Amanda Lael

[00:00:00] Hey folks, Dr. J here of Unifour Life and Retirement, and today's special guest that I have

[00:00:13] with me is Amanda Lail. Amanda is from Hickory, Amanda, so correct? Actually I'm from

[00:00:19] Mary in North Carolina. Mary, Mary, Hickory Native now, been Hickory for how many years?

[00:00:24] 26 years. 26, you were officially Hickory and that's correct. I've got Amanda here today because

[00:00:30] she has a special story to share with us in Lou, an honor of breast cancer awareness month.

[00:00:38] Amanda is a breast cancer survivor. Thank God, praise the Lord. She has a good story to talk to us

[00:00:44] about, and she works for Center Whale Home Health. I think she is a director, area director.

[00:00:51] Director of sales. Hey director of sales, so she's going to tell us a little bit about Center

[00:00:56] Whale Home Health and then we're going to talk about her story. Yeah, so Center Whale is a skilled

[00:01:01] home health company. We're here locally but we're actually national, so we cover the whole United

[00:01:07] States where the largest home health in the country. It's really geared towards seniors, keeping

[00:01:12] seniors safe in their home, keeping them more active. If they have chronic diseases, we can teach them

[00:01:18] self-management techniques to really just help them heal better in their home setting.

[00:01:23] I've been with them 20 years, I was a sales rep. I started out in the field and now I managed my

[00:01:28] team here in Hickory and in the Ardell County, Oregon. You deal with a lot of people and you probably

[00:01:32] see a lot of things on a weekly basis. I do. It's good. Glad to have you part of the podcast, Amanda.

[00:01:38] So Amanda, breast cancer. This is something that I think we were talking, you were diagnosed with it

[00:01:45] when you were. I was right, just turned 40. Just turned 40? Yeah. Tell us about, tell us your story.

[00:01:53] Amanda, it's a good story, I've heard. Yeah, so I was, I've always been very active. I was a

[00:01:59] college athlete. I played basketball in college. So I've worked out my entire life, very healthy,

[00:02:05] ate very well. You know, had a good job of course. Very passionate about my faith. Never thought

[00:02:14] this would happen. But it did and it was a very big surprise. But you know, when I was diagnosed

[00:02:24] at an early age, I decided to be very aggressive, had a double mastectomy, went through treatment

[00:02:31] and now I'm eight years out. March was my eight year cancerversiary is what I call it. Is that

[00:02:37] cancer? That's good for you outstanding. Yeah. When you had that, Amanda, was it something? Was it a

[00:02:43] shock to you? Did you feel like, you know what, it's like you've ate right. You've exercised. I mean,

[00:02:48] how could this happen? Yeah, it was a really big shock. It was kind of one of those things that

[00:02:53] very on the go job, very stressful sales as you know is can be stressful.

[00:03:01] Didn't really have any symptoms or anything that was causing me to think anything was wrong.

[00:03:06] It was actually just a change in one of my breasts that my three year old daughter noticed. Really?

[00:03:11] Thank God for getting it wrong. Yeah, she's the one that noticed it and so I'm big on

[00:03:20] breast exam, self-awareness, body awareness, you know, yearly mammograms. There's so much

[00:03:27] preventative things that they can do now with breast cancer and it's so important for women to

[00:03:33] always do their self checks, do their yearly mammograms insurance pace for it and really just make

[00:03:39] sure they know their body. When you think of Amanda, it's a good time for women to start those

[00:03:44] examinations. Is something you do later in life? No, I mean, it's something that they, you know,

[00:03:49] as long as you go to when you go to the physician, as long as you're, you know, I would probably say

[00:03:54] develop breasts, you need to be doing those breast self exams. I know I've already taught my

[00:03:58] daughter how to do those. But it is something that the doctors teach you but, you know, mine was not

[00:04:05] visible, no one ever saw my tumor. My blood work was fine. Nothing ever showed that I had cancer

[00:04:12] in my body. So it's the of course the mammogram did but you know, those are things that I would

[00:04:20] always suggest women doing is making sure they do their yearly mammograms. Don't skip a year

[00:04:27] because it can happen really quick. So you had your physical examinations done and it was your

[00:04:31] daughter to notice that. So hey mom, that doesn't look right and that's what Siddler, let me get it

[00:04:37] checked out. Right. And that's what happened. That's what happened. Well, that's good for you.

[00:04:41] It's a good story to tell these days though. It really is good because you just never know.

[00:04:46] When you hear things like cancer, we'll take, or even breast cancer for example, a lot of people

[00:04:50] are going to associate it with well, it's going to happen to somebody that I mean, tobacco use

[00:04:57] right. You've heard it for years, smoking causes cancer and it does have links to it.

[00:05:03] Unhealthy lifestyles but you an athlete, you play basketball, you ate rod, you probably ate a lot

[00:05:09] of grass, salads and things of that nature. Doing preventive measures and it's just one of those

[00:05:13] things that can rear its ugly head. Yeah. It ain't gonna get me time. Right. And I think I think it's

[00:05:18] a lot about what you know, pollutants, chemicals, things that are in that we are faced with now

[00:05:24] in the environment that we live in. I'm very, I'm very in tune with like holistic measures,

[00:05:30] eating clean, eating healthy, organic non-GMO is so my, I know my family eats that just for that

[00:05:38] reason because there was really nothing that led to my story about having breast cancer. It's not

[00:05:44] a family, it wasn't genetic, there was no family history. It was just just happened to me. So

[00:05:50] what other percentages? I haven't looked at it recently Amanda. How many women out of two out of five?

[00:05:56] Yeah, I think it is like two out of seven maybe. But I don't know that so do not quote me on

[00:06:04] that preserve it too. But I used to do a lot more community outreach and I still do a lot of support

[00:06:09] for women. I know I just had two ladies call me this week that I've just became a resource for

[00:06:15] women that want to know what to expect if they're going to get a lump back to me or a mastectomy

[00:06:21] or what to expect from radiation. So I do try to do a lot of outreach in the community and I have

[00:06:26] a support group that I do through my church that we meet once a month kind of fizzled out a little

[00:06:31] bit over COVID and we're just trying to kick that back off but you would not believe the women

[00:06:37] I talk to every day that has been touched with breast cancer. It's a big deal and you know there's

[00:06:46] there's a lot of resources in this community. We have a great medical community here that has a

[00:06:50] lot of resources but I haven't really found a lot of faith-based resources so my support group

[00:06:55] that I do is faith-based we do a devotion, we do prayer time, we do things together to really

[00:07:00] support each other from a from a biblical standpoint as well. I like that that's good. Amanda

[00:07:05] what would you say to the women out there? People in general that are probably thinking that

[00:07:11] you know it's a good story. We glad a man is a survivor but it may or may not happen to me. It'll

[00:07:18] probably happen to the person next door. What would you say to those folks out there to

[00:07:23] soliciting to this podcast today? What kind of advice could you give them? Yeah I mean I think

[00:07:27] I think anything can happen in this day and time definitely never thought cancer would happen

[00:07:34] to me like I mentioned before. It hit us hard but I mean it's something that I think we all need

[00:07:42] to be prepared for with our futures is putting things in place that could help us if that did happen

[00:07:49] because at any given day cancer touches different kinds of cancer not just breast cancer.

[00:07:54] There's so many different types of cancer out there that are going to touch people's lives and

[00:07:58] and hit you when you least expect it. Right exactly. You know I love hearing stories

[00:08:06] people that have survived from it because it's it when you hear that word I mean let's face it it's not

[00:08:10] the sniffles it's not the flu it's something it's just it's not good to hear. Right.

[00:08:15] And the next thing I'll bring up is well what would somebody say if there was something out there

[00:08:20] that they could have in place that could be used as a shock absorber not a cure but something

[00:08:28] that can be used as a safety net of shock absorber because let's face it if you have cancer the breast

[00:08:34] cancer or any kind of cancer in general it just kind of brings you down. It's going to take a toll

[00:08:40] on you right. The last thing you're thinking about is I got to go to work the next day. You

[00:08:45] are thinking about how you're going to continue making your bills and making your payments and

[00:08:48] think that nature with trans-America we've had something for years now it's called the living

[00:08:54] benefits. I'm a real passionate about it because I just think I'm I know I mean I think it's the

[00:08:58] greatest thing since last bread when you mention life insurance a lot of people they think life

[00:09:03] insurance is good for one thing and you're not talking about this earlier it's only good if you pass

[00:09:06] right but with trans-America if someone has ever diagnosed with illnesses such as cancer cancer a big

[00:09:15] based on how severe that case is they could withdraw up to 90% of their coverage amount and in my

[00:09:20] opinion I think that's huge. I think it's better than a goose egg any day of the week. What are your

[00:09:25] thoughts about that amended with the women out there that have been going through cancer or let's

[00:09:30] just face it breast cancer is probably not done there's probably I don't know how many women between

[00:09:35] now and probably the end of the year that'll get diagnosed with breast cancer what are your thoughts

[00:09:41] about having something like that in place do you think it'd be beneficial if folks had something

[00:09:45] like that that could use against bills and things of that nature have money coming in for them instead

[00:09:51] of nothing. Yeah so yeah I think that's well you educated me before we even started this I didn't

[00:09:57] realize that those benefits you know we have life insurance but I didn't know that those benefits

[00:10:01] that you mentioned were were even out there but absolutely you know every year it's funny you say

[00:10:07] that when I would sign up for my benefits for my company very good insurance with our company

[00:10:13] always bypass the cancer policy. I said I don't need that I don't need to add that extra you know

[00:10:19] amount per my check that was going to be taken out for that I'm not gonna get cancer but now I can't

[00:10:25] sign up for it you know because I've had that diagnosis so yeah absolutely I encouraged people

[00:10:31] that I talked to and on for as a support to always if you have that option through your company

[00:10:38] to make sure you sign up for for a cancer policy but just like you're mentioning this is an extra level

[00:10:44] of security. I was very fortunate that I had an extra you know plan that for short term

[00:10:50] disability where I was able to stay out six months my kids were three and five years old

[00:10:55] and so I was able to stay out with them and really just heal and get better. So absolutely what

[00:11:02] your product is is is probably something that a lot of people don't know about. Right how do you

[00:11:09] affect your family, your husband when they found out they use how were they just gather around you

[00:11:14] to support Bruce Buck and imagine that. Yeah so I have a wonderful family on both sides my family

[00:11:20] and his family so yeah it was great I mean just a great support my husband was wonderful through it

[00:11:26] and my kids have grown through it. Yeah it's it's a touching thing right I mean it makes us

[00:11:33] it makes us real and it makes it makes us not- And our setup wasn't gonna cry. No no no no

[00:11:38] it's you know that's what makes this thing real you know this is not it's not rehearsed we don't

[00:11:43] come in it we haven't rehearsed anything. No no no. It's a real thing real people your somebody

[00:11:48] and the reason I got you are is because you're you're right here in Hickory North Carolina. You're

[00:11:52] not somebody I'll brought in from the West Coast a movie star actress you could be an actress or

[00:11:57] but thank you Jay. You're welcome you're welcome but it's somebody that I want my viewers out there

[00:12:03] all my patients from Uniforl life retirement see what we have here's real things that happened

[00:12:08] to us are real yeah and the thing about there's so many folks out there Amanda they don't even

[00:12:13] they don't have anything like what you've had for more as far as insure they'll bypass some of these

[00:12:17] things because a lot of us feel like it's not gonna happen. It's not gonna happen you know cancer is

[00:12:21] a real thing I hear about it you and I are roughly the same age Amanda and I've said this in my

[00:12:26] previous podcast and I'll say it again because I think it holds true back in the 80s when you and I

[00:12:31] were younger than we were now if somebody was diagnosed with cancer if somebody had a heart attack

[00:12:39] or had a stroke or all these other illnesses we've talked about before it was somebody that was

[00:12:44] normally old and they passed from it they didn't survive from it now it's people in our age group

[00:12:51] Amanda and even younger that are getting hit with cancer and they're not prepared for it. It has

[00:13:00] heart attacks, has strokes and they have nothing at all in place to take care of them and I've just

[00:13:08] been I've been with Trans-America for eight years the living benefits that I have I think are

[00:13:12] I know or second and none I know that because I know what my competition has versus what I've got

[00:13:18] it makes me feel good we've got something to say you know what folks you can be living and still

[00:13:23] benefit from your off insurance I just think it's something second and none and it's like you said

[00:13:28] earlier we can't discount and think that it's never gonna happen to me. I'll wait you know

[00:13:34] off insurance is important Jay I think I'll wait maybe a couple of years now before I speak to you

[00:13:39] well waiting you can do that right but the longer you wait we put ourselves in that Pandora's box

[00:13:49] a risk of not knowing what could transpire so that's why I'm just adamant about the product I'm

[00:13:55] adamant about the company and I'm adamant about getting people like yourself on the podcasts

[00:14:01] they can tell a good story people that are here people that can folks can lock arms with and say

[00:14:06] you know what Amanda Lail she's somebody I know she went through this and she's a survivor it

[00:14:13] can happen to anybody in its stories like yours Amanda that I feel like can help the people out

[00:14:17] of the listing of the podcast today to be better equipped for the future yep exactly well thank

[00:14:24] you for having me Amanda I appreciate it so much your story has been very enlightening viewers

[00:14:30] Amanda Lail, Senator Wilhelm Hale right here in Hickory North Carolina great story and honor of

[00:14:37] breast cancer awareness month for October here in 2023 Amanda thank you so much for taking the

[00:14:44] time to let us send a year off about what happened with your breast breast cancer thank you for

[00:14:49] being a participant here today and folks I am Dr. Jay Moore with Unifor Alive and Retirement

[00:14:55] thanking you for listening to my podcast again today reminding you that if you do have life

[00:15:00] insurance would be great for me to show you what I've got in comparison let's you be to decide

[00:15:05] in fact if you think it's a better benefit for you literally half my business comes with people

[00:15:09] like you who do have life insurance and folks if you don't have life insurance it's never too early

[00:15:13] the contact me today check me on on on my website at Unifor Alive.com I'm Dr. Jay Moore thanking

[00:15:19] you for being a part of my podcast. God bless