METS MONDAY: ACTIVISTS & MAVENS

On Saturday, July 27th, 2013, AnneMarie of Chemo-Brain fame celebrated seven years of living with NED (No Evidence of Disease) post-breast cancer. Of this milestone, AnneMarie reflects...
 "I've learned much. And yes, I am ever so grateful that I still reside in the Land of NED. I am also ACUTELY aware five years guarantees nothing. It gives me a statistical edge (supposedly... allegedly... I'm not a fan of statistics since they can be punctuated to fit any given agenda) but there is no guarantee...." (For more on her story, please visit her blog, Chemo-Brain.blogspot.com.) I'd like to give a shout-out to three blogging activists who happened to celebrate their "cancerversaries" in the past three days.

On Sunday, July 28th, 2013, Kathi of The Accidental Amazon celebrated living with NED for five years  — and she created the great graphic above to illustrate what it feels like to reach this milestone. She also recounts how much her life has changed since her breast cancer diagnosis — and not always for the better. "My life has slowed down. Dramatically. And I’ve had to let go of a lot. Of necessity. I haven’t liked it much," she explains. "Some of the letting go has been painful — like letting go of friendships and expectations. But I don’t feel as angry and resentful about it all. My attitude has changed this year, for the better, I think. I seem finally to have come to some genuine acceptance of where I’m at and how I got here. Doesn’t mean I won’t try to change and improve things. But I’ve learned to make small goals, teeny goals, short-term goals, and not to get as discouraged as I used to if I don’t meet them. I’ve learned to stop comparing Now with Then as much as I used to do. Huge, that one." Kathi is honest and witty and I miss her regular blog posts. You can read her thoughts on "zig-zagging towards acceptance" here. 

And today, Monday, July 29th, 2013, Dee of Women of Teal blog is celebrating eight years of NED after a Stage IV diagnosis of ovarian cancer. Dee credits her gynecological oncologist with getting her here; she told Dee eight years ago, "I will do my best to make you well." And Dee says that is exactly what her doctor and her colleagues at the Rutgers Cancer Institute of NJ have done. "They made me well in 2005 and again in 2008 when I recurred on my liver and spleen. They continue to make me well to this day, helping me through the side effects of chemotherapy and dealing with the fear of recurrence. They are my lifesavers." Please show Dee some bloggy support on her blog, where you can find her talking about her "8 years and counting" here. 

I'd also like to give a shout-out to some of the many women who have metastatic breast cancer. They all need our support. Any bloggy love you can show these fabulous women would be greatly appreciated. Just click on their links below to read their stories. If you know of an MBC Maven and would like her to be recognized in my next Mets/Mavenhood post, please leave your name and blog info in the comments section below. Thank you!

ANN (California)

But Doctor... I Hate Pink

CATHERINE (Canada)

BumbyBoobs

JAN (California)

Mournings Have Broken

Jen (Jellebelle)
Keep the Calm

JODY (Texas)

Women with Cancer

KATE (Norway)

The Adventures of OBB 

Kate (Canada)
Kate Has Cancer

KATHERINE (USA) 

I Hate Breast Cancer

LISA (East Coast USA)

Lisa Bonchek Adams

(Today is her 44th birthday!)

LORI (Los Angeles)

Regrounding

SCORCHY (New York)

The Sarcastic Boob

SHANNON (Connecticut)

Green Monkey Tales

TC (USA)
Boo-Bee-Trap

T.K. (Jerusalem)

Telling Knots