Sharing my final (for now!) MORE.com blog…with thanks

by Mary Lou Quinlan
Published August 13, 2009 in Health

Here’s my last piece for my series for MORE.com on my radiation reinvention plan. I’ve received some notes asking, “Are you really smiling through all this or is that just a Half Truth?” Well, I am and as evidence, here’s a photo of me taken about four days before the end of my treatment, with the red spot on my chest to prove it.

I also want to thank the many people who supported me and treated me throughout this process, of course, starting with my surgeon Dr. Lauren Cassell and the terrific radiology team at Beth Israel led by Dr. Manjeet Chadha.

But there are unsung heroines who should also get a standing ovation, not only for their talent and humanity but because like Just Ask a Woman, each is a female entrepreneur who’s either created or is part of a wonderful enterprise. My love and thanks to: Colleen Tomko of Body Betterment, Sarah Heward of Hardcore Pilates Studio, Ellen Miller of Muscle Therapy, Amy Coombs of Ishta Yoga. And a special smile to my “beauty therapists” (hey, it takes a village!) Mordechai Alvow and the staff at Broadway Nail Spa who always let me in, even just before closing time. Thanks to Jen, Tracy, Jean and Lily for being the best partners ever, and to all my Just Ask a Woman friends for your virtual hug…and to Joe, for his real one. (And to Rocky for licking my nose.) 

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MORE On the Sunny Side

by Mary Lou Quinlan
Published August 4, 2009 in Health

If you check out MORE.com, you’ll find another installment in my story of navigating breast cancer with a ray of sunshine. Thanks to everyone who’s reached out with good wishes and shared stories.  

In the spirit of Just Ask a Woman, I’ve been particularly tuned into the culture of “pink”, the wide community of breast cancer survivors. It’s kind of weird (and yet I suppose reassuring) when women say, “Welcome to the club” (a club I hadn’t really planned on joining.) I wonder how many underground Girlfriend clubs there are, linked by loss or achievement or quirk? Women crave common ground and will note the unspoken signals of a kindred spirit in a heartbeat and open up in ways that I’m not sure men would. As marketers, I think we spend an awful lot of time focusing on women’s differences when just below the surface, there are huge urges to connect.

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Living on the Sunny Side of Cancer

by Mary Lou Quinlan
Published July 30, 2009 in Health

Ok, the cat is out of the bag now, or at least my stage 0, non-invasive DCIS breast cancer is, since I’ve decided to tell my story in a ongoing blog on MORE.com http://bit.ly/dW5Xb. 

I’ve actually known and been dealing with this since April when a mammogram came with unwelcome news. First off, I’m fine. Actually I’m more than fine because not only was today my last day of radiation, it’s also turned out to be a real beginning for me. When I found out about the cancer, I was as shocked and worried as anyone would be, even if this is a curable form. But I guess that everyone has their way of dealing with what comes their way and I decided very quickly that I would face it squarely and get on with it, sort of the way I have approached my entire life and career. More than that, I decided that I would make this something positive and see if I could come out the other side, even healthier than the treatment could make me.

I’ve been on my own ‘radiance plan’ and it’s really worked for me. And I’ll be sharing it on the blog. But the most important moments for me have been the kind you see when you really look in the mirror at what matters to you. I’ve been brave and I’ve been chicken, but most of all, I feel I’ve been loved and coached through this and for the first time, learned what it meant to ask for help, since I’m better at being a type A, “I can do it myself” woman.

As much as I’ve been open about my personal life at Just Ask a Woman, even in my book, “Time Off for Good Behavior”, I think that what I will reveal in this blog will go farther because I owe it—to the women (and men) who helped me and to those I hope to help by opening up about this. I hope you will go to the MORE.com site (Under Health concerns/breast cancer) and follow my journey, and if you check “I liked this story”, well, that would be really nice.

There’s a sunny side to every street. Come walk with me.

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