Breast Reconstruction 8 Women Weigh in on the Hardest Part of Breast Reconstruction
May 15, 2018 KimHarms 2Comment

When people are comfortable enough to ask me about breast reconstruction, one of the things they want to know is “What was the hardest part?” It’s a tough question to answer because there are so many hard things about it both physically and emotionally. The following eight women (who represent a variety of breast reconstruction procedures) attempt to answer that question today. Heather Lau – Reconstruction with Tissue Expanders It was definitely physically hard for me. I got expanders put in two months after chemo, and my body was still recovering from that. I thought the drainage tubes were awful….

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Breast Cancer In the Dead of Night – A Mastectomy Story by Jane DeShaw
April 17, 2018 KimHarms

2:36 a.m. The February night is moonless, black, as you turn your head to the left and gaze out the second-story window. The limbs and leafless branches of the huge maple tree just outside are like cold, barren, groping arms, sinister in the streetlamp’s dim glow. Lying flat on your back in bed, each arm is propped up on a large pillow. Except for your elevated arms, you are nestled like a caterpillar in a cocoon. You would think this should make you feel safe and secure. You would think. Where did they put your breasts? Were they tossed in…

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Breast Reconstruction I Have a Literary Agent (I Pinched Myself and I’m Not Dreaming)
April 10, 2018 KimHarms 8Comment

So this happened. I signed a contract with a literary agent. Not just “a” literary agent, but the exact literary agent I was hoping for. As of this week, I am officially represented by Karen Neumair at Credo Communications. And according to my contract, I am hereinafter called the AUTHOR. Oh boy. That word connected to my name is just about more than my heart can take. It’s a big deal. It’s a jump into my hubby’s arms and go out for steak at Johnnie’s kind of big deal.   Thank you Jesus, for signed literary agreements (and for husbands…

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Breast Cancer 5 Breast Reconstruction Gifts
January 23, 2018 KimHarms 67Comment

Every woman is different and there are a lot of varieties of reconstruction surgery, but the following are 5 things I greatly appreciated while walking down the road to reconstruction. If you have a friend who’s going through this bizarre and challenging life circumstance, she might appreciate something from this 5 Breast Reconstruction Gifts list. A Sherpa Blanket Sherpa blankets are super-soft, ultra warm blankets that you can just sorta hibernate in. My friend Marti gave me one, and I called it my magic blanket. I slept with it for months. Even when I finally went back to my bed…

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Breast Cancer Body Image After Breast Reconstruction (Walk With Me Podcast)
January 4, 2018 KimHarms 5Comment

Sometimes it’s hard to look in the mirror. I had the opportunity to talk with Tori Haverkamp several weeks ago about body image and learning to live with my altered form after a bilateral mastectomy and breast reconstruction. There are so many pieces that come into play when walking through breast reconstruction process, but body image is not something that I thought I would struggle with at all.  As it turns out though, losing a piece of me changed the way I looked at myself.  And it kind of broke my heart. But God is good,…

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