Dear Francine,
Thank you!

I think what you’re doing is little short of amazing. It is putting awareness and knowledge back into the hands of women – especially in the area of breast health.

The thermography itself was only part of what I came away with. In a way, the most important part was knowledge – that I didn’t have before – about how breasts function, what their role in our health is, and how we can keep them healthy so they can do their job!

I had no idea of this! How can we not have this most essential knowledge about our bodies? Where did this get lost along the way?When did our conversation about breasts become limited to sex, reproduction or fear?

I’ve mentioned to 3 people that I had the thermogram, and for each, their first question was “Is everything OK?”. At our age, that question has become the normal one.

But for some reason, I felt nudged to at last come and have the thermogram. AndI came away with so much more than I expected. What I did already know is that as women, in our reproductive system we have an extra organ that the body uses for detoxification! That was already a big lightbulbmoment. But I didn’t know that our body can hold toxins and waste in our breasts to keep it away from our “essential organs”. I did know that we have lymph glands above and around our breasts whose function is to drain waste and transport it to our exits. I didn’t know that wearing a bra restricts or even limits this function! And that our breasts really need and want to “swing free”.

I was shocked at the idea of going bra-less. I equate that with shriveled old raisins and nipples hanging around my waist! I had no idea that, by tonifying the skin and tissue supporting the breasts, they are naturally held up.

Since our appointment, I’ve been skin brushing and massaging my breasts daily. It hasn’t been a chore. It doesn’t feel like I’m doing it to prevent any horrible disease from taking hold. It simply occurs to me as something I want to do to enable my breasts to do their thing.

What I hadn’t expected is a new found relationship with my “meisjes”! I hadn’t realized that I didn’t really have one! They were two lumps of flesh that I just needed to find the right (or most sexy) container for. A striking recollection popped into my mind after our appointment. My mother saying, when my breasts developed early as a teenager and became relatively large for my petite size: “You’re lucky that you have nice breasts. Men really like that”. So on some level, I think I had related my breasts to being something that was for men’s pleasure.

For whatever reason, I realized this week that I don’t have any real moments of celebration and enjoyment of my femininity. And I’m loving reconnecting with my“girls” and bringing them home. :). Just a few moments of attention, however long it is.

I’ll share my experience with friends and family. Most, like me, think of the mammogram as a necessary and intrinsic – albeit invasive – part of our post 50 years. We think of it as the best early detector of any cell change. I hadn’t realized at all that the thermogram detects irregularities much much earlier. Notas a malignancy, but as areas of congestion and inflammation. That is being armed with real knowledge.

I’ve dug out all my books on health (and as you can imagine, I have many). What is startling to me is that none of them talk about “Breast Health”. If I look up “Breasts” in the index, the entries are all related to mammograms, cancer or interventions. To give the authors their due credit, within the text of some of the books, there is wisdom and a much wider knowledge – of older civilizations and different cultures. Of the facts and figures, research and studies illustrating that with mammograms and interventions, we are not really on the most helpful track,to say the least; and may even be deflecting from the direction that would be so much more beneficial to be looking in. Yet the fact that we’re brought to our breasts through fear speaks volumes. Most of these index entries are grouped around cancer or cancer prevention when in fact breast health is so much more. A much wider, more beautiful, more celebratory, more expansive subject.

It could be that here are books out there and I’ve just not been looking for them. I do hope that your book – and I imagine it would be from having read your magazine – is about this. I will absolutely love to read it when it’s out in English! And may even read it in Dutch.

Another subject that I’m becoming fascinated by is the history of the bra! Why and when did we develop it? Was it to render our femininity more acceptable, safer? What have different cultures done over the years? Do you cover this in your book? I’d be fascinated to research in to this if you don’t. Maybe we can co-author another book? If it hasn’t been written already!

I’ve been accumulating a collection of Marlies Dekkers that any diva would be proud of. And certainly my husband is delighted by! But I’m going to have to relegate them to high days and holidays and special events. I’m still looking for nice natural fiber light support tank tops while the muscles, my “natural bra”, above my breasts become stronger and take up the slack, haha!

Anyway, this was just going to be a short message. I actually think you’d love to read the books I have if you don’t have them already – and wanted to offer to lend them to you. They could be a good resource for material.

Sending a big thank you once again

Love Su

(When I was musing about all this, honestly, I guess I experienced my breasts as “not mine”.)