Strange Ideas

Wow!  I ran into another one!  Where do people get these strange ideas that they are so certain are factual.

Today I was at another farmers’ market with information on free mammograms.  An elderly man approached me and wanted to know why I was offering free mammograms.  His initial question didn’t raise any suspicions with me, because I often talk to people who are just curious.  I responded that women without insurance often need help in paying for a mammogram.  I was about to point out that we also offer colorectal testing for men, but he interrupted me.

He asked me why I thought women “needed” mammograms.  Ah, yes…his tone made my antennae begin to tingle.  I replied, “Oh, you want to argue with me, don’t you?  I do not want to argue.”

He then launched into a lengthy monologue on the supposed evils of mammograms.  He stated that only human mammals get breast cancer, because only humans get mammograms.  In other words, he was saying that mammograms cause breast cancer. There was no opportunity for me to interject anything factual, because he continued by describing a TV program he had seen.  He claimed to be well informed on the subject, and said that the radiation in an MRI is equivalent to being exposed to a nuclear explosion.  Oh, my.

When he finally paused and came up for air, I tried to preface some facts by lending myself some credibility.  I told him that I was an RN, had a degree in chemistry and had a Master’s degree, and….

Before I could go further, he told me to take my diplomas and wipe my A** with them.  Nice guy.

I said, “Good-bye” and turned to face a different direction.

So….just in case you care:

*other mammals, including dogs and cats, do get breast cancer.  In fact, the rate in dogs is three times that in humans.

*men can get breast cancer, and they don’t get mammograms.

*a woman who has never had a mammogram and doesn’t do self-breast exams, typically finds the lump when it is the size of a golf ball.  It can already be cancerous when she discovers it,  prior to a mammogram.

*mammograms are NOT the same thing as MRIs.  The lowest possible amount of radiation is used to visualize the breast during a mammogram.

*even an MRI doesn’t expose you to as much radiation as a nuclear blast…..well, I suppose it might if you are talking about a nuclear blast that is on the opposite side of the planet.  You would have to have some specifics as to your distance from the epicenter before you started throwing “facts” like that around.  (Actually an MRI doesn't expose you to any radiation.  It doesn't use x-rays to create the image.)

Sometimes it is hard to know whether to laugh or cry.  On the bright side, about a dozen people thanked me today for what I was doing, and shortly after the nasty encounter, a cute little boy with hair sticking up in every direction grinned at me and waved as he passed by.

Inexplicable

In my "retirement," I work part-time for an agency which offers free mammograms to women who are uninsured.  Attempting to locate women who could benefit from this service, I am in the process of trying to attend every farmers' market in the county.


Today I set up at the end of a row of booths displaying all manner of fruits, veggies, flowers and baked goods.  It was hot and sunny, so I went to the trouble of putting up a tent.  I set up my table covered with literature under the tent.  I hung a poster from the tent frame which said in bold and bright letters "FREE MAMMOGRAMS for uninsured women."


I talked with many people.  Some glanced at the sign and avoided me.  But, one woman came right up to me with the intent of picking a fight.  I know this because she did have insurance, did NOT want a mammogram, and had to have seen the sign from the direction in which she approached.


She informed me that there was no reason for women to get mammograms.  If we put the right things into our bodies, our bodies will take care of themselves and we won't get cancer.  She said that cancer was caused by "negative thinking."  


I countered that 1 in 8 women get breast cancer, and it is not prevented by positive thinking.


She repeated the bit about putting the right things into our bodies and added that she knew this for sure because she has a PhD in this.  I wondered what  she meant by "this," so I asked what the PhD was in.  She replied, "Natural Health."


I bit my tongue.  Several things came to mind which would have heated up the interchange.  I managed to restrain myself from anything other than a shrug.  (I try harder to behave myself when I am representing an agency.)


There were a few additional comments back and forth.  She said people should "go when their time comes."  I said it makes a difference whether that time comes when one is in their 80s or 50s.  It was obvious that I wasn't going to convince her of anything, and that she just wanted to argue.


Eventually, she turned to walk away and shot back over her shoulder,  "Anyway, I've been a smoker for 40 years, so if I die of cancer,  it will be f.....ing lung cancer."


I know why she delivered this as a parting shot.  She did not want me to point out the total incongruity of believing that "if you put the right things into your body, it will take care of itself" and then smoking!  


Arrrrggghhh!  Inexplicable!


But, she is probably angry with herself about this habit, so she is looking for other directions in which to place that anger.  So there I stood today: smiling, dispensing information, giving out key chains with the agency's phone number AND conveniently in the line of fire.