Waiting to Sleep with Brad Pitt

Since you can't talk about being brca1 positive in 2013 without talking about Angelina Jolie, I figured it was time I did so. Even prior to the whole breast cancer gene/preventive mastectomy thing, I have always found myself relating my life to Angelina’s. We were born the same year, we were pregnant at the same time, and (this is going to sound crazy) but we have similar lips! My bottom lip is kind of plump, okay not Angelina plump, but plump enough that it was once something that I felt self-conscious about…until Angelina came on the scene and suddenly plump lips were sexy. So, Angelina Jolie has a long history of making me feel more comfortable in my body.

The timing of Angelina's New York Times Op Ed in May 2013 (http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/14/opinion/my-medical-choice.html?_r=0) could not have come at a better time for me for several reasons. I was already scheduled to meet with a genetic counselor and was tentatively exploring a preventive mastectomy to respond to a brca1 diagnosis. I was also having fleeting thoughts that if I followed through with the surgery,  it might impact my sense of self or my relationship. Then all of a sudden, out comes the sexiest couple in the world, as the face for preventive mastectomies! I mean, do you remember Brad Pitt in Fight Club? If that's the reward for a preventive mastectomy, then sign me up!

My research, post-diagnosis, kept leading me to Angelina Jolie. Because of her celebrity, I was easily able to find out things like the difference between brca1 and brca2 and get quick and accurate statistics about my lifetime likelihood for being diagnosed with breast or ovarian cancer.  Since Angelina’s story was pop-culture news, I had the ability to peruse sources like the Huffington Post, New York Times and even People Magazine - reading material which was much more suited to my reading skill level than JAMA (the Journal of the American Medical Association) or any other medical journal for that matter.  

In one of my friendly sources, I came upon the age of Angelina's youngest children at the time of her surgery. (For the record, her twins Knox and Vivienne were 5). Once again I felt connected to Angelina when I thought about how surgery would impact my daughters, particularly my youngest, who is just 2. I was worried about the repercussions of not being able to hold her post-surgery. I read Angelina’s Op Ed piece and and felt validated about my worry. 

I'm so grateful Angelina put words like “brca1” and “preventive mastectomy” in the daily lexicon of so many people. When I tell my friends and family about my diagnosis and upcoming surgeries, I'm able to simply say, "you know, like Angelina Jolie." (Which makes it so much easier than explaining in great detail a medical diagnosis and procedure that I don't necessarily fully understand myself.)  So thank you Angelina for being a sexy, strong, and powerful voice for women taking control of their own health.  I, for one, am proud to be on Team Angelina and am now just waiting patiently for my turn to sleep with Brad Pitt when this is all done.