KNOW YOURSELF
A toolkit to help you nurture the most important relationship you can have...with yourself.
What is 'normal' for you...?
In order to be able to spot early signs of disease, you need to regularly check in on yourself. There actually is no 'normal', but by normal here we mean what is your baseline.
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Early detection of signs that something is amiss could be the difference between curable or incurable (for certain conditions). Knowledge is power and staying on top of your health and spotting things early, means earlier intervention. If ever in doubt, always visit your GP at the first signs of something being wrong.
TOP-TO-TOE
Regularly (at least once a month) get intimate with yourself. As in, head to toe be aware of what is the norm for you. Every freckle on your skin, every lump and bump. What is your usual pattern of migraines if you have them. Do you poo every day or twice a week. What is your usual period flow like? Check your breasts at least once a month, not just feeling but looking. Not all breast cancers are lumps and bumps, some may appear as skin changes or change in size…if you’re not looking as well as feeling you may miss something. Your most intimate areas can still get cancer - the vulva, vagina, cervix and uterus are all different areas and can each get their own cancer. Don’t be afraid to grab a mirror on your own and look.
FIRST STOP - GP
The GP is the first doorway to getting help and a diagnosis and can for some be a real battle. Women particularly often find themselves feeling gaslighted, dismissed, unheard. But not all are bad experiences, and remember that GP’s see a lot of concerns of stomach pains, and not all are in fact due to gynae problems or real conditions. If the GP was to refer every person that walked through the door the first time they reported a condition, the NHS truly would be broken. So asking to keep a food diary, or trialling simple medication may seem frustrating, but it’s not because you’re being failed. It is more than reasonable to be tried on several things initially. Starting with the basics like bloods and simple management is normal, because for most people, this will work.
BODIES FLUCTUATE
Not every lump or bump is cancer. Not every abdominal pain episode needs investigating. Our bodies are ever changing organisms that adapt to our environment; stress, food, the weather, what we put them through on a day to day basis. People get tired, run down, and our bodies react to the very being of existing. So jumping to the GP immediately isn’t always necessary (if in doubt, check the NHS). Lumps that are concerning should always be checked.
ADVOCATE
Sometimes it may take a few visits when trying to get a diagnosis. The GP can't refer every person who presents the first time with stomach pain to a specialist. This isn't always a sign of being dismissed - the GP needs to see how symptoms change over time. But for you as the patient, and advocate for your own body, if those initial things didn’t work, and you realise things are still persisting, you go back. Politely. And try try again. Because if things are not settling, or getting worse, then things do need to progress for further investigations..
RED FLAGS
Red flags are what they sound like - changes in our body’s appearance or behaviour that is particularly concerning. Such as migraines that suddenly change in nature or frequency. Change in bowel habit that is lasting for several weeks. Bleeding. Night sweats. Weight loss. Lumps. Chest pain. Breathlessness. Racing heart. Change in voice (suddenly becoming hoarse). New difficulty in swallowing. These are warning signs from your body that something is going on. Check the NHS, or visit your GP if concerned, and if still concerned, always feel free to ask for a second opinion.
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