breast cancer support groups- vent

[hebe]

I'm so sorry that you had such a bad experience finding support. I guess that cancer is indiscriminate in who fights it, and you do need to have more in common than cancer with people who are meant to offer support. The woman that you're talking to now sounds a much better match however. I hope your Little Red Rding Hood ride goes well, sending you many positive vibes from here.

[jobob]

That's really sad to hear, Marni, on top of everything else you're going through.

I'm curious, have Livestrong or Susan G. Komen or the Breast Cancer Fund provided you with any sort of help or referrals?

The reason why I'm asking is because so many of us here have done fundraising for these organizations or have donated to others' fundraising efforts, have taken part in rides and other events benefiting these organizations, and/or have donated large amounts of our time supporting such events.

It would be gratifying if our work and $$ actually helps out one of our own ...

[ny biker]

They're also both completely non-denominational. I've never seen any religious references in anything from them.

[KnottedYet]

How far away is Austin?
Contact information http://teamsurvivor.org/doc.aspx?34
Their direct website: http://www.teamsurvivoraustin.org/

Team Survivor was huge for me, surrounded by other athletic women who'd gone through the same cancer mind-f*ck. I'll always be deeply indebted to the wonderful women of Team Survivor.

[channlluv]

{{{Marni}}}

You can always vent and dither here, too. Some of us here have been through various cancers, if not exactly what you're going through. But regardless, you always have our love and support.

Roxy

[MomOnBike]

I want a go at this. I'm a very nice, sympathetic woman who has had a lumpectomy (x2). (How am I doing so far?)

I want to reassure you that you will soon be recovered and able to attend wrenching classes, care for any new bikes that somehow follow you home, and then take them to group and charity rides very soon (and ride the wheels off lots of women without your, ahem, experience).

More seriously, it is annoying that you were paired with someone who made all sorts of wrong assumptions about you. I'd have let my inner snotty teenager loose upon her, and maybe tried to feel bad about it the next day. Maybe.

It sounds like you finally did find a group that works for you. Here's hoping that it actually does work. Don't forget to come here when you need to vent, or any other time, for that matter.

[margo49]

Me too! Lumpectomy followed by mastectomy in 1996, followed by chemo and 5 years tamoxifen; recurrence (Grade III right smack bang in the middle of the Old Scar) in 2009 so more surgeries, more chemo and then radiation...now on aromasin and technically well and rebuilding myself up by watching the Giro Tour d'Italia
One thing I found was that the best "support group" turned out to be the women sitting on either side of me - waiting outside the doctor's, in the chemo "lounge", wherever. Seems random but like a lot of things in life it worked for me.
But every woman is different.
Thinking of ya...