Breast prosthesis

I have got to ask other Breast Cancer women. How often do you wear your prosthesis? Why do they even make nightgowns and PJ's with a pocket for the prosthesis?

Even if you do wear a prosthesis during the day what is the point in sleeping with it/them?

I bought a good quality set of the prosthesis. In the year and a half I had no boobs I only wore the prosthesis three times. They were heavy and uncomfortable to say the least. And lets not forget hot.

There has got to be women out there like myself that choose not to wear the fake boobs. I am all for looking your best during chemo and the other treatments, but I think wearing the prosthesis is like wearing a girdle or corset, torturous.

As we Baby Boomer, and for some our daughters, are facing breast cancer we need clothing that is functional, stylish, feminine and comfortable. Confident Clothing Company has created a line of clothing that fits into today's active lifestyle.

In addition to being great looking Confident Clothing Company's designs are especially versatile, so that you get more bang for your buck. In today's economy that is a necessity. The clothing can be dressed up for an evening out, it can be worn during exercise or just going about your daily activities.

The main reason I designed the Cool Chemo line of clothing was to provide a functional and feminine solution to what to wear immediately after surgery, during chemo and or radiation and after reconstructive surgery.

Being a personal trainer and trying to maintain my phyiscal fitness during my cancer experience I discovered immediately that the prosthesis and wigs were not for me. The only clothing that showed up when I searched the internet for breast cancer clothing was all the pink ribbon stuff. So, I could find clothing to support the breast cancer cause, but not for the women that actually had cancer. How crazy is that!

I would really like feedback from you, as to if you wore the prosthesis or not. Please forward this to other women that you know are dealing or have dealt with this issue and have them also email me at kathy@confidentclothingcompany.com to share insights about what you wore and what you felt was missing.

Confidently,

Kathy Adams

Confident Clothing Company

www.confidentclothingcompany.com

Strength Training benefits during Chemotherapy

Researchers is Canadian just reported the positive effects that cardiovascular and strength training provide breast cancer patients during chemotherapy treatments. They found that the completion rate of treament, for patients that participated in either type of exercise was greater than for the patients that didn't perform any regular exercise.

Personally, I found that during my treatments I seemed to fair much better than many of the women that were receiving chemo treatment at the same time. I truly believe that by being physically fit going into my treatment and staying as active as possible during treatment made a big difference in my ability to handle to chemo.

I had times when getting out of bed was difficult to say the least, but I knew in a couple of days I would feel better. On those days when I had the energy to walk and get fresh air it always proved to be good for me both physically and mentally. Certainly, I wasn't able to keep up the same intensity that I did before surgery and chemo, but I did keep moving as much as possible. Remember doing something is better than doing nothing.

Many women complain of weight gain during chemo for breast cancer. This can be avoided or at least minimized by exercise. Exercise also helps you participate in your own health and well-being by being proactive during your journey. For me it was the one thing I had some control over instead of being passive.

How to improve your mood

Wheather you just discovered you have Breast Cancer or you are and old pro like me (this is the 20th month since being diagnosised) you can benefit from physical activity. It doesn't have to be much, any movement is better than none. Of course this is assuming you didn't just have surgery and are not under doctors orders to stay quiet and limit your movement.
Not only will you feel better by moving your body, it will also help you think about and hopefully remember to breath. This is turn helps you circulation, which helps the healing process. It also will make you feel better mentally. Exercise is a proven mood enhancer and it doesn't require and injection or IV!
I know some of you think I'm crazy, especially if you just had your chemo or the very painful Neulasta or other medications to improve your white blood cell count. So, maybe plan a few days out and make a date with a friend that will go at your speed and timing. Just walk. Rest if you need to and keep up your fluid intake.
Please remember you can send questions regarding exercise and breast cancer to me through this blog.
I look forward to hearing from you.

In health and happiness

Kath