| When I was 15, my mom found a lump in her breast. Her doctor told her it was “no big deal.” A year later, she was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer. She had her annual mammograms and did her self exams religiously. The lump was confirmed by a mammogram but I don’t know what the standards were back in 1994 and I was too young to know enough to ask questions. If she would have known about thermography or ultrasound at that time – perhaps she would have had a second look or at least another opinion. My Mom was a nurse and was taught in the old school thought processes of “the doctor is always right”. I didn’t know about intuition and gut feelings back then but I wonder if she had a feeling that maybe something wasn’t right? For 10 years, she endured one recurrence after another, battling blisters, brutal weight gain, hot flashes, night sweats, and constant bone pain from medications and estrogen suppression. She went into early menopause because of chemo – talk about a one-two punch to the system. She even broke her ankle while cross country skiing with me in Colorado because her bones had become so brittle. But amidst it all, the few things that helped her reclaim moments of peace were acupuncture and naturopathic medicine. When conventional medicine didn’t have anything to soothe her anxiety, boost her energy or help her bowels move – both acupuncture and naturopathic medicine helped her considerably with chemo and radiation side effects. She died when I was 26 with 2 years left before I would graduate from Bastyr University. At that time I had already vowed to do everything I could to never go through what she did — and to help other women avoid that path too. Every day I talk with women who say they have been gaslit, told their labs were normal and there was nothing that could be done and even laughed at when they described their symptoms. I still continue to be outraged – even with all the information out there on aging and hormones. All I can say is – I am not about to let any woman struggle with the indecencies of hormone decline such as brain fog, anxiety, depression, insomnia, hot flashes, incontinence, building cellulite and belly fat on top of having to endure endless urinary tract infections or even “take one for the team” to have sex feel like sandpaper rubbing their nether regions! Same goes for any woman diagnosed with cancer and their choices for care pre and post cancer management. This is why I do what I do. To help women prevent disease. To protect their hormones. To guide them toward vitality, strength, and longevity. Thank you for being here. My hope is that you share my message and if you know anyone who’s struggling with getting answers to their health struggles – encourage them to find a medical provider who listens, will do whatever it takes to sleuth out symptoms and provide tools to soothe stress along the way! With love and purpose, Dr. J |
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