Sometime in the past year or so, I became aware of a freckle or mole or something on my tummy. During my pregnancy, it seemed quite large (my waist growing to 50 inches or so had a way of magnifying everything) and after I had Kate, I noticed the little mole (I began to think of it as a mole) didn’t get quite as small as it seemed it should have. And it was dark, much darker than other freckles and moles and things on my body. And for a sort while it had a dark crust that eventually came off. And I think during that time it may have bled a bit. But then it went back to being just dark and just a little not round. But it wasn’t so large, or so fast changing, or so irregular, or so strange that I went out of my way to point it out to anyone. I figured that the next time I saw a doctor, I’d bring it up. In other words, I’ve been thinking about this mole for months and months, but never made it a big deal.
This afternoon I went to the dermatologist. Not because of the mole, but because I’m tired of having pimples in my 30s and am willing to do anything to be rid of them. The mole was just a side note I happened to remember right before seeing the doctor. I felt like he’d probably look really closely, ask me some questions, and just tell me to keep an eye on it. For a moment, I even hesitated saying anything at all.
So I showed him the little mole just to the side of my belly button. Good thing. One glance and he was In Action — within seconds I was on an exam table with a needle in my belly. I think it was less than 5 minutes from the glance to the band-aid. (I didn’t feel a thing but have felt woozy all day since then.) I call for biopsy results in a week.
Now, I don’t particularly think it was anything to be alarmed of… I tan well, I don’t have a history of serious burns, and I don’t have a lot of freckles or moles. But I do love the sun, I go out at the worst times of day, and I don’t wear sunscreen (except when I’m at the pool or beach for longer than an hour). And I’ve been thinking that there was something not right with this mole for months. I know, I KNOW, I should do better because I know better… I’m just being honest. (And yes, I regularly put sunscreen on the kids.)
But here is what is on my mind: should there be something with this little mole, won’t I be a horse’s ass for not saying anything earlier???
Shokufeh | 04-Apr-07 at 9:35 pm | Permalink
I hope it’s nothing! It’s nice to live in a time when we can find such things out relatively easily. *fingers crossed for you*
Holly | 05-Apr-07 at 10:00 pm | Permalink
Yes, time — and location! I can pretty much guarantee that if I were in just about any other place in the world, I would not have considered treating anything that I didn’t feel was an immediate threat.