what it is, you can't confirm, but you want to go ahead and just take it out, right, right, and then asking for another test. That tells me a lot about you. You're questioning in your mind and you're in ER and trusting these doctors to find out what the heck is causing that kind of pain. And I know having a blood clot like that.
Speaker 1:I had a what do they call it? A hematoma on my uterus and it was causing so much pain and people couldn't figure out what it was. And I went to my gynecologist and he went in there and he's like, yeah, you have a hematoma on your uterus, we'll just go in there and pop it and it will give you instant relief. And he went in there and he tried to get it out of there and couldn't get it out of there and he finally pulled the thing out and he's like I can't get to it, we're going to have to take it out. And I said what are you talking about? We have to take your uterus out. So I had this emergency hysterectomy at that time. But I mean, I know how painful that probably was for you and so good for you for advocating for yourself. And then on top of that, asking that doctor after you were all clear, to feel your lymph node and wow, and then it turned out to be 3A, stage 3A.
Speaker 2:So then, to your point, fast forward. You know, a couple of weeks we've made it to North Carolina, I'm at Duke, I have more biopsies, you know, and scheduled for surgery and choose Sometimes we have that choice between a lumpectomy and a mastectomy and, meeting with my surgeon at the time, I chose the lumpectomy. Going through that process, that was when I was finally staged. Then it's oh, it was more aggressive than we thought. It's stage three. We took out 22 lymph nodes out of your body and five of them were infected.
Speaker 2:So then the whole thing changes. I've gone from believing that this was early stage, going to be an easy road, et cetera, to holy shooby. This is super serious and this is going to change the course of what I thought would be the next year, but to your point, really probably my life right, changing how I operate in the world and what I was going to choose to do. First I had my surgery. I had an unbelievable surgeon. I really do believe he's one of the reasons I'm still here. Clear margins, easy surgery.
Speaker 2:I was out of my drains in less than a week, moved through that process and then had oncology, met with my oncologist at Duke and she had recommended chemo two. So for the cancer that I was diagnosed with, there's chemo one, chemo two, chemo three, chemo one being the least, three being the most, and she had recommended two. Middle of the road, to your point, my intuition, just something didn't sit quite right with that and I had a family friend offer to connect me with an oncologist at Johns Hopkins, just have a conversation about what the road was like ahead of me, because he knew, and talking to me just for 10 minutes, that I was the kind of person that was going to try to manage this like a business project, right? What are the things I need to do? Here are all the things I need to tick off my list and I'm just going to move through that. I can schedule it in. It's all going to go smoothly. And while he and I were talking, schedule it in, it's all going to go smoothly.
Speaker 2:And while he and I were talking, he said Travis, you have to make room for treatment. This is going to be a big deal, this is going to be a lot of time, this is going to take a good chunk of your life, and you just need to realize that. And that actually became the inspiration for the title of my book Make Room for Healing. He also said something which I also think was key in my longevity to this point, because I'm at eight years is he said you know you should get your second opinion down the road at UNC.
Speaker 2:And in that moment there were two light bulbs that went off right. One I hadn't even considered getting a second opinion. I was with a top 100 doctor at Duke and it never occurred to me to get a second opinion. And two, the light bulb moment of lady, of course you're going to get a second opinion Like duh, you didn't already have that on your list and I didn't. I hadn't even thought about it. I looked up the doctor, I called her office, I made an appointment and two weeks time I was in seeing her and she recommended chemo. Three, she said you're young, you're healthy, you should hit this with everything that you can take and that we've got to give you. That's her opinion. And in that moment, just I felt better with her and I thought you know, I've got a three-year-old at home, I want to live as long as I can and I'm going to go for this. And at the end of our appointment I said, hey, you know, will you be my doctor? It was this weird dating moment.
Speaker 1:You want to go steady.
Speaker 2:And she made the comment while we met. She said you know, hopefully we're going to be in a, in a like a lifelong relationship. I mean that's the goal for me to be with you and for us to be on this road together. So in that moment I decided to get my treatment there and do the chemo. Three, which meant five months of chemo, and then I had 36 plus treatments of radiation. My skin held up. So they just kept saying, oh, we think you could have a little more. I'm like great. So they just kept saying, oh, we think you could have a little more.
Speaker 1:I'm like great, let's keep going. Wait, wait, wait how many. I think it was 36. Did you go once a week, every day, for radiation? Oh, for radiation, got it.
Speaker 2:Okay, yes, yes, for the chemo it was five months from start to finish.
Speaker 1:Okay.
Speaker 2:With the two different rounds, and then I actually asked to take a break between my chemo and my radiation. I went to my doctor and I said you know what this has been so hard on my body. I would like to give my body a rest and actually help it build up and fortify itself before I start the radiation. She's like oh no, you can't do that. There's no breaks in treatment protocol. I'm like, well, why? Why is that? Why can't I take a break? It's my body, it's my treatment. I want to fortify my body so that I can go this next round, Because after chemo I'd lost so much weight.
Speaker 2:I didn't have the energy. I needed a break from going to the hospital. I mean, I was tired of being at the hospital, all of those things. And she was like okay, what are you talking? How much time do you want? I was like, well, I'd love six weeks. She's like, no, I'm not going to give you six weeks. And we negotiated back and forth. We waited at four weeks, so I got a month off and I didn't have to go to the hospital. I could go see music. We love to see music. I was doing things that I enjoyed and taking care of my body and myself and regrouping before the radiation, which I also think was helpful in my healing.
Speaker 1:I like your, my body, my choice, attitude.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean, we all doctors have so much knowledge and we need their support and we need their healing. And they are treating people. You know, I'm a person who has needs and wants and desires and the person who knows my body the best should be me, right, and they are a consultant on that road.
Speaker 1:Right.
Speaker 2:To her credit. Worked with me on that and yeah.
Speaker 1:I'm still here. I love it. I love having doctor patient relationships that are personalized, because everybody is different and you know, as we know, with a breast cancer diagnosis and going through treatment, there's a lot of emotional stuff that we experience and it's so real and so intense and you know it's just so hard to get through. So with that you finished your treatment and then what happened? What are you doing in your survivorship to help other women, because I know that a lot of women who have breast cancer and go through the treatment and surgeries and all of that, you know we have this inner feeling that we need to help our other sisters out there and be able to support. For me it's my podcast and the nonprofit that I created with Tess, those Breasts. With you, you wrote a book. Can you share with us how that all came about and how that is affecting other breast cancer? Well, it's going to be launched in October, october 8th. So how did that all come about and tell us the process.
Speaker 2:Well, after I finished treatment in 2017, I rang the bell after my last radiation treatment in April of 2017. That October, breast Cancer Awareness Month I said you know what I'm going to and I've had blogs before because I am a writer at heart. I said I'm going to write one thing a day that helped me get through treatment and I'm going to put it on this blog so that when friends and family reach out to me and say, hey, can you support this breast cancer survivor who you know, that's always happening. I have friends and family that reach out. They know someone, could I help them? I said you know what. I'm going to put it all on this blog so when somebody does call, yes, I can talk to that person and I can also say, hey, go to my blog and you can see these things. So, one tip every day.
Speaker 2:I wrote during Breast Cancer Awareness Month of things that helped me get through treatment.
Speaker 2:So in the end, I did an introduction and so I had 30 things and I had that website for a while and would pass that along to people, and then, just through my own neglect of not looking at my GoDaddy account, the blog went away and that was my own issue for not following it up and keeping up with it, but I also didn't want to think about cancer all the time.
Speaker 2:It wasn't something I wanted to write about. So when that disappeared and I realized that then I let it go, I felt a great sense of relief, actually, because I wasn't having this sort of pressure of thinking about keeping it up. I let it go and then in a month I woke one morning and I had the idea for the book, like how to take those tips, how to organize them in a way that would be helpful for people going through breast cancer treatment, and putting that together. That's what I thought about. I wanted to create a concise book that offered basically tips and hacks from my perspective that either worked for me or people told me about and that I share in the book, and that's what motivated me to put the book together.
Speaker 1:Love that and it helps. It really does help. Travis, have you done any readings at all for people yet? Not yet.
Speaker 2:Not yet. Everything is scheduled for October. I have events listed on my website at travisbradycom, so I've got a handful of events across the country scheduled to share the book and the tips and I'm excited to put it out in the world and be of service, because that's what I realized going through breast cancer treatment and the thing for me was I wanted to pay it forward, you know, and I love writing, so I chose something that would bring me joy and the process of that would bring me joy and put it together and then be able to be of service. That's really when I think about my mission, which is to make breast cancer treatment easier. Just to make it easier, I mean. That in and of itself will bring I think I wish I'd had it, you know such relief that I hope that's being of service.
Speaker 1:I remember when I got diagnosed, I had a friend of mine who had breast cancer several years prior, and when she found out that I had it, she goes oh gosh, Jamie, you know you're about to embark on the sisterhood of all sisters and it's true there's so many sisters out there and that are so willing to help in any way they can, whether it be a blog, a book, a podcast or whatever it is, any kind of like coaching services and things like that. Okay, Cause I was going to ask you if you had, if there was a favorite excerpt that you'd like to read, but we can also do that later on. Is there anything that you can share from the book that's part of your favorite, as maybe a favorite tip that you're giving patients or people who are going through breast cancer?
Speaker 2:I mentioned it earlier and I just recently had someone reach out to me about a friend that they have who was just diagnosed, and I gave them this piece of advice, which was get a second opinion. Yes, I have met people who saw the same exact doctor as I did, who did not get the second opinion, went the same route. One unfortunately passed away and one is living with metastatic breast cancer and I knock on wood. You can't see it, but I'm knocking on wood. I chose that more aggressive type and treatment and that was because of a second opinion and I really having a great surgeon and also getting a second opinion, I think are the key things for the reason I'm still here.
Speaker 1:I think that's such a great piece of advice. I know that when we get that kind of diagnosis and we find out from our local oncologist you know what we're going to go through that we're in such a whirlwind of craziness. I remember exactly how I felt, and I did have a person reach out to me and told me that I should get a second opinion from these like Sloan Kettering and Mayo Clinic or wherever, and I didn't.
Speaker 1:In fact, I was kind of upset with her because I'd already had a plan and the forces were telling me Jamie, you have this plan, you have the top oncologists and a surgeon here where you live and they know what they're talking about, and I know that they do. I mean, in the end I'm glad you know I went through what I did. She saved my life. I thank her every day for it. But this particular person was telling me not to do chemo and that I should get a second opinion and find out what other kind of treatments there were. But I just know where our minds are at that moment and I chose to stay here. The time that I did get a second opinion actually there were two times One was when they found another tumor in me, in my thoracic cavity. It was leaning up against my heart. It was a huge thymoma tumor that was apparently just sitting there for years. You know, it's not a lot of people One in 400 people get one, lucky me and it caused this really rare anemia that I have and I didn't know anything about it. My oncologist thought it was anemia, that was an iron deficiency, but it wasn't. It was this thymoma tumor that I eventually had removed after my breast surgery was putting off these antibodies that were attacking my red blood cells that were already producing too slow. So I had dozens of transfusions. But I got a second and a third opinion on the treatment that I needed for that, which I'm really glad that I did. But I also got a second opinion about breast surgery. In our area we don't have people that do autologous surgeries. Where I had the deep flap surgery, I had a mastectomy and deep flap surgery, got a second opinion, went to New Orleans and got that done. So I know the power of second opinion. So that is such great advice, travis. And even if somebody could read the book or have somebody tell someone when they get that diagnosis how important that is, I just find that very, very powerful.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so have you been another podcast and talk shows? Yet it's coming up. You're the first. Oh, great, okay, is this your first podcast interview, like first ever? Yes, yes, I love it. I've had so many people interview with me. I mean, listen, as of today, what is today, the 12th of August? Tomorrow I will be releasing episode 66. I have had so many people tell me that it was their first podcast interview and I just find that so amazing. So I'm glad that you're here, I'm glad that I could I don't know, uh, divergenize you and your podcast. Love it, I love it, so okay.
Speaker 1:Well, I know that you have advice for people who are diagnosed. What kind of advice do you have for people that have never been diagnosed, just because, in hindsight, there are things that we wish we would have known. We know that one in eight women are diagnosed with breast cancer, and that is not a small statistic. That's. It's kind of terrifying, actually it is terrifying, and the younger generation are getting breast cancer. So for me, in my mind, I wish that I was more aware of certain things before I was diagnosed. I know in our 20s and 30s it's not even on our radar. I know when we get into our 40s, we start getting our mammograms and all of that. So what kind of piece of advice do you have for someone who's never even been diagnosed?
Speaker 2:Number one touch those ta-tas, do your own self-breast exam. I mean that early detection is key. Get that off the table. That's level set.
Speaker 2:That's the number one thing I will tell you as I went through this process of treatment, anybody who would talk to me and would listen, I would ask the question why do you think I got breast cancer Right? Because when you look at it, the type of cancer that I got, I didn't have the BRCA gene. I've got the most common kind, which kind of gave me a little bit of relief because I've been that a lot of research dollars and attention had been paid to my type of cancer. But what I started to realize is that there, over time, there were decisions I made about my health or didn't make about my health was not informed. That probably made my body ripe for developing the cancer, because all of us have cancer cells floating in our body and some bodies can get rid of them and some bodies cannot. And why was my body one that could not? And so one of the things that I look back now I wish I'd known more about the repercussions of my hormone, not fertility treatments, but I did do that but my birth control. So I chose because I was very estrogen sensitive to have progesterone only birth control and there was a study that came out a few months ago that I saw out of the UK that said that if you use this progesterone only birth control you're going to be 30% more likely to have breast cancer. No one ever talked to me about that. Nope, there was nothing. But I also did not own the research of that. I didn't look it up to say is this the right thing for me over time? That's the one thing.
Speaker 2:The second thing was if you have a child after the age of 40, your chances of breast cancer go up again. I had my daughter at 42. I wouldn't have made a different choice, but it just is something I wish that I had known. Daughter at 42. I wouldn't have made a different choice, but it just is something I wish that I had known.
Speaker 2:Number three is that I did have fertility treatments because I was older and I can honestly say that my fertility doctor did not sit me down and say you need to understand the repercussions or the things that could happen, because you are going to take this medication and do this to your body, and I wish that we had had that conversation. I wish I'd had that opportunity to have that conversation and to understand that, because, just like in a breast cancer treatment diagnosis, where you're overwhelmed with your treatment and the things that you need, fertility is the same way. There's so much that goes on around thinking about how to become pregnant and what you need to do and how that needs to happen, that that's also overwhelming. But I think there needs to be more conversations with women about the repercussions of fertility treatments.
Speaker 2:So, when you start to look at over time, it's these health decisions. And then, on top of it, look at over time, it's these health decisions. And then, on top of it, not keeping up my exercise and not creating a healthy body environment through my nutrition. And right, I needed to do, and I mean I completely changed my diet and how I feed myself and really think about nourishing myself, right, right, you know I mean.
Speaker 1:and the thing is is that before I got breast cancer I was probably in the healthiest shape and inside and out of my lifetime and I was 54 when I got diagnosed. 56 now are going on, I'll be 57. I'm not like a kid saying I'm 56 and a half, I'll be 57. In October I was at my optimal weight, all the things. And it occurred to me later on that even if you're super healthy physically, all that we can still get cancer. But the good thing is is that you can get through those treatments so much better. You know the efficacy of the treatments are, you know, just better. So we want people to understand that you know, even if you are super healthy with your nutrition and your body, your muscles, all that, that's a good thing. But always be understanding you know that, like you said, we all have cancer cells. We are all open to cancer at some point. So it's good to be like you know you want to do strength training and things like that, right, I just really like that you have that advice for our people, because it's so important to think about, even if you've never had cancer, and then also when you're going into treatments like fertility treatments and birth control, because I was on birth control for a long time and no one ever told me that this might be, and I don't know whether they had the research back then. I have no idea. But doctors now who are giving birth control and fertility treatment should be able to say to their patients these can be some of the side effects. These can be some of the things you want to look for down the road so that people can make more informed decisions. So that's a good one.
Speaker 1:That's one that I really haven't heard before, so thanks for bringing that in, well Travis, one that I really haven't heard before, so thanks for bringing that in, well Travis. This has been such a wonderful conversation with you, such a great perspective. I love the fact that you have taken the time to write this book for our sisterhood and also brotherhood. You know, I mean lots of men can use a lot of this advice, and it's launching on October 8th. I can't wait to read it. I would love to be able to read it when it comes out. Is there anything you'd like to leave us with before we disconnect?
Speaker 2:Oh gosh, the thing that came out of this whole experience for me was that this is my one life that I know of right that I'm going to have, and that it's up to me to enjoy it. You know, find the ways that mean something to me, that bring me joy and purpose and meaning. That is really the biggest takeaway. I think the book. It helps people get through treatment and has very specific things to do as well as sort of more esoteric things that could be considered, but in the end the book is about self-care. That to me, you don't have to be an active cancer treatment to realize that you need self-care. We all need that. And finding the ways that you can care for yourself, that support you, that are meaningful to you, I think is the most important thing.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I mean, sometimes we just have to have a slap upside the face and, you know, get sick and then figure it out, right. But it's really good for people to even read this, even if they've never had breast cancer, just to read it, to be more aware. Knowledge is power, right? So thank you, yeah, thanks for bringing that awareness. Well, travis, thank you very much.
Speaker 1:I thoroughly am so happy that you decided to join me and I'm glad that I'm your first podcast episode that you're on. You're going to just rock this and I can't wait to hear you on other platforms and to my audience. Thank you so much again for joining us on this episode of Test those Breasts on your favorite platform. I love it when people go and rate and review this podcast. It helps, so, so so much. So, thank you again and we will see you on the next episode of Test those Breasts. Bye for now, friends. Thank you so much for listening to this episode of Test those Breasts. I hope you got some great Bye for now. If you'd like to collaborate, my contact information is in the show notes and, as a reminder, rating, reviewing and sharing this podcast will truly help build a bigger audience all over the world. I thank you for your efforts. I look forward to sharing my next episode of Test those Breasts. Thank you.
