eric says...

...that i should be more true in my blog. that i should include day-to-day blunders, events. that i shouldn't censor. so i thought you all might enjoy this story from last week.

i made an appointment at nordstrom to go get a breast prosthethis. kaiser suggests getting one at least one month after your surgery so you have healed up. so one month and 2 days after surgery, i went to nordstrom to meet with adriana - the certified breast prosthethis and bra-fitter.

it. was. horrible.

i sat waiting for about 25 minutes while 2 young large-breasted teenagers bought bras with their moms. one of them purchased 3 bras for $150 and complained to her mom there was no way she would ever wear a beige-colored bra (acting like it was the grossest thing she could ever imagine), only under a sweatshirt or something. it was depressing to wait and watch everyone with two normal breasts buy all the bras they could get their hands on. i'd felt depressed before. but there was something about being in a nordstrom lingerie department that sent me over the edge.

so then adriana could finally fit me. she brought me in. was very professional. helped me find the perfect bras. showed me the basics of breast prosthethes. i sort of shivered when i looked at it - all squishy and fake. and then she told me that (here we go again) they don't normally stock the smallest size that i would need. so i would have to wait 5 days for her to get it in. and here i was expecting to be fitted and sent home with a brand new breast that would make me feel normal again. no way, honey. you're going home the way you came in. one boob only.

so that was depressing.

and then a few days later, my boyfriend came to the rescue. i woke up still cranky. i tried to get dressed for our hike. but i just started to stomp around all bummed that i wasn't going to look remotely cute in anything. that i would continue to have to wear an open button-down shirt to hide my one-sidedness. cranky cranky cranky. and then eric (like a true prince) said...why don't you try one of your own bras?

hm. hadn't thought of that. everyone had been talking about all the resources available to me - wigs, prosthethes, support groups, whathaveyou...that i'd forgotten that i might have the resources myself.

and with that...problem solved. because i am so small-chested i can get away with a nice push-up bra with only one side filled. and no one would know the difference. it's miraculous. and now i can walk around feeling normal again. in all the old shirts i used to wear before the mastectomy. no layered look. just one t-shirt.

moral of the story?
simple solutions are readily available. as long as someone else is looking for them.