In August, I had my 6month check up and everything was just peachy keen! THANK GOD! This marked 4 years since my mastectomy. WOW, time flies! Especially when you have 3 very busy kids!
Last Friday, I had the opportunity to speak during the annual Dig Pink Volleyball game between The Woodlands & College Park HS. This is a big rivalry and every year these 2 schools trade hosting the Dig Pink game. The audience all had pink pom poms and the girls are all wearing pink-it's a great awareness event. I was asked (Thank you Cindy & Lisa), to give a speech about my journey. You would think speaking in a large gym full of kids, parents, etc. I'd be nervous. But, all I needed was a little lifting up by God himself. Believe it or not, I wasn't fazed standing up in front of the crowd at all. I knew I had to write a speech that spoke to the majority of the people in the gym-young girls. After I spoke, I had people come up to me sharing bits of their stories as well. Natalie was all tears. My mom, Rob, Nathan and Emma were also there and it really meant a lot to me. I don't like drawing attention to myself, BUT, I thoroughly enjoy telling my story, my experience & I love sharing about God and how without HIM my journey would not be what it was.
I enjoyed speaking to this group. Even though this is a rival school, we know many of the families, players & coaches through club volleyball. So, I knew I had support on both sides of the gym!
I'm posting a copy of my speech below...Enjoy!
Until next time, many months from now, with another clean-clear-healthy report!
(the separation of thoughts by color was to help me keep my place...)
Thank you Cindy, as Cindy said, my name is Patti Kimmel. I am a 4 yr. BC survivor. I’ve been married to Rob for 18 yrs. We have Natalie on JV vb, Nathan plays McC FB, is on the Bass fishing team & Plays LAX. and Emma at Mitchell and she plays vb at Revolution.
In June of 2014, I was diagnosed with stage 2A invasive ductal carcinoma from a yearly mammogram, I was 41 Yrs. old. At that time our kids were 11, 8 & 6… In Aug. that summer, I had a double mastectomy through MDAnderson TW. My final Pathology showed I had cancer cells in 2 lymph nodes and 2 days after my mastectomy I had another surgery where my dr. removed a total of 18 LN from my left arm. I was officially cancer free August 12, 2014. That Sept. I started 16 rounds of chemo, including 4 rounds of the infamous red devil chemo. I finished in Feb. 2015. I then had 6 weeks of daily radiation therefore finishing all treatments in Spring of 2015. Since my mastectomy, I have had 4 more reconstruction surgeries. I have an aunt, several distant cousins, a great-grandma and just last fall my step-mom all diagnosed with breast cancer & they all beat it! My cancer is NOT genetic. Cancer DOES NOT DISCRIMINATE. The ONLY risk factor I had was dense tissue. Statistically, I was not a candidate for breast cancer!
1-8 women will be diagnosed with BC.
And, currently, over 3.5 million women in the US have either been treated for or undergoing treatments. I had the most common type of cancer and I did all treatments possible. There are handfuls of different types of breast cancer, with all different treatment options. Even men can get breast cancer.
Breast Cancer has or will touch each and every one of us in some way or another. Your grandma, your Mother, your sister, aunt, cousin, wife, friend, friend of a friend.
If I could give you some advice. **if u have a family history, genetic or not, DO NOT skip your mammograms. AND keep your dr.’s informed of your family history. Women are getting their mammograms on a regular basis and doing monthly self exams. Early diagnosis and treatments have shown to be extremely successful. Therefore, survival rates are at their highest and increasing every year.
Remember, CANCER DOES NOT DISCRIMINATE-
Years ago, I was a hard working athlete just like many of you. And after college, I coached HS CC & Track for 10 yrs. I come from a family of all level of athletes and coaches. To say our family revolves around sports and being competitive is an understatement. I remember the day I called my dad when I was driving downtown for a follow-up mammogram bc of something they spotted on the first one. He told me, You’ll be fine, cancer does not happen to us, we’re a tough, strong healthy family. WOW, he was very wrong! BC not only did I get diagnosed with cancer, but he diagnosed with a blood cancer shortly after me. And He’s still battling today!
LIFE is not about HS-college sports. BUT, the lessons, the relationships,
the friends, the coaches, the hard times, the fun times, the winning and even the losing. The leadership, the perseverance, the struggles, the hard work, the don’t quit, the NEVER GIVE UP, —EVERYTHING sports teaches you, can and will help you deal with anything that ever comes your way down the road. I know first hand because I heard those same words as a kid- “sports teaches you more than just how to play a game”. And When I was diagnosed, I looked at my cancer as a race. I had to dig deep each & every day during my treatments to find strength. I had to work really hard to fight. And not just physically fight, I HAD TO FIGHT MENTALLY AS WELL. For me, fighting cancer truly was a competition. It was a marathon and I was not only going to finish, but, I was going to WIN-not just for me, but for my family.
Not only did I find strength from being an athlete, but I was lifted up spiritually. I was carried through every surgery, every chemo treatment by the Grace of God. My family, my friends, my community, my church were my main sources of strength.
I still have to fight the mind games to this day. It would’ve been easy to give in to the What-if’s, the Why’s. It would be easy, to look at my scars and ask God why me? But, that’s not what sports taught me-that’s not how God wanted me to live. I learned how to be a fighter as an athlete & now as a cancer patient. I learned to live each day with purpose-tomorrow is not promised. I learned how to trust, completely trust. I had to Have Faith…..
For those of you who, in the future find a diagnosis too close for comfort. Know that With faith in Gods plan you can fight, & you can survive. It takes a village. It takes prayers, hugs, calls, texts and even your friends cooking meals for your family. It takes a light heart, laughter, smiles and the ability to let things roll. It takes knowing that just maybe you’ll lose all your hair and when you are bald, Not everyone knows what to say. (an Old man in church who asked me what I’ve been doing with my hair. I didn’t have the heart to tell him it was actually a wig!)
But once your hair starts growing back, someone will always compliment you on your hair!
Life was hard for our family that year, but not everything was bad. We each learned how to take the bad and make something good out of it. Cancer teaches you life lessons. And anyone who has had cancer can tell you, you become stronger than you ever imagined. Cancer DOES NOT define who you are, but it becomes part of who you are, forever.
If you or someone you love find yourself diagnosed with cancer know that you are a winner. YOU ARE A fighter. And YOU ARE A survivor. And know that with God on your side. Everything is possible.
Thank you!
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