Some Girls Prefer Carnations: I'm a flattie, and proud of it

Monday, November 19, 2012

I'm a flattie, and proud of it

I have previously written about my choice not to reconstruct after my mastectomy. I continue to be interested in this choice, and my interest is rooted in the fact that there must be hoards of other women out there who choose not to reconstruct. They seem to be hard to find and I rarely encounter them in person, but now some have been found electronically thanks to some recent online publications!

My friend S. and I have continued to research the variables that lead to and outcomes of the choice to be flat-chested after a mastectomy. Recently she interviewed me for articles on the websites Flyover Feminism and Mothering.com to align with IBC awareness week. Great job, S., and thank you for your efforts to raise the awareness of this important issue!

One of the articles received a comment from Melly with a link to another article. It's a great article. But even greater are the comments. Check out all of the positive feedback from other women who have chosen not to reconstruct. Of particular interest are the occasional insights into spousal support. Considering that women often feel pressured to reconstruct in order to remain attractive to their spouse, I think that some of the feedback here is particularly informative.

Happy reading!

3 comments:

Jocelyn OlanderOctober 28, 2014 at 10:20 PM
I had a radical left and prophylactic right mastectomy 5 years ago. I chose to have more intense radiation therapy than I would have received had reconstruction been my goal; I had 14 of 14 positive nodes. It really was a no brainer for me to opt for the treatment. I got some prostheses pretty early on but soon realized they were kind of irritating to me and well, just fake. I started wearing clothing that would disguise my flatness (ruffled front shirts, cowl necks, etc.) but I soon became comfortable with my natural state and now I routinely wear tee shirts and fairly tight clothes that don't hide anything. I have taken up running (much easier with no bouncing boobies) and have gotten down to a healthy body weight. I don't feel weird anymore. My husband is very supportive--never complained once about my decision and I know he liked my ample pre-cancer bosom. Glad there are other women out there like me. I don't like those commercials I see now about reconstruction, about how it's portrayed as necessary to reclaim your life after cancer. I just plain claim my life and love my boob free existence!
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Monday, November 19, 2012

I'm a flattie, and proud of it

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