When Mommy Had a Mastectomy

I bought this book to help my six year old understand my upcoming surgery and recovery. We read it together and you could see the relief in his eyes as he was able to process what was to come in an easy to understand way. It helped him understand mommy's limitations and gave him the understanding that this was not permanent, but a temporary hiccup. As we read it, there was not a dry eye in our family, but the tears felt almost cathartic as we all cried in fear... and in love. While I wish no one would EVER have to buy this book again (#findacure) this book was invaluable for our family.

I was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 35 and I had two boys - ages 3 and 5 at the time. I had a bilateral mastectomy and it was quite traumatic for our family. this was a great & informative book that delicately explains the situation of surgery when a mom's breast are removed. it is a great way to share with a child that even though there are a lot of changes in mom - her love for them will never change. I highly recommend for the mom who is facing this surgery and needs to explain to a little one. cancer is scary for little people just like for big people.

We were reading this books to our little girls, and it helped explaining the process. It’s a little hard to read it because it’s straight forward and maybe could be little softer on the words, but I guess there are no other ways to just say what it is.

This book could have been about almost any surgery I needed one that would address the actualmastectomy The scarring , the breast is gone ! What do you tell a 4 yr old so she won’t be afraid of you or for her self ? Because of my surgeryI didn’t return it in time A real bummer not helpful

This book is okay. At 30, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. I bought this book to help explain to my 2.5 year old about my upcoming mastectomy and chemotherapy. The book does a great job explaining what will happen before, during, and after a mastectomy. (Mommy will go to the hospital, can't play, need to rest a lot, be sad, etc. Daughter can help by playing quietly, drawing Mommy pictures, bringing Mommy drinks, etc.) However, the language was just a little too advanced for my toddler/preschooler. I needed something slightly more simple. I also was not a huge fan of the part about being scared or catching cancer from Mommy. I am sure older children need that reassurance, but I am also sure that at almost 3, those thoughts about catching cancer or being scared of Mommy dying have never crossed her mind. So I didn't want to bring those parts up. I really just wanted to explain what was happening. I returned this and bought "Mom and the Polka Dot Boo Boo".I also purchased from "Your Online Bookstore". Terrible experience. Book was described as like new, but had bumped corners, minor scratches on the cover, and a couple of marks on the pages from dirt. More like "good or very good" condition but definitely not like new. The biggest annoyance was that the book has a price sticker on the back from a Goodwill store listing it at a fourth the cost I paid. Why did I just pay way more than that if the guy who got the great deal at Goodwill couldn't even be bothered to take the sticker off? Beware of purchasing from them.

Gives simple explanation without being macabre or too heavy. Very helpful with my 7 & 8 year old sons.

I bought this book before my mastectomy. My daughter was 3 1/2 so she had limited understanding about what I was to under go. The book allowed us to talk about Mommy's surgery and recovery. I did skip part of the book about the little girl being afraid about cancer and death. My daughter wasn't old enough. It would be good though for an older child. Over all an excellent book.

Helped my 2 year old and 6 year old understand what was happening to their mommy. I recommend this to any woman who has young kids and fighting the fight.

this was a really useful book as it helped explain what happens when I had to go through having a mastectomy