So, I found a lump in my boob

The never-ending saga of being a woman

The week I was packing up all my earthly belongings to move from Montreal to Toronto to start a new job, all of a sudden, I started to feel a pain in my right breast. It was a kind of weird burning sensation and was very sensitive to touch. There was no rash or marks, it just…hurt. I couldn’t sleep on my right side and even if my arm brushed against it, it would make me wince. I have a pretty high pain threshold and this was painful enough to make me pay attention.

I was instantly a little paranoid because you know…pain in your boob…you immediately start to think the worst (or at least you do if you’re like me and struggle with anxiety). I knew I would have to do a breast exam, but it was too painful for me to even be able to have a good proper check.

That, along with moving - who has time to deal with health stuff?! Plus, I was on my period, dealing with a lot of stress and hell, maybe this is a perimenopause symptom I haven’t heard of - who knows?! So, I pushed it to the back of my mind. I powered through the move, I started my job.

But the pain didn’t go. It lessened a little, enough for me to have a feel around and that confirmed my worst fear; there was a lump.