I rarely, if ever, get time to myself. By “time to myself,” I mean no kids, no husband, no work to keep me company. Just me and my thoughts.
But yesterday, as I drove myself to my OB/GYN for my annual well-woman visit, I turned off the radio and took a deep breath. Because I was alone. And I was indeed going to count this as “me-time.”
A trip in the stirrups wouldn’t typically count as me-time, right? And until this year, I wouldn’t have considered it a “luxury” either.
I was feeling anxious about my appointment because I hadn’t been to my OB/GYN in three years. I just want to mention that this is not entirely my fault. My OB took a new job as an administrator back in 2011 and he stopped seeing patients. I won’t lie — I cried. I absolutely loved having him as my doctor and couldn’t see myself hopping in the stirrups for anyone else. When sitting in the waiting room, I’ve had his other patients ask me who I’m there to see and when I tell them Dr. A, they suck their teeth at me for taking up time with their precious doctor. I can’t even get mad because I do it too. He is incredible.
As soon as I found out that he returned to his regular practice I was thrilled. But I put off the appointment for two years. Because I was scared.
There’s something about realizing that you have to go to the doctor. Not because anything is necessarily wrong, but because something could be wrong. And prevention and early detection is the key to longevity.
So I decided that I’d much rather suffer a few uncomfortable minutes in stirrups than have my kids go through life without a mom because I was too scared to go. Sucks but it’s true.
Meagan Francis from the Happiest Home wrote a recent post that resonated with me. In it, she talks about how self-care is more than just making time for a pedicure, but includes real health care, something that moms often put off due to busyness:
But while bubble baths, massages, and manicures are wonderful things, they’re no substitute for taking real care of our health. And that can involve messy, uncomfortable, inconvenient, and un-pampering processes like screenings, blood tests, mole removals and mammograms.
No, those things don’t make for cute Instagrams or a fun girl’s nights out. But they are vitally important and we owe it to ourselves to make sure that “self care” includes the uncomfortable, un-fun stuff along with scented lotions and facials.
I’ve made a lot of excuses over the years, telling myself that “I’m fine” and it hasn’t been that long since I’ve had a check-up. But if I’m honest, I’m doing myself a disservice. Yes, it’s uncomfortable. Yes, I’d rather be any place else other than the dentist’s chair or the OB/GYN’s table. No, I don’t feel like trying to find a babysitter, driving all the way to the doctor, waiting in the waiting room and then undergoing all the tests that say whether or not I’m healthy.
But even if I didn’t want to do it for myself, I’d do for my children.
I know this is hard. (Didn’t I just finish telling you that it took me three years to go back to the OB/GYN and more than that for my dentist’s appointment?) But we are valuable, ladies. Let’s cherish our health in the same way we cherish that new pair of shoes, the new purse, the trip to the Bahamas. Let’s stop the excuses and get our check-ups. We’re worth it.