Christina, Young Breast Cancer Survivor

About Me

My name is Christina and I am a breast cancer survivor. I have made my stand against this beast for some time now and have no plans to wavier. My stage 2B digagnosis came in the very tail end of January 2006 following a breast biopsy. Since then I have had a modified radical mastectomy ( and the removal of lymphnodes), the start of breast reconstruction (3 surgeries to date, with 2-3 more to go), had 2 port surgeris, six months of chemo (Cytoxan, Taxotere, and Adriamycin), and a total abdominal hysterectomy. I also have lymphademia (I wear a compression sleeve on my left arm for this) and have recently been diagnosed with R.A. I have two beautiful, brave boys, ages 11 and 9, and a wonderful husband who I have been married to for 12 years now.When I found and realized that I had a lump in my left breast I was in shock. I found it while in the shower in early December 2005. I tried to ignore it for a few weeks. But given the fact that it kept growing at an increasingly alarmingly rate I knew something was wrong. I just didn't want to think about how wrong! I honestly had no idea what broad sided me the day I recieved my diagnosis. At 32 who is ready to hear the words invasive breast cancer? But you learn to deal, then cope and finally survive. I stand now with confidence in myself, completely at home with in my own skin, ready to live the rest of my life!

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Myspace Contact TablesThe best and most beautiful things in this world cannot be seen or even heard, but must be felt with the heart.- Helen Keller

My Interests

Reading, writing, gardening, traveling. I love being outdoors, especially with my kids. I love watching baseball and basketball.I am an advid writer. I find writing to be a wonderful way of purging my soul.I am also very adament about BREAST CANCER advocacy. I am a young breast cancer survivor and have been in remission for 20 months to date. My goal is to first see this beast eradicated, and second to reach, suppport and encourage those living in both the belly and the shadow of this beast.

I'd like to meet:

I have always enjoyed meeting new people and getting to know them. I have traveled all over and lived in more places than I can count. The part of all that moving around that always made my life sane, was knowing I was never truly leaving anyone behind. In reality I was growing as a person, taking with me and adding new friendships all along the way. So if you ask me who I'd like to meet? I would say to you, more beautiful souls to walk along this journey called life with me.'Courage is not defined by those who fought and did not fall, but by those who fought, fell and rose again.' -- Unknown.I have heard there are troubles of more than one kind. Some come from ahead and some come from behind. But I've bought a big bat. I'm all ready you see. Now my troubles are going to have troubles with me! ~Dr. Seuss

Music:

Movies:

Old Hollywood screwball movies like The Miracle of Morgan's Creek with Betty Hutton and Eddie Bracken, Bringing Up Baby with Katherine Hepburn and Cary Grant, The Princess and the Pirate with Bob Hope and my all time favorite, The Court Jestor with Danny Kaye.

Television:

"Lost, "American Idol" and "Numbers". I also enjoy StarGate Atlantis and watching the Discovery Channel, A&E, or the Travel Channel.

Books:

Just to name a few... Voices of Breast Cancer, Harry Potter 1-7, Bella at Midnight, The Lighting Thief, The Sea of Monsters, The Titan's Curse, Levine Thumbs 1&2, Monster, House, Peter and the Star Catchers, The Hobbit, Chronicles of Narnia, and Peter Pan in Scarlet just to name a few.

Heroes:

My faith has been my strongest source of hope, and indurance. Knowing that my Maker has already pathed the road before me inspires me to live inspite of what may befall me. I deeply admire strong women who have walked this road before me, paving the way through pain, fear, uncertainty and on to hope, strength and life! Since becoming a breast cancer survivor, I have to say Tinker Bell is my heroine. She is bold, audacious, gusty, spunky and stubborn. Just the way a survivor should be!How We Die - Dawn
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Add to My Profile | More VideosBreast Cancer 3-Day Inspiration Video - Full Length
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Add to My Profile | More VideosDo not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.Ralph Waldo Emerson American Poet"Life is a coin. You can spend it anyway you wish, but you can only spend it once!"You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. ~Eleanor RooseveltBREAST RECONSTRUCTIVE SURGERY INFORMATIONMASTECTOMY INFORMATIONAmelia Burr: Because I have loved life, I shall have no sorrow to die.Anais Nan: People living deeply have no fear of death.What does it take to be a survivor?Courage, Spunk, Tenacity and a deep love of life.BREAST CANCER DOES NOT DEFINE ME AS A WOMAN,BUT MY BATTLE WITH BREAST CANCER DOES!I run for life Melissa Etheridge
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Add to My Profile | More Videos"Life is short! Break the rules! Forgive quickly! Kiss slowly! Love truly, Laugh uncontrollably.And never regret anything that made you smile.."---unknown"Until there is a cure, I will continue my Journey, as I learn to accept and co exsist with this beast of mine."--Christina Olachia'All you send into the lives of others comes back into your own.''One isn't necessarily born with courage, but one is born with potential. Without courage, we cannot practice any other virtue with consistency. We can't be kind, true, merciful, generous, or honest.' -- Maya Angelou.This is the song that I listened to over and over again while I was waiting for my diagnosis of Breast Cancer.'Physical strength is measured by what we can carry; spiritual by what we can bear.' ~Author Unknown'I don't think of all the misery but of the beauty that still remains.' ~Anne Frank'A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort.' ~Herm Albright, quoted in Reader's Digest, June 1995

My Blog

My Life As A Human Pinball

Living As A Human PinballThere are definitely those times in life that one could say that they feel like a living, barely breathing, spinning, hurling, pinging yes, out of cont...
Posted by Christina, Young Breast Cancer Survivor on Sat, 14 Jun 2008 04:23:00 PST

The monsters Under the Bed

The Monsters Under the BedLife is constantly changing. The tides are always turning and the sun never fails to rise nor to set. Life moves forward whether you are ready for it to o...
Posted by Christina, Young Breast Cancer Survivor on Sun, 01 Jun 2008 09:32:00 PST

Slaying The Beast

Slaying the Beast Life is good at throwing curve balls, isn't it? One day the world is full of promise and the next it...
Posted by Christina, Young Breast Cancer Survivor on Sat, 10 May 2008 11:49:00 PST

The Two Faces Of Cancer

The Two Faces of Breast Cancer I have lived and loved. I have succeeded and failed. I have laughed and I have wept. I have hoped and I have felt fear tear it away. I have touched grace ...
Posted by Christina, Young Breast Cancer Survivor on Fri, 28 Mar 2008 03:29:00 PST

Hope Lives

Hope What is Hope? Is it just a front, a way of coping, encouraging yourself when there is nothing else to say ...
Posted by Christina, Young Breast Cancer Survivor on Sat, 08 Mar 2008 08:58:00 PST

Cancer Scars

.. The Scars of Cancer...We all have scars physical and emotional. Most of us we tend to hide them away from the sight of others and usually we do a good job of it too . It doesn't ma...
Posted by Christina, Young Breast Cancer Survivor on Sat, 01 Mar 2008 12:14:00 PST

Death and Loss

The thought of death and loss lives with us everyday. Maybe there are those days that we manage to toss it in the corner, or hide it away, but the truth is that it never really leaves us. We ...
Posted by Christina, Young Breast Cancer Survivor on Tue, 19 Feb 2008 09:28:00 PST

I Am Not Defined By My Breasts!

OK, it's not like living in the shadow of BREAST CANCER makes life easy but man oh man life has been quite complicated the last couple of months. There has been a great amount of str...
Posted by Christina, Young Breast Cancer Survivor on Sat, 02 Feb 2008 09:31:00 PST

This is the Story...

This is the Story...This is the story of a girl born to laugh and to love, to hope and to dream. A girl who learned to cry and wipe away her own tears. This is the story of a girl ...
Posted by Christina, Young Breast Cancer Survivor on Fri, 25 Jan 2008 08:51:00 PST

The Cost of Dying to Live

The Great Cancer Sell Out Where do I begin? What do you do as a wife, as a mother and a daughter to insure that your 'condition' does not become a burden on those you love? How do y...
Posted by Christina, Young Breast Cancer Survivor on Sun, 13 Jan 2008 10:10:00 PST