Empowering Mammogram Stories: Navigating Breast Health & MRI Experiences

Empowering Mammogram Stories: Navigating Breast Health & MRI Experiences

Welcome to this special episode of A Couple of Rad Techs Podcast, where we sit down with Keosha Jones, the owner of Pink Productivity Coaching, to talk about her experience getting a mammogram after her doctor found a lump in her breast. Keosha shares her personal journey of the fear and uncertainty surrounding the exam and how she overcame her fears to prioritize her breast health.

We also have Marsha Dunn RT, a Registered Mammography Technologist, who will share tips for women to understand what a mammogram is, how to prepare for it, and how to successfully keep up with their breast health. Together, Keosha and Marsha aim to encourage young women to conquer their fears and get their breast examined regularly, as early detection can save lives.

Join us as we discuss the importance of breast health and how women can take control of their well-being with the right information and mindset.
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Transcript

a Couple of Rad Techs Podcast with Guest Keosha Jones

[00:00:00] Intro: Welcome to a couple of Rad Techs podcasts, where we bring you an inside look at the world of radiology. From the unique perspective of a merry couple of radiologic technologists together, we have years of experience, exactly 30 years in the field, and we are here to demystify the science of medical imaging.

[00:00:16] Intro: Radiology is the unsung hero of the medical field, providing doctors with crucial images and information that help diagnose and treat illnesses. Join us as we explore the latest techniques, technologies, and innovations in radiology, and discover the vital role we play in the healthcare industry. So come along for the ride as we share our passion for radiology as a married couple.

[00:00:40] Chaundria: I'm so happy today. We have another guest on our amazing edition. We wanna hear what the patients have to say about their radiology exams, and today we're gonna talk about mammography. We have our guest today, Keosha Jones. She is the owner of Pink Productivity Mindset of Study Technique Coaching. So welcome Keosha to [00:01:00] our podcast.

[00:01:01] Keosha: Thank you. I'm excited to be here.

[00:01:03] Chaundria: We are happy to have you. So we're gonna kind of jump in, but before we jump into the questions, because we're gonna kind of just talk as women, especially this month is I think it's very pertinent to talk about all the brave women that get their mammograms done.

[00:01:17] Chaundria: And kind of talk about that experience as women, but first, let everybody know who you are. How did you get into coaching? And, and why is it your passion?

[00:01:26] Keosha: I'm Keosha Jones and I own Pink Productivity Coaching. So what I do is I help Christian women to leave guilt behind when it comes down to the way they approach their spiritual studies. And I help them to use strategies that are made for their specific brain because it's.

[00:01:45] Keosha: Unique, it's different. And so it presents a challenge that some people don't know how to navigate. that's what I do, So I wanna get into the short version of how this. Business got started and you are part of that reason. we partnered together in another business and that gave [00:02:00] me the confidence to open this one up.

[00:02:01] Keosha: It was something that I had wanted to do in the past. It's evolved of course over the last almost three years. But it has been an absolutely amazing journey to have helped as many women as I have to, from, you know, time management to now the thing that is most important in their lives is working on their spirituality through study.

[00:02:19] Chaundria: and time management is so important because I've interviewed other women and also myself. I have to manage my time when it comes to getting. My mammogram's done, my breast ultrasound's done, my MRIs of my breasts done on a consistent basis. Time gets away from us. We get so busy with family and it only comes around once a year for most of us, some of us, every six months, we have to get our, our yearly exams of our breasts done.

[00:02:46] Chaundria: But for the majority of women is once a year. And time management is so perfect in that because. Sometimes time gets away and we forget, Ooh, I need to set my appointment. So tell us, we're gonna kind of talk, talk [00:03:00] about that. How do you manage your time? How do you stick to a schedule, stay consistent when it comes to your health, especially as women.

[00:03:07] Chaundria: We're so preoccupied with everything else sometimes and everybody else that we neglect something as simple, but so important as our breast health. So walk us through your first experience of getting a mammogram.

[00:03:21] Keosha: Okay, so my first experience getting a mammogram was probably seven or eight years ago. And it was because I had gone to the doctor to, to have a physical exam and she found a lump. And come to find out, I have, you know, fibrocystic breasts. So it was, that's what it was. But I, I do remember, you know, feeling nervous.

[00:03:45] Keosha: About it for more than one reason. One because it was like, I'm not sure what the results are gonna be. Another one was of course you got to get undressed and, you know, be around somebody that [00:04:00] you don't know and you don't have on, you know, you don't have on clothes from the top up. I mean, I had pretty much lost my shame in that.

[00:04:08] Keosha: Years ago, but it still does come back up every single time you have to get it done. So there were definitely some nerves in wanting to be confident in my own skin there.

[00:04:20] Chaundria: Yeah, that's so important because I guess sometimes we just expect, as women, we get all of these tests done from an early year, early age, and it's like, oh girl, just take your, take your top off, take your bra off, take, you know, just get undressed. We're all women. But that's not how every woman feels. And I love how you bring that up, that that is something that even as a woman, even though it's just all women around, you're still not comfortable in that.

[00:04:43] Chaundria: And I think we need to talk more to that because sometimes, you know, I've been getting breast exam since the age of 24, so I was pretty young. It sounds like you were pretty young as well. Some women, not until they're in their forties and fifties, but some of us in our twenties, we've been getting this done.

[00:04:59] Chaundria: And it is [00:05:00] frightening, but it's also can be very uncomfortable. And I think, I know I had an experience before where the women were just like one of the technologists. The memo text was just like, just come on in. It was very no bad side manner. It was just very not comforting to me. She didn't know I was a technologist.

[00:05:15] Chaundria: And I try, I don't tell people that when I go in but. I had to let her know, you know, I'm a technologist and this is not very, I'm not very excited to be here, and you're just kind of shoving me in like I'm a number, you know, we need to slow this down some and have some empathy even though we're all women.

[00:05:30] Chaundria: And yeah, we get these done every year. There still needs to be that pause to say, Hey, we're still people. You know, would you agree? Would you not agree or would you agree on that?

[00:05:40] Keosha: I definitely would agree with that. My background is in healthcare too, and I don't tell people that I'm in healthcare unless I have to. Because I do feel like it's one of those things where you, you, you need to see who they really are as the healthcare worker before you reveal that. Because if you reveal it, then they tighten up for you, but they may not tighten up for [00:06:00] everybody else that comes after you.

[00:06:01] Keosha: But I do feel like it is important. That they realize that even though it is a yearly thing, there still can be yearly anxiety and concern around it because you're going there to make sure that there is nothing wrong. So that means there is a chance that there's still, there could be something wrong.

[00:06:19] Chaundria: Yeah. Yeah. That's so important. So I love how you bring that up and the confidence of being unclothed and exposed. I, I usually go to the same facility. I don't know about any of you out there listening or yourself, Kyosha, do you go to the same facility to get your exams done? Because I asked that question for a reason.

[00:06:36] Chaundria: I'll tell you why I asked that.

[00:06:37] Keosha: Let's see, cuz I've had two and I did not go to the same place. Yeah, either time and it was based on insurance reasons. But I would say that the last mammogram that I had done, I will go back to that place because I was treated very, very well there. And it's just like any other, you know, service, so to speak.

[00:06:59] Keosha: When you are [00:07:00] treated well, you want to go, even if it may not be the most pleasant of experiences.

[00:07:05] Chaundria: Yeah, what was it about that place? So tell our audience, because I think that's important. And the reason I ask that is because I've gone to the same place, literally the same technologist does my breast ultrasound every time I go. I think I've had one different girl one time because this girl was out on maternity leave.

[00:07:21] Chaundria: And I'm gonna tell you, I was kinda like, oh, who are you? How you know, how long have you been doing it? Like, I'm like, where's my girl at? Where, where's my girl at? Who's usually here? Every year that I come, because I come like clockwork, same month, you know, every year, same month, same time. You know, it is like, I know she's gonna be there, and this time she wasn't there.

[00:07:39] Chaundria: And I was like, oh my goodness. Not that anybody else couldn't do it, but for me it's that familiarity, feeling comfortable. She knows, you know, she's been scanning me since I was in my twenties. She knows my body, you know, in a way that others whatnot. So I'm like so confident that she won't miss anything.

[00:07:56] Chaundria: And then there's that being comfortable as well. So [00:08:00] I asked that for that reason because I have gone to the same place and when I had a different technology and I'm like, Hey, who are you? Where are you from? You know, where's my girl at? And I think that's really important to people because people want to be able to, like you said, Feel comfortable, you're being exposed.

[00:08:14] Chaundria: So for the fact that you went, so tell everybody, what was it about that place that made you feel like, oh, if I gotta go back, I'm going there.

[00:08:22] Keosha: Everybody was so kind and understanding of the fact that because this was a another issue with a lump for me that. This could be some hard-hitting news. Like they did not treat me like I was just a number. They made sure that I was comfortable the entire time, even the way that they made sure that the bathroom was set up.

[00:08:47] Keosha: Like just, it was a whole atmosphere of comfort and warmth. And even during the exam, the The mammographer, she was just extremely gentle [00:09:00] and very communicative. I also had an ultrasound that day, and the same thing with the, the ultrasound tech. Just, they were, they were top notch in the way that they treated me.

[00:09:10] Chaundria: And so when you came in, so this is, I just went to a new breast doctor as I age I decided to make a change to, you know, a, a. A different kind of doctor that was very focused just on breasts. And I tell you, I wish I would have. Really paid attention at my younger years, especially getting these mammograms and breast ultrasounds and breast MRIs all of this time.

[00:09:33] Chaundria: I wish I would've had a breast doctor to be honest, and I never did. So that's my little shout out to everybody. Find you a breast doctor and get let them become familiar with you because as you age, your body changes. As we get older, things change and we need a doctor that knows us as we change and can provide the help that we need.

[00:09:49] Chaundria: So, I'm gonna say this, when I walked in, like you walk in the, even the waiting room was just really comfortable. The temperature was comfortable. The waiting room chairs are comfortable. I was welcomed in, [00:10:00] given everything I need. The questionnaire was like so clear. So, Specific. I mean, it was just different from what I've ever ex ever experienced before.

[00:10:09] Chaundria: And then when you go in there, they have these waiting rooms. They got tea, they've got coffee, you know, they've got little snacks and everything. And the robes were so cute. They have hangers where you can hang your clothes on and it's not just fold your clothes up and stick 'em in a bag. Like I never thought that would really mean that much to me.

[00:10:25] Chaundria: You know, so when you talk about, when you come in and feel like an experience and feel so comfortable, those little things like that make you feel comfortable. They had, you know, little lockers and then they ha they had a basket, a cute little basket with the pink robes. I don't know, something about those pink robes.

[00:10:40] Chaundria: I, I don't know. Something about 'em being pink just gets me every time. So how was, and when they ushered me back, I was able to laugh and talk with the technologists and the and we just chatted. It was a warm environment. What was it when you had your, say your mammogram or your breast options, tell people how we'll start with the mammogram.

[00:10:58] Chaundria: Tell people when you got your mammogram, what [00:11:00] were you expecting and what did you get?

[00:11:01] Keosha: What was I expecting? I actually went in with zero expectations because that makes it a little bit easier to not be as disappointed when things go south, if they do. So I don't really walk in with a ton of expectations, although I know from working in healthcare that the expectations should be pretty high.

[00:11:23] Keosha: So what I got was the, the, the memo, I just, the word just kind of disappeared. The mammographer, she, she was extremely personable. Like we had conversation, she made sure that everything was okay. She saw that there was something else like on the outside of my skin that she even put a little thing around to take a picture of that, just to make sure.

[00:11:45] Keosha: So I got more than what I expected. She was extremely thorough and like I said, very personable, which made the experience even better.

[00:11:55] Chaundria: So you're different because most people go into a MA mammogram with like [00:12:00] expecting the worst. They've heard all of these things, especially their first one. They've heard all of these things. You went in with like zero, you, you chose not to Google it, right? Evidently,

[00:12:09] Keosha: Yeah, and I, I just told my mom, I was like, if it's stage four, I already know what I wanna do. With the first one, I was like, I know what the answer is, what I, what it is that we're gonna do about this. Cause I was like, I've been feeling fine, so we ain't doing nothing about this. The

[00:12:24] Chaundria: But the squeezing of the breast, oh, go ahead.

[00:12:26] Keosha: Yeah, the second time around was when I really didn't have as many expectations or as much nervousness, but it was, it was still there.

[00:12:34] Chaundria: We've got our expert Marsha Dunn. She is a Mammo technologist, an educator. So many years she's worked for breast doctors. I was just telling everybody about if they don't have a breast doctor, they need to get one. I just got one and it was the best decision I ever made. But Marsha tell us because Keosha's told us her patient experience when it came to breast ultrasounds and mammograms.

[00:12:56] Chaundria: So tell us, as a technologist of over 20 [00:13:00] years, introduce yourself. Tell us how long you've been doing mammography and different aspects of mammography that you've worked in.

[00:13:06] Marsha: My name's Marsha. I started out first as an expert technologist, and then I transitioned into mammography, not by choice, but for personal reasons. I was pregnant with my twins and I was considered high risk. So I had to transition into something that was less stress on my body, you know, pregnant with my girls.

[00:13:22] Marsha: But I've been doing mammography since 1998, 1997, and. I didn't like it at first because I really wanted to continue and special interventional, but I started loving it because I heard patients sharing their, their fears. Patients sharing their concerns. They tell technologists more than they actually tell the doctor.

[00:13:44] Marsha: I mean, we hear their whole life story. They're intimidated by the doctors. Sometimes they feel or get tongue-tied talking to the doctors. Sometimes when I'm working with the radiologist, I'll say, Hey, by the way, did the patient say A, B, or C? Or did they share with this, share this information with you.

[00:13:59] Marsha: And [00:14:00] I'll say it in front of the patient so they can feel at ease. I'm just a person who. Ms. Jones, I heard you say she was very thorough. I'm a very thorough technologist. I go above and beyond because I think that's just my natural being. And I always think of my family member, my family member comes in my, in my in the, in the front of my brain when I'm doing something because I think of my grandmother who was sick, I think of my mom that may have had a concern when they had a mammo or bone density or a question about chest x-ray.

[00:14:27] Marsha: So very, very thorough. Shia mentioned that I'm an educator. I also try to teach my technologist to be very Patient minded, but also personable. You have patient care and patient care and patient needs are very important. You need to put them first. You know what you are here to do. You know what your license, what you are expected to do with your license, and always put your family first.

[00:14:51] Marsha: Think of someone that's very close to you that do they wanna go through that. How can I make this experience a little bit easier? So having a mammogram and I [00:15:00] laughed. I had a good day today. I laughed all day with my patients. They came in and I'm very bubbly. I mean, I had a hard morning, but I'm very bubbly cause I know it's an anxious moment, especially for a young lady, 30 years old, 38 years old, 40, even 53, having their first time mammogram.

[00:15:16] Marsha: They're very anxious. So I try to joke around, make. Them feel a little bit more at at ease when they're really still anxious, but it's not as bad, and I get that gratification towards the end when they say, oh, it wasn't that bad.

[00:15:30] Chaundria: That's always the best. That is always the best because people come in and they're like, they've watched house, they've watched every medical show, and their mom and their aunts told them, oh girl, they're gonna, they're gonna hurt you. You gotta, you, I mean, like, people come in all amped up, but like, Marcia, I appreciate that you.

[00:15:46] Chaundria: Not only teach people book things, but you help them to relate because we're here and here what Ms. Jones is saying as a patient she has zero expectations, whereas others, you know, they do have expectations and it's usually not the most positive. So when they [00:16:00] can walk in expecting zero or below zero and they come out with like a 10, we've done our job, we've done our job.

[00:16:08] Marsha: And that expectation is our job to either need it because, you know, we are not there to fail, but in their eyes, we're gonna fail because it's gonna hurt. And that's, that's it. But when I, and I share with four or five of my patients today, I said communication is key and I'm very detailed.

[00:16:28] Marsha: And I tell 'em, I know you don't wanna hear this, but I think it'll be easier for you to understand where I'm coming from so I can help you have a very good mammogram. So I think communication is key. Not, I think, I know communication is key and I'm successful getting through a lot of my patients.

[00:16:41] Marsha: Sometimes I get my hard, rigid patients, but these are the patients that tell somebody, oh, it's so bad. But they go back every year, six months, every year annually. So don't let them fool you. Don't let them. Terrify you and say, oh, it's too much, it's too painful. But they go back every year, they make the appointment.

[00:16:57] Marsha: By the time they get dressed, they go and make their [00:17:00] appointment. So, yeah. Yeah, so I just, I just feel like every women need to be out there making sure they're educated. I'm trying my best to become myself more educated on every, on all the new equipment, information coming down from the different agencies that I'm familiar with, so I can educate my patients as well.

[00:17:17] Chaundria: So let's talk about this because we talked earlier about people being nervous, you know, realistically being nervous, being exposed. And I'll ask both of you this. When it comes to getting your results or when a patient, it comes to a patient awaiting or getting their results, sometimes you gotta wait out in the lobby, you know, because not only are you getting a mammogram that day, you might get your mammogram, like for me, a mammogram, a ultrasound, sometimes a m r I of the breast and sometimes a biopsy, you know, and both of you all can talk to this because Kius had the mammogram and the ultrasound had to await results.

[00:17:52] Chaundria: So how did you feel? If you could tell the audience as a, as a patient, how was it waiting for the results? Like, what are some of the things as [00:18:00] technologists we need to know, maybe are concerns for patients when they come in, when they go home after the results? How can we make it easier for you instead of saying your doctor will call you in X, Y, Z number of days with your results?

[00:18:10] Chaundria: You know, we have to legally say that, but what are some things that maybe you as a patient could ease your nervousness?

[00:18:18] Keosha: Well, I do have to say with the, with the first one it was that they'll let you know in x number of days and that didn't quite help. Because in your, you still have those thoughts running through your mind. I know that they can't tell you anything. That's not their, that's not their place. They don't do the reading.

[00:18:38] Keosha: So it, I do feel like sometimes if there was a piece of paper that says how to manage stress or anxiety while you await your results, like something like that, that would be created with some simple techniques that can. Help the person through those emotions, because [00:19:00] when you are, when you have that top of mind, it's really hard to focus on the other things that are happening in your life.

[00:19:06] Keosha: That may even be good because it's there. So that could be something. Now the, the doctor, the second one that I went to, I got my results the same day. The doctor, I just had to wait and he read it and came and told me. So I didn't really have to wait. But that's what I would would say if there was a length of time.

[00:19:24] Keosha: Longer than

[00:19:25] Marsha: Let me share on, on, on the, on the technologist side the differences of why you're getting the results the same day versus waiting, depending on the facility, five to seven days, maybe two to five days, sometimes two weeks out. When you came in for your first mammogram, Keosha . 

[00:19:42] Marsha: You came in as a screening or you had a concern that you shared with the doctor, and your doctor gave you a particular referral saying it was a diagnostic mammogram. Which one did you have a screening mammogram, which was asymptomatic. Hey, I'm certain age I'm going to go have my mammogram, or you had a concern that you shared with your [00:20:00] physician and they sent you to have your diagnostic mammogram.

[00:20:03] Marsha: Which one did you have?

[00:20:04] Keosha: The first one, she found the lump in sent me..

[00:20:07] Marsha: You had a bilateral diagnostic mammogram, and the difference with that compared to a screening Chaundria, did you just have a screening mammogram recently or you also had something

[00:20:17] Chaundria: I have something found every year.

[00:20:19] Marsha: I'm just gonna make it really simple. When you have a screening mammogram that it's an asymptomatic, you are currently walking the facility and you don't have any concerns.

[00:20:26] Marsha: I don't have no pain. If you do have pain and it's diffused throughout the breast, we'll continue on with the screening. But you do not have a lump. You don't have any specific sharp pain, no symptoms whatsoever. When the radiologist. Take a look at that image will probably be the same day or the next day the patient is gone and you get a, depending on the facility, your results in the mail.

[00:20:47] Marsha: If it's a reason you need to come back, you get the phone call and then you are transitioned into a diagnostic mammogram is because one, you initially came in with a lump or two from your screening mammogram, [00:21:00] something was detected and it needs to be further evaluated. So that further evaluation is more than the four images.

[00:21:06] Marsha: It's spot compressions, or if you had calcifications, it's magnification views that same day. When you're having those additional imaging, you can be transitioned into ultrasound that same day. It's never likely to have an M MRI biopsy or a stereo, a stereotactic biopsy unless it's something that the patient's going out of the country, they're able to do it right then and there.

[00:21:29] Marsha: The schedule permits. But usually with a diagnostic mammogram, 90%, the patient will have additional mammogram, mammography, images, and or an ultrasound.

[00:21:39] Chaundria: Hmm,

[00:21:39] Marsha: and

[00:21:40] Chaundria: that's really helpful.

[00:21:41] Marsha: That day you will get your results because the radiologist is on the premises. They're looking at your images, they're talking, communicating with your sonographer, which is the ultrasound technologist or the mammographer, and saying, Hey, I want more pictures.

[00:21:55] Marsha: Hey, let's do an ultrasound. Hey, go back and see if she can do a biopsy today. Let's [00:22:00] get her on the calendar. For a biopsy in the near future. So the diagnostic, you will leave with the peace of mind to say, only to say I got my results. Not a peace of mind to say, oh my God, now I gotta figure out what I'm gonna do because I may have to have a biopsy.

[00:22:14] Marsha: I gotta come back in six months to follow up. I agree. There should be more communication, but we can't always ease someone's anxiety. You're gonna have your own type of anxiety. I just feel proper communication, Chaundria you know, I'm all about communicating. Proper, proper communication on layman's terms so our patients can understand what's happening at that moment, and if they need to talk, we need to talk, and I feel they will relay better with the technologist than the doctor.

[00:22:43] Chaundria: That's so important because communication, however, and each person is different. But I love, I love, I love, I remember I worked at a place they would give these little cards to people and it said the same thing. The technologist told me, you're gonna get your results. But it was something about that card.

[00:22:59] Chaundria: That [00:23:00] people gave the best surveys back. And it literally said the same exact thing as what the, what the person was telling you. But I do remember that one specific place I worked, they had those little cards and we were to give 'em out to everybody. And all those people thought that was the best thing since sliced bread.

[00:23:17] Chaundria: People they feel like you gave 'em something. You know? 

[00:23:19] Marsha: It's the mindset. It's the psychology part about it. Yes.

[00:23:22] Chaundria: I guess that's where Keosha's coming in because she's a mindset coach.

[00:23:26] Marsha: Oh, well look here. There you go.

[00:23:28] Keosha: Yeah.

[00:23:29] Chaundria: So, so it, it is so interesting though. But I wanna talk lastly about, we talked about fears. I want to take this time to celebrate women who are getting their exams done on their breasts are doing their at home breasts checks each month.

[00:23:42] Chaundria: You should know your breasts better than your doctor. I found both of my lumps. You know, and that's because I do my checks every month, sometimes two, three times a month. Especially when you have fibrocystic breast disease. I have a history of breast cancer in my family, and not only that one thing I just [00:24:00] learned, I got genetic testing done.

[00:24:01] Chaundria: My mother had it done in the eighties or nineties, something like that. She had it done a long time ago, and she didn't have the gene. I got the testing done. My doctor really wanted me to get it done. The gene just so happened to skip over my mother. It didn't skip over all of her siblings. It didn't skip over her aunt, you know, because I've lost five, six aunts.

[00:24:19] Chaundria: And I've lost a cousin to breast cancer. So, and with the genetic testing, it's so interesting because I found that two of my uncles have cancer and my doctor is so convinced that they, one of them or both carried a gene, especially the one with prostate cancer because my grandmother died of ovarian cancer.

[00:24:36] Chaundria: Breast cancer and when you're genetically disposed, you have other cancers that are more aggressive and will come down a line. And I think we need to talk about that more because sometimes we only think this is a women's problem, but the women can be the foundation for helping their sons protect their daughters, protect, you know, their grandchildren because those genes can go through the male to the females.

[00:24:59] Chaundria: How [00:25:00] would both of you encourage other women, especially young women, I know some say, well, I don't have anything wrong. I don't need to give breast screenings, or my insurance won't pay for it.

[00:25:08] Chaundria: What are some things that you would recommend to other young women, maybe that you did Keosha or Marsha, that you as a professional, how would you all recommend?

[00:25:17] Keosha: What I, one of the things that Chaun did say is making sure that you are familiar with your body and to remember you're never too young. That that's the thing. It, the way life is, no one is too young to have anything including, you know, challenges with, with breast health.

[00:25:36] Keosha: You know, I was, I think I was reading an article, there was one young lady, I think she was 22 years old, went to get a breast reduction and they found she had breast cancer. So you, you just never know. So. Invincibility is not, it's not on the table. So taking care of yourself and being familiar and advocating.

[00:25:56] Keosha: That's the thing too, is you know, sometimes you have to advocate [00:26:00] because you are young and if you know something's not right, it's okay not to back down until you get what you need.

[00:26:06] Marsha: There have been recent articles of women in their mid twenties, they feel something they share with the doctor. Oh, the doctor share their thoughts. Oh, it may be this, it may be that. And we as women may not be familiar with our breasts, but if we are familiar with our breasts and we feel something, we need to be adamant, educated enough to say, you know what?

[00:26:26] Marsha: I hear you, but this is my body. I wanna have a mammogram. Or can I get an ultrasound? Indicate something. Sometimes the doctors will, may, may take you seriously, or sometimes you'll have the doctors to say, you know what, let's. Due to your family history or either to no history, let's go ahead and do a further evaluation.

[00:26:42] Marsha: So, yes educating yourself is key. Communicating with your doctor is key. When you educate and you know what's out there to detect anything, talk to your doctor and your doctor should listen to you so you can move forward with any type of evaluation. If it's ultrasound, depending on your age or a limited [00:27:00] mammogram, if you're under 30.

[00:27:01] Marsha: If you're over 30, then you may have a full mammogram. Limited mammogram is if you talk to the radiologist, depending on the patient's history, just maybe one image of that breast, cuz we wanna reduce radiation, you know, that person's of a childbearing age. So it just depends on what the situation may be.

[00:27:16] Marsha: I'm all on board about the communicating and making sure you understand your breasts and monthly breast checks. Know when, even when your cycle is coming, know when your family, know your family history and know, you know, even though if you make an appointment down the line and your cycle still comes in and say, oh, your breast is so tender, sometimes that may not be a bad thing.

[00:27:35] Marsha: You know, I just gotta maybe deal with the compression or reschedule, but, Understanding your body, knowing what you're going through, knowing what you are feeling and following through is key.

[00:27:45] Chaundria: Both of you hit all my points. So I'm just gonna say one thing that you, neither one of you said that I will credit to my health and other young women, maybe they say, I don't wanna get a mammogram. I'm not ready yet. Some people are gonna shy away from actually going and [00:28:00] getting it done just because it's a medical exam and you might find something bad.

[00:28:03] Chaundria: Oh no, I'm not gonna go. Unfortunately, there are people out there like that. So to those people that are not of that age, I would say do your own breast exams every month at home. Get that little thing from the American I think it's from the American Cancer Society. I don't know. Yeah, it's, it'll tell you how to do it.

[00:28:21] Chaundria: It's not that hard. It takes all of five minutes. You can do it in the shower, out of the shower. I just encourage all women to go get your breast checked by a professional, but especially those who may be. Say, I'm not gonna do it. I'm not of the age, or my insurance doesn't cover it because I'm not of the age.

[00:28:38] Chaundria: Do your own exams. You are your own health advocate. You should be. It's best to start early, especially women, because not only is this about women's breast cancer, I have learned so much that it's also about. Men in your family, your grandchildren, through your sons down the line. You know, it, it just, it's, it's a, it's a trickling down [00:29:00] effect.

[00:29:00] Chaundria: When we don't know our history, we don't know our health history and get to know our own bodies. And to that, I wanna say thank you both. And could you tell the audience just one parting, parting piece of advice and let them know if you have something through your business or one of your next speaking engagements that you're gonna be doing, let us know. Keosha tell us one parting bit of advice and something that Pink Productivity is gonna be doing that we need to tap into.

[00:29:25] Keosha: One piece of advice is, is something to remember about the technologist, is that they are human. So even if they may be having a bad day and they may be showing it, one of the things that I want to try to remember and help others to remember is that I. They have struggles outside of that office the same way that we do.

[00:29:46] Keosha: So the way that we expect them to treat us, we really want to give them that same kind of empathy if they're not having a great day. And I can say that because I worked in healthcare for 15 years, so [00:30:00] I, you know, it, it's one of those things where, Yeah. You know, I want to try to extend that too and try to, even though you don't know them, try to extend the benefit of the doubt first.

[00:30:11] Keosha: And then what I have going on, I have a free workshop called Study Simplified Study with Intention, even while short on time. So you can, and that what that's gonna do is to help you learn how to move, peel back one layer of perfectionism when it comes down to how you study, and also releasing guilt.

[00:30:31] Keosha: When you don't complete it. But there's also a practical application using a worksheet that I created that teaches you how to meditate more when you do your spiritual studies. 

[00:30:43] Marsha: My advice young ladies, 20 25 30 35, under the age of 40, examine your breasts and do not be afraid to communicate with your doctor to get a mammogram or an ultrasound. I just think it's vitally important because sometimes you wait too long and then the [00:31:00] expectation or the answer that you receive or your results can be very devastating.

[00:31:05] Marsha: So don't fear can be very gripping communicate with a loved one, someone that may be in your family that you can relate to, maybe a friend, maybe a stranger, something might get the best results from. My message today is examine your breasts and schedule a mammogram or an ultrasound, women under 40 if you are feeling something or you have some concerns to take it a little bit further. Ask for me professionally, what don't I got going on? Ms. Jones, I need to call you after this girl. I need some help. You know, I have some great opportunities down the line to teach. 

[00:31:36] Marsha: I am traveling all over the place. I do mammography and travel throughout the world or throughout the nation or United States to further educate and help facilities that are in need because since Covid.

[00:31:47] Marsha: You know, a lot of mammographers have decided to move on and do some traveling. . I feel they, you know, they patience, not they, but patients are saying, we really appreciate what you're doing because they know we are really up and close and personal up

[00:31:58] Marsha: Thank you Ms. Jones, for [00:32:00] sharing the, you know, to treat us as humans as well. Bad day or good day. Sometimes we have to brush it off and put a smile on and then go in the corner and go through what we're going through. And we are human as well, so I appreciate this opportunity, Chaundria

[00:32:13] Marsha: and we need to work more together to get the word out on all levels of imaging, because imaging rocks!

[00:32:18] Chaundria: Yes, yes, yes. Well, you ladies, you are a phenomenal. I admire both of you. I appreciate you taking the time to come to my podcast with these special episodes featuring patients because without the patients and their feedback there's no us as, as Marsha just said, there's no us. So we appreciate patients coming on this podcast and sharing what they do and how they help others, but also sharing how we can help them in the imaging world. 

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