The Lump

My life has changed from a pretty normal life of a stay a home mom to a new life. Each day I get my son off to school, get my toddler and myself ready for the day and head over to the hospital for the day. Once school is almost out, I race home to pick up my son. In the beginning, most evenings are spent back at the hospital.

It becomes an exhausting existence attempting to care for my own family and my broken parents. My sleeping patterns are not good. There is too much on my mind.

This night was particularly wakeful. My nursing toddler seemed to need me more than usual. As I awoke in the morning, my finger rested upon my right breast.  Somehow I touched this one spot and felt a tiny lump.  It reminded me of a dried pea.  As I had been a breastfeeding mother for almost seven years, I knew what was normal for my breasts. In addition I was a lactation counselor and felt like an expert. This small lump needed attention.

I called that morning and was given an 11:00am appointment. I told them it was perfect, I would stop by on my way to the hospital.

The Beginning

It's an average Sunday.  I'm sure I did some laundry, played with my kids, probably read some books, and checked my email.  These parts of the day I don't recall.  My children are ages 2 1/2, a girl and 6 1/2, a boy. At about seven in the evening, the phone rings. A woman identifies herself as a social worker at the hospital.  She informs me that my parents have been hit by a car and would like me to come to the hospital. My only question was, were they in a car?  The answer was simply no. I thanked her and hung up.

I called me sister and we decided we would both head over to the hospital to see what was up. My young two year old nursling would accompany me. 

At the hospital, it became clear that while the accident was not the worst case senario, it was far from the best. I met my sister in the hall and she looked upset. I asked if they were broken and bloody and she said yes;  we hugged. What I would later learn is that there had been a multiple car accident involving a missed red light.  The van which struck them was out of control.  My parents both had multiple broken bones, abrasions, and head wounds. It would be a long recovery.