"Beyond the Game": The RealSportsDoc Podcast
Welcome to "Beyond the Game: The RealSportsDoc Podcast," hosted by a seasoned sports medicine doctor who brings a unique perspective to the intersection of sports, health, and life. In each episode, we explore the physical and mental challenges athletes face both on and off the field. From injury prevention and recovery strategies to insights into the latest advancements in sports medicine, we provide essential knowledge for athletes, coaches, physicians and other sports medicine or sports enthusiasts alike.
Join us as we share inspiring stories of resilience, discuss the impact of injuries on athletes' lives, and delve into the importance of mental health in sports. We will also feature expert guests, including physicians, psychologists, trainers, elite athletes and coaches to discuss their journeys and the lessons they've learned.
Whether you are a competitive athlete, a weekend warrior, or simply passionate about sports, tune in to discover what it truly means to go "Beyond the Game."
"Beyond the Game": The RealSportsDoc Podcast
Hope and Healing: Rebecca's Courageous Path
Imagine facing a diagnosis that could change everything you know about life. Join us as we share the inspiring story of Rebecca Byrd, a courageous breast cancer survivor who opens up about her journey with stage three, triple-negative breast cancer during Breast Cancer Awareness Month. In this heartfelt discussion, Rebecca talks about the life-altering moment when she discovered a lump, her intense chemotherapy experience, and the pivotal decisions she made along the way. Her story is a beacon of strength, highlighting the power of unwavering faith and determination in the face of adversity. Clad in her beloved pink apparel, Rebecca embodies hope and reminds us all of the profound importance of representing one's values and faith during life's toughest battles.
Rebecca's journey is not just about survival but about embracing life with renewed vigor and purpose. We explore the challenges she faced, from dealing with the side effects of treatment to making the difficult choice to undergo a double mastectomy. Her experiences shed light on the emotional resilience required to navigate such a profound personal transformation. The conversation underscores the vital role of early detection, the necessity of a strong support system, and the joy of living with gratitude and intent. Tune in to find encouragement, whether you're personally battling breast cancer or seeking inspiration to live life to the fullest.
Thank you for tuning in to "Beyond the Game"! We hope you found valuable insights into the world of sports medicine and the importance of health and wellness in athletics. Remember, whether you're an athlete, a parent, or a sports enthusiast, this podcast is designed for you.
Stay connected with us! Subscribe to the podcast, share it with your friends, and don't forget to send in your questions and topics you'd like us to explore in future episodes.
Join us next time as we deliver sports-related topics right to your doorstep. Let’s continue this journey together—beyond the game!
For more resources and to connect with Dr. Brandon Hardin, visit TheRealSportsDoc.com or HardinSportsMed.com to learn more.
Keep pushing your limits, and see you next time!
Hey everybody, welcome to Beyond the Game podcast. This is your host, Ddr Brandon Hardin. I have a very, very special guest with me today. She's become more of a friend and I asked her to come on today to talk about saving the boobs and, realistically, I'm going to ask her opinion on that, because there are patients out there who've had radical mastectomies and, unfortunately, who couldn't save the boobs, right. So, in all seriousness, it is October, go pink, right. This is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and that's what we're here to talk about. I have again my good friend, ebecca Bird here with me today and she's going to share a little bit about her experiences beyond the game of beating cancer, right? So, ebecca, how are you?
Rebecca Byrd:I'm doing well doing well. I'm doing well good right now I'm doing okay right now you're doing.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Okay, it has its ebbs and flows right up and down.
Rebecca Byrd:Yes, yeah, every day is different. So, yeah, you take the wins when you get it.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, yeah yeah, you got to spread your wings when you can, that's right. Right, You're cool with kind of sharing your story. You wanted to come on and let people know. One that it's okay, but two, you know you can't really talk about something unless you've been through it yourself, right?
Speaker 2:Well, you've been through it, right? So?
Dr. Brandon Hardin:that's what we're going to talk about. So a little bit of introduction and background. Can you share a little bit about your life prior to being diagnosed with breast cancer, like what were your passions and priorities at that time?
Rebecca Byrd:Well, I would like to think that I was just a normal person. I exercised, I ate good, I was probably in the best health that I had been in for a long time and I was still in my honeymoon phase. I got married in 2012.
Speaker 2:Yeah, we're still honeymooning.
Rebecca Byrd:It's my first marriage. That's beautiful, so yeah. So I mean just spending time with my husband and doing life you know yeah. And, like I said, I was probably the healthiest that I had been. I was in a good place.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, and you thought hey life is good.
Rebecca Byrd:Life is good Strolling along, yes.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, yeah. So what was your initial reaction then when you received the news that you had breast cancer?
Rebecca Byrd:We had just returned from a trip to Florida for my husband's birthday. Yeah, so it was a little weekend getaway trip and I went into my portal and looked at the report because I had found a lump.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:So it started with a lump on itself. I found it.
Rebecca Byrd:And so I had gotten a mammogram and gotten the. I had to get a diagnostic mammogram because they couldn't do the regular, because there was an obvious issue. So I didn't read the report all weekend but I read it Sunday night when we were home and it said it looked like it appeared to say that I had breast cancer.
Rebecca Byrd:And so I was like you know, talking to my husband, honey, it looks like you know they're saying I have breast cancer and it was like okay. And so we together was like okay, god's got a plan and it's a good plan. Whether I live or whether I die, I win. And I just wanted to represent God well through my diagnosis.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Absolutely so. What did that diagnosis look like? What stage were you at when they found it?
Rebecca Byrd:I was stage three, triple negative, which is the worst you could get. Well, stage four would be worse, but you know triple negative is the kind that spreads fast, that you know it's harder to treat, there's not a lot of options to treat it and you can't block it from coming back. Triple negative means it's negative for hormones, so I can't take a hormone blocker to block it from coming back. So I just have to be diligent with my you know scans and things of that nature too, and chemo and all of that, oh yeah yeah, yeah, we had to throw everything at it and so triple negative.
Rebecca Byrd:That's what you do. You throw everything at it. You know there's only basically one treatment for triple negative. Right, yeah, so yeah and that's the strongest chemo that you can get.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Rebecca Byrd:Which is like I can't ever have that chemo again, because if I had it again it kill me so yeah yeah yeah, it's a little scary to think about absolutely you know, but you, just you do what you have to do.
Rebecca Byrd:You, you make the choice. Do I want to fight it? Do I want to, you know, do what I can to live right, knowing that it's going to be a long road, knowing that it's going to be hell to get through. Yeah, um, and, and it it was, I'm sure it was. Yeah, yeah, absolutely you did yes glory to god.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:That is amazing. Yeah, she. You guys can't see her right now, but she's wearing a pink sparkly shirt. She has pink undertones it's called ombre in her hair and she's got the most sparkly boots that I've ever seen. They're amazing.
Speaker 2:Rookie gloves yeah, they're awesome.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:So I have to tell you guys, she's in such great spirits and it's so nice to see that. And when I asked her to come on the show, she started in such great spirits and it's so nice to see that. And when I asked her to come on the show, she started crying and tearing up and she said you know, god had placed me here to attest to what I've been through, so that other people can hear my story, and that is the reason why we're here. That's the reason why I want to bring this podcast to you guys, so that you all know what life is like beyond the game. And it really was a game for you, right? You didn't know what the outcome was going to be. Just like in any football game, I can't predict the outcome. That's why people bet on it, and you were betting on life.
Rebecca Byrd:I was betting on life.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:And you were praying hard. I was betting on God, yeah.
Rebecca Byrd:Praying yes.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:And I had a lot of people brainwashed. Absolutely yeah, warrior, that's what I, that's what comes to mind, you know. So, through that, that journey and having that diagnosis, how did you navigate the emotional and psychological impact of being diagnosed with cancer period?
Rebecca Byrd:Um, well, you know, like, like I said, I, I I went into it saying that whether I live or whether I die, I win Right this. Of course, that was before I knew how bad it was, but I had already had that mindset. So when I did figure out all the ins and outs of you know, oh, you have triple negative, which means we've got to throw everything at it. You know you didn't really have a choice as to what my treatments were or that kind of thing, like I had to have the strongest chemo. You know I couldn't have surgery until after the tumors trumped because they were so large and just, you know, just knowing all of that, you have to put in your mind okay, am I gonna fight it, or am I just gonna live the rest of my life, which they told me within five years I would be dead if I'd got no treatment?
Rebecca Byrd:right um, and I wanted to live. And so you know, once you decide you, once you have that determination of, okay, I'm gonna do everything I can, yeah, then that's what helped me through, especially the hard days, because there's a lot of hard days with going through treatments.
Speaker 2:Right.
Rebecca Byrd:A lot.
Speaker 2:And I just kept telling myself this is just temporary. Right, this is just temporary.
Rebecca Byrd:You know, I'm going to get past this. I'm going to get through this. This feeling that I'm feeling today, this is just temporary. This sickness that I'm feeling today, this is just temporary. This sickness that I'm feeling today, this is just temporary, and and I that's how I made it through yeah, it really is.
Speaker 2:It's a clever way to make it through.
Rebecca Byrd:Yeah. Day by day, but also hour by hour, like feeling by feeling, uh, sickness by sickness. However, you have to do it, you. You have to focus on just what you're going through, right then, yeah, and you have to do it, you.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:You have to focus on just what you're going through right then, yeah, and you have to. What's in front of you, what's in front of me right now? Yeah, exactly. Wow. So can you walk us through that process of deciding on your treatment plan like did? Were there factors of influence? I know you were newly married, so that probably was at the forefront. And then second, I mean, I'm not really sure of anybody who just says no, I want to die. So what were a few factors that influenced your decision to take on treatment?
Rebecca Byrd:My grandkids.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Sure.
Rebecca Byrd:I have two grandsons. I was never able to have children just because of other female issues that I had, and so my husband had two grown daughters, and one of them has two sons, and so I have two grandsons and I determined that I wanted to see them grow up. I wanted to see them get married. I wanted to see them have children. Not only that I'm newly married, in my mind I'm newly married. I wanted to grow old with my mind. I'm newly married.
Rebecca Byrd:I wanted to grow old with my husband, and so there was only either do this treatment, because I didn't have any options. I had to do the strongest treatment or not do anything. So that was my only choice, and it really wasn't a choice. I had determined that I wanted to live, and so I chose the treatment.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, you want to plug your doctor who helped you through it.
Rebecca Byrd:Dr Minhas is the best doctor ever.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Dr Minhas.
Rebecca Byrd:When they first sent me to Dr Minhas I'd never heard of him before. You hear of the other big doctors at Memorial, the cancer doctors and I'm not knocking anybody because Memorial has an awesome cancer facility. They were wonderful through all the treatment. But I'd never heard of Dr Menthos. So I did some research and he had studied in roswell, new mexico and I'm like dude, if he worked on aliens, then I am so good. Now he said he never worked on aliens but I was like could you tell me if?
Speaker 2:he did like you know he um.
Rebecca Byrd:He's also a hematologist, so yes he, he, he's also a hematologist.
Rebecca Byrd:So, yes, he, he was just wonderful and he is moved away now he's in Texas. But he, he was. He was so up on all of the treatments and doing research and and every time I would call him and have a symptom of this or that, like we would tweak things and we would. You, you know what I mean. Like he was so up on all of the stuff and so I told him he was answered prayer and he, you know he was, because you know that night that I found that we read the report. I mean we prayed over my team. And then, you know, when I got sent to Dr Mennhaus, I knew the first time that we met that this was where I needed to be and his team and he was wonderful through the whole thing that is incredible.
Rebecca Byrd:I love that, yeah, yeah him, and God got me through yes, yeah yeah so what was your experience like through the chemotherapy, through the treatment?
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Were there any unexpected challenges that you faced? I know you think, oh well, just like anybody else, I'm going to be sick, but were there anything that hit you in the face? All of a sudden You're like oh, wasn't expecting that. How did you navigate through chemo?
Rebecca Byrd:It was tough. Yeah, it was tough. I had just about every symptom that you I mean every side effect that you can have. Yeah, um, you know from, I got heart problems now that I never had before, stomach issues like going through. You know, chemo did its job in killing the cancer, but it also damaged some good stuff inside me too.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, it's systemic yeah yeah and so, but I'm alive.
Rebecca Byrd:Yeah, I'm not complaining about that. I'm thankful for what the chemo did right, but it is poison that you're putting in your body yeah and so there are effects.
Rebecca Byrd:You know my fingerprints don't work all the time. I still have neuropathy in my fingers, you know. So that with you know just all the side effects that you have to deal with, not knowing which side effects that you're going to get or that's going to arise, you just have to take it as you go. Yeah, um, but one thing I did do through treatments was I did my best to get out of bed every day.
Speaker 2:Yes, Movement is key.
Rebecca Byrd:You know now, there were days that I did stay in bed.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Rebecca Byrd:But most every day I got up, went into work, even if it was just for an hour or two, but I did my best to get out of bed every day and that helped me tremendously even if it was just going into the living room and sitting in the living room, like you know, going for a walk outside in the.
Rebecca Byrd:You know, of course I had to watch the Sun because you can't get inside when you're going through chemo because you know you can get sun damage. But you know things like that, like you have to find the strength to do those things, to get out of bed. Like if you're fighting to to live, then you need to live yeah, yeah, yeah.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:gotta get up and do it one foot in front of the other, move forward. Yeah that's right. How did you cope with the side effects of chemo, both physically and emotionally, and did you have a good support system in place?
Rebecca Byrd:Yes, my husband was the best.
Rebecca Byrd:Yeah, like he was so good, um, and he helped me tremendously. Now he was working, you know, through this, so you know he wasn't at home all the time taking care of me. I had friends. You know one friend in particular that would call me every single day and check on me just to make sure I was okay. I had friends that would come and clean my house. Friends that would, you know, mow my yard Sure, in the house, friends that would mow my yard. But the most important was I had friends that prayed for me, prayed for me, and you don't realize that's what was holding me up on my hard days. The Bible says that when we're weak, god is strong, and I felt the strength through those people that were praying for me that's that's yes, that's what helped me through the the side effects of the chemo.
Rebecca Byrd:Yes, you know not being able to eat. You know not being able to eat. You know everything tasted like metal, things that they don't tell you. You know as you're going through it, but you know things you figure out as you go. Okay, I can't eat anything Like. The only things that I would eat was like scrambled eggs with toast, oatmeal and toast, and the weirdest thing was box macaroni and cheese like processed, but I don't know if it was. You know something in the chemo that called you to cause me to be able to trade that yeah the cheese, the salt, the something right, but yeah so just weird stuff like that.
Rebecca Byrd:but yeah, the side effects, like I, I got just about every side effect there was and so we had to tweak things. We had to add more medication to counteract the side effects and that kind of stuff A lot of Zofran, a lot of steroids. That's what I weigh now, but that's okay, I'm alive, and so I'm not complaining about that either.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Right, I totally get that too.
Speaker 2:Yes.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:In what ways has your perspective on life changed since being diagnosed?
Rebecca Byrd:I appreciate being in the moment, I appreciate being able to, um, you know, cruising the coast was just this last week and, um, I was able to go, and you know, we went to the concert, the Molly Greenwalds. We loved Molly Greenwalds, um, and so it's me and my sister and her husband and my sister's daughter, and then her daughter, and, and you know, we were just all dancing and just having a good time and I immediately thought I would not have been able to do this if I would have died, you know, and so it just made me, it makes me appreciate the times that I have with friends and family and my husband and my grandkids, and I just I'm so thankful to be alive.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Rebecca Byrd:So thankful to be able to have those moments with, with people.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, Just you know. So that was my next question. Yeah, Any lessons or insights, and that's good insight, you know, for somebody who's that ill to look at things and go, I am just so thankful to be here. Yes, you know, I think a lot of people take the simple things for granted. Yes, right, yes.
Rebecca Byrd:Yeah.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yes, that's awesome. Yeah, so what's life like today? I mean, how are you doing both physically and emotionally today?
Rebecca Byrd:I still have a lot of issues with my body.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Rebecca Byrd:You know, I have more migraines. I have just still neuropathy in my feet and my hands so I'm not able to exercise like I used to. I'm not able to go on my long walks like I used to.
Speaker 2:So it's physically changed you, but physically it physically changed you.
Rebecca Byrd:Physically it has changed me. Emotionally. I think I'm stronger.
Speaker 2:I believe I'm stronger emotionally yeah sure, just because you have to be, you have to be, you know.
Rebecca Byrd:I was able to make it when a lot of people don't Right. And you know, survivor's guilt is something too that I have had to struggle with. Yeah, you know, because there's a lot of people that had a lesser diagnosis than me that passed away.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Rebecca Byrd:And it's like you know you question that in a sense as to okay, but then you look at it too and you say, okay, well, god obviously needed me here for for more. So why not appreciate every day? Why not appreciate life? Because I'm here for a reason, so god allowed me to to be. They'll never say I'm cancer free, but no evidence of disease in my body. And so I want to, I want to, I want to make sure that I am using this life yes, for the better.
Rebecca Byrd:You know what I'm saying Like because obviously I'm here for a reason. Yeah, that's right.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, you're a tool. I am a tool, right, god's tool. He's using you, just like he is right now, to elaborate on what's going on, how you're doing today and how it can help other people yes, especially those who have breast cancer.
Rebecca Byrd:Yes, yeah, especially those that are going through the fight right now. Yes, right.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Tell us about your surgical process. You know, in the beginning I said save the boobs. Yes, talk a little bit about that. I know that was probably the most radical thing you've had to go through other than being told hey you have triple negative breast cancer.
Rebecca Byrd:Yeah Right, you know I had had a tumor removed out of each breast back in 2012, which was benign, and I believe back then I had already in my mind had those come back. As cancer said we were going to take them both. They were benign, so we didn't. You know, we did the gene test back then. I have no mutation and so, since I had, done that, you know when I got diagnosed in 2021,.
Rebecca Byrd:it was like, okay, well, I had already basically said let's just do it, and so I wasn't going to try and keep one even though it was only cancer in one. I wasn't trying to keep the other one. I didn't want it to because it was triple negative to come back easier and go into the other one.
Rebecca Byrd:I just didn't want to give it a vessel sure, I mean yeah so I was like, okay, so I did the the double mastectomy after chemo treatment, the first chemo treatment before radiation, and I stayed flat for a year.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah.
Rebecca Byrd:So I stayed flat for a year.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Did that mess with your psyche at all?
Rebecca Byrd:No, actually I thought that it would bother me more than what it did, but it really did not. Um, you know they have so many, like the falsies and that kind of thing that you can get, and I did not. I did not miss them, which is the weirdest thing. Um, and so, after, after, after my other treatments, the radiation and the chemo pill that I had to take, then, once my body healed, we talked about reconstruction. Yep, and so I decided on the deep flap reconstruction, which is where they basically do a tummy tuck, they take the skin and the fat and they recreate the breast and you did that here locally and I did that here locally, and we want to dr mace.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Oh my gosh, love them. What an incredible circle, oh my gosh.
Rebecca Byrd:Both of them are just incredible doctors yes um, now I've had some complications with that and I said, had I known how difficult it was going to be for the reconstruction, I probably would have just stayed flat.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah.
Rebecca Byrd:And it's a choice for people. I'm not saying everybody needs to stay flat, I'm just saying, had I known what I know now about how I didn't realize I was going to have to have so many phases of the reconstruction. That's right, and I still don't think I'm finished. Yeah, I'm actually seeing Dr.
Rebecca Byrd:Tiaz on Monday to talk more about what we can do to fix and tweak and that kind of thing, but nothing against them. It's just how your body heals after the trauma of radiation and you know the mastectomies, you know having to go deep and this and that, and you know remove everything right. So you know there's just a lot to you have to you have to do your research. Do your research about what you feel would be good for you, because what's good for me may not be good for the next person. What works for me may not work for the next person.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Right.
Rebecca Byrd:And so you know, do your research. But you know I love Dr Diaz and Dr Mace. It's just a lot of surgeries. It is I've had eight or nine surgeries.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:So this whole thing, yeah, yeah, and I'm probably not finished yeah, it has to take a toll on your body, right, and so that's why you know with me.
Rebecca Byrd:I mean I just turned 57. I probably would have just stayed flat had I known it was gonna be this this many surgeries, but you know what? I'm alive and I'm able to watch my grandkids play soccer so you know it's okay that's right, yeah, so what about community involvement and advocacy for those patients?
Dr. Brandon Hardin:have you gotten involved in any support groups or advocacy work since your experience, and what does that look like for you?
Rebecca Byrd:Not really like groups. I've shared my story at Memorial Hospital. They did a write-up on me. I've shared my story with the Gulf Coast Women's Magazine, with the Pink Hearts Fund over in Long Beach and now with the podcast with you.
Rebecca Byrd:You know that's sharing my story with people you know and my friends sharing my story when they find out. You know people come to me all the time and they're like, hey, I've got a friend that's going through this. You know, can you help me out with helping her out? Or you know whatever it is. And so for my community that's been a blessing that I've been able to share and share my story and be able to help others through it any way I can navigating, you know.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:So you are an advocate. Yeah, you are, yes, yes, yeah, absolutely, I mean you really are. You are yes, yes, yeah, absolutely, I mean you really are. So what message do you hope to share with others who might be going through a similar journey today?
Rebecca Byrd:You know, take it one day. It's such a weird cliche, sir. It's such a weird cliche, but take it day by day.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Rebecca Byrd:You know, just like what I was talking about, I had to look at today, what I was going through today. Okay, this is temporary. You know I'm going to do this to help me through this, or whatever it is, and then listen to your doctors.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Rebecca Byrd:Like. You have got to do what your doctors tell you to do. If you start having side effects, then tell them and they'll tweak it. But they have made this for you, for your cancer diagnosis, for whatever it is. They have made this for you. So do what they say and then tweak the outcomes if you have to. You know, listen to your doctors, be your own advocate, to do your research, not just.
Speaker 2:Google. Yeah, you know yeah, that's not the.
Rebecca Byrd:You know the National Cancer Society and see the different things that you know doctors have have posted on that on that website and and just just be your own advocate, you know.
Speaker 2:Speak up for yourself, yeah.
Rebecca Byrd:And find a good support system.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah, no, that's right. I mean, support systems are huge. Yes, your husband your prayer warriors, your friends your family, yeah, warriors, your friends, your family, yeah, and you know, for me, especially in my office, I love being an advocate for my patients and hopes that you know, always tell somebody if. If you need help other than you know, I'm just I'm a musculoskeletal doctor. If you need help outside of that, I can help you get there.
Speaker 2:Right.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Right, just being an advocate and a friend to others. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So, looking ahead, what are your hopes and dreams for the future? I know you have two awesome grandkids, yes. What else do you look forward to?
Rebecca Byrd:You know, I am living my life.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Rebecca Byrd:You know, when I first found out that there was no evidence of disease, I jumped out of an airplane.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Oh nice no evidence of disease. I jumped out of an airplane.
Rebecca Byrd:Oh nice, like doing things that I've always wanted to do but have just not done it for life. You know right, um, I joined ballet yes I'm 50, I just turned 57 and I just started ballet. You know, I always wanted to be ballet, I mean a ballerina, when I was, you know, growing up, but we didn't have the money for all that or all that stuff. And then life happened, you know, and so now I'm doing ballet.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:And now you're in the Nutcracker.
Rebecca Byrd:I'm going to be in the Nutcracker for.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Christmas.
Rebecca Byrd:Like you know, and so just you know, doing things that I've always wanted to do, not putting things off, yeah, things that I've always wanted to do, yeah, not putting things off. Yeah, you know, biggest lesson use the, use the, the, the nice perfume, wear the, the sparkly clothes. Don't save stuff for special occasions. Every day is a special occasion. That's exactly right.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:you know I love that you said that, because not a lot of people realize this. But for me, school and learning and having the ability to learn has been the greatest gift God has given me, because I can help other people and that's why I think there's a book called the One. If you read that book, it'll kind of help you explain what you're here for. The one thing you're here for, and mine, is to help others. You know that, aside all of having a family, three boys and a girl, a wife, extended family in Texas, and having to not having to wanting to make sure that they're doing well, make sure my patients are doing well, I'm back in medical school for orthopedic surgery. I know you got to keep living. You got to keep living. You don't put it off. Don't put it off.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Right, yeah, and my wife a nurse in school, you know. So it translates over to what you just said Wear the nice shoes.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Wear the beautiful perfume.
Rebecca Byrd:You yeah where the beautiful perfume you live every day to the fullest yeah, I love tomorrow's not promising it's not given right nobody's from. I mean, you know it may not be cancer that takes you out, but it could be, you know, a car wreck there, anything, right like you don't have to be sick to die that's right, so that is exactly right, so everybody should live every day.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Yeah.
Speaker 2:Live live.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:I like that you don't have to be sick to die. Yeah, so true, so true. So I noticed, um, you had some notes in your phone. I did. Did you want to say something to the listeners and any final thoughts you have that you'd like to share that we haven't covered?
Rebecca Byrd:You know, just I think we've covered just mostly everything. Sure, I just wanted to just encourage people that you know, you know your body more than anybody. So if you feel like something's wrong, like say something yeah you know, like, go get it checked out. It's better to to get it checked out and it'd be nothing than not getting checked out, and it'd be something yeah, that you could have prevented yeah you know, a lot of stuff is preventable.
Rebecca Byrd:Some stuff isn't Triple negative breast cancer is not preventable, but because I did go and get it checked out, I'm here today.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:That's right.
Rebecca Byrd:You know. So don't wait, don't put off, get your checkups.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Rebecca Byrd:Get your yearly checkups, get your mammograms, get you know, do it and fight for yourself because I know insurance companies have, you know, tried to cut back on mammograms and tried to come back on stuff when, when you know breast cancer is exploding right now, you know they say one in eight. I think it might be a little bit more than that I do too.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Disease is rampant it's, it's.
Rebecca Byrd:I hear so often now of people getting breast cancer so or any kind of cancer.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:Um, but just you know, doctors are, are here to help us yes yes, see your doctor yeah, let them be your advocate, let them let them help you.
Rebecca Byrd:Yes, absolutely.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:You know, I teach for memorial hospital. I'm on the sports medicine side of things and they always hear me telling my patients um the residency. They always hear me telling my patients you have to advocate for you. You know what your knee feels like. I don't know what it feels like, right? So when I'm doing this exam, when you let me know how that feels you, how do you feel going through the therapy you're going through? What does it look like? And we have a psychologist in my office and she's really good with head trauma and coaching patients through.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:I'm not going to pretend to know what's going on inside your head. I've had patients come to me and say, oh my God, doc, this is career ending. I will never get to where I want to go because I have and it could be something as as small as a knee sprain, but to them it's huge. You still have to be an advocate for them, right. So, moving forward, right, right. I'd like to thank you so much for coming on and for giving the value that that it deserves to patients who have either been through what you've been through or who are going through what you're going through, or who have not been through it and unfortunately awaited. Right Right, like you say, you don't know. You're on vacation for a weekend. Come back and bam hit you in the face. There it is Bam, there it is yeah. And bam itch you in the face and there it is Bam, there it is yeah. So how can our listeners connect with you or support breast cancer awareness?
Rebecca Byrd:What does that look like? Well, just know that some people do not want to celebrate October. Right, a lot of people that have gone through it, want to forget it?
Dr. Brandon Hardin:yeah, and that's okay.
Rebecca Byrd:Yep, that's okay. I'm not that type of personality yeah, of course yeah, I'm more of a. I mean I'm very flamboyant, but but I'm also. I like to bring awareness because I think that it helps others to know that it's okay to talk about it.
Rebecca Byrd:It's okay to um get checked out. You know it's okay to to ask questions. You know especially people that have friends or family members that are going through it. They don't know how to help. You know there's so many people that would ask me. You know what can I do to help, what can I do to help, and you know it's hard to know what to ask people to help you with.
Rebecca Byrd:Sure, especially amidst chaos help you with, sure, especially amidst chaos, especially in the middle of it, yeah, and so now I can see back and say, okay, well, you know, it really helped when y'all came and cleaned the house it really helped when y'all brought food because you know I'm not cooking, you know, um, so things like that, um, you know.
Rebecca Byrd:Those are the kind of things that I think October is good at bringing awareness, because it helps people to understand that it is okay to talk about it. It is okay, and if people want to get in touch with me, they can email me, they can call me or call you and get my information, I am an open book. I'll be glad to to talk to anybody or answer any questions or, you know, help in any way that I can you may be getting a thousand phone calls after this.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:She said that is fine. That is fine. Oh, you're such a beautiful person. You know that you really are, and I appreciate you from the bottom of my heart for coming on to the show and talking about something so difficult. But you, triumphantly, were raised above that and you're still here and you're still loving life, love life, yeah.
Rebecca Byrd:Loving God, loving people, absolutely Love God, love people.
Dr. Brandon Hardin:That's all we got to do. So in closing, guys, as I always say, life is a sport. It truly never ends. The journey truly never ends. So stick with us on the next podcast, please. We will have a politician, if we can use that word super loosely. She is a great friend of mine. Do not consider her a politician. Consider her more like we just talked about a confidant or an advocate for other people. She is Judge Jennifer Schlobel. She's a Chantry Court judge here in Harrison County who is running for Court of Appeals. So you definitely don't want to miss this one, guys. Stay tuned, and we hope to see you next time. This one, guys. Stay tuned and we hope to see you next time.