Hello, everyone. This week's post is a reminder to get screened. October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, so I want to encourage all of my listeners to get screened. Breast cancer screening is an essential tool for early detection, and early detection gives you the most number of options for having successful outcome.
I'm also reminding my listeners that men can get breast cancer, too. Though rare, it does happen, so it's important to include screening for it in your wellness tools.
As family caregivers, we often overlook or put off getting medical treatment for our own health. According to AARP's 2020 report, Caregiving in the US, Nearly one fourth of all caregivers they surveyed said they had a difficult time taking care of their own health. One out of four. That's a sobering statistic, not just for caregivers, but for the persons for whom they are caring.
When I read that, I kept thinking, what will happen to the person who needs care if the caregiver is out of commission? That's two people who may not get all the care that they need.
I'm going to say something again that I've said on many occasions, and that is, caregivers are more than just Pez dispensers of care to a loved one, they are an integral part of the care relationship. So it's equally important to include the needs of caregivers on the care journey.
As family caregivers, we often take great care in making sure our loved one gets the medical attention that they need. Because this is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, I'm going to encourage everyone to give themselves the same kind of care that they give to their loved ones and get screened.
I'm going to give kudos to everyone who's already gotten their annual screening and to those who haven't, I encourage you to get screened before the end of the year. There's been a lot of discussion, particularly on the Internet, about mammography. I don't advocate any one screening method over another. My goal is to get people screened to detect breast cancer as early as possible.
So I'm going to encourage all of you, my listeners, to use the screening method that is most comfortable for you. My encouragement for this week: please don't be one of the one in four caregivers who doesn't care for themselves. Get screened.
Be well. Until next time.
-Dr. Sheri
Dr. Sheri L. Yarbrough is an author, caregiver, and founder of Praxis Senior Care-Giving Solutions, a consulting business that provides care-givers with practical and easily implemented strategies that can be tailored to meet their individual care needs.
View Dr. Yarbrough's weekly blog on all things caregiving from a caregiver's perspective.
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