This Week with UHPP

This week with Upper Hudson Planned Parenthood Women's Agenda In The NYS Budget   New York has a long and proud legacy of leading the way to advance women’s rights. From the birth of the women’s rights movement at Seneca Falls to the recent passage of the most comprehensive Paid Family Leave policy in the nation, New York continues to champion women’s rights and break down barriers to equality. In 2018, we have an opportunity to build on this progress and continue to advance equality across all areas of life. While the federal government seeks to roll back women’s rights, New York State looks toward the future. With these bold set of proposals, the 2018 Agenda will create opportunity for women to succeed in every area: work, health, safety, education and family life and you can learn more about each of them here. Call your elected officials in the NYS Senate and Assembly TODAY and urge them to include the Women's Agenda, including the Comprehensive Contraceptive Coverage Act, $750,000 legislative add for the Family Planning Grant, decriminalization of abortion, and the creation of a maternal mortality review board in the NYS Budget!   Find your NYS Assembly Member        Find your NYS Senate Member #TheFWord - April Book Club Meeting As you all know we try to focus on national themes with our book club selections and this month is no different. March is Women’s History Month, and to celebrate all the amazing women who have gone down in history as feminist icons, we have decided to read about a young woman who embodies just this. This month The F Word will be reading, I Am Malala: The Story of the Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban by Malala Yousafzai. We will be meeting at 3Fish Coffee on Sunday, April 8th at 11am to review this incredible novel and discuss ways we can support and uplift the women in our communities who make us all stronger. When the Taliban took control of the Swat Valley in Pakistan, one girl spoke out. Malala Yousafzai refused to be silenced and fought for her right to an education. On Tuesday, October 9, 2012, when she was fifteen, she almost paid the ultimate price. She was shot in the head at point-blank range while riding the bus home from school, and few expected her to survive. Instead, Malala's miraculous recovery has taken her on an extraordinary journey from a remote valley in northern Pakistan to the halls of the United Nations in New York. At sixteen, she has become a global symbol of peaceful protest and the youngest-ever Nobel Peace Prize laureate.     Sunday, April 8th at 11:00am 3Fish Coffee 466 Madison Ave, Albany, NY 12208 Volunteer Training Night Upper Hudson Planned Parenthood is looking for volunteers to get involved and to help us engage our community through outreach efforts and get out the vote opportunities this Spring! Are you interested in working side by side at community events across the capital region spreading Upper Hudson Planned Parenthoods mission? Are you ready to continue to fight for reproductive freedom and help educate our community on the importance of safer sex? Together, we can demostrate our power, engage our people and move our work of expanding access to sexual and reproductive healthcare and rights forward! As we head into the warmer months, we are looking for passionate, committed advocates who want to volunteer for community outreach initiatives including tabling at summer fairs, Healthy Neighborhood Canvassing and with our non-partisan our voter registration campaign! Join us at our next volunteer training night to learn more about available volunteer opportunities and start the training you will need to join us in the streets. Dinner will be served! Reserve your spot today!  Monday, April 16th 6-8pm Albany Conference Room 855 Central Avenue #Abortion Access Bowl-A-Thon 2018 Say NO to back alleys, and YES to bowling alleys! Join Upper Hudson Planned Parenthood at Del Lanes in Delmar on April 29th at 2pm to #FundAbortionBuildPower. We're lacing up our bowling shoes and getting to work! Want to show up for abortion access? Support us by making a donation to our team or join the squad! The process is fast, easy, and secure! Bowl with the UHPP staff, invest in abortion funds and raise money with us. Get more info on the UHPP team here! Send a message that you believe we all should be able to access abortion, no matter how much money we make or where we live. Care, no matter what!    Sunday, April 29th at 2:00pm Del Lanes in Delmar 4 Bethlehem Ct, Delmar, NY 12054 Copyright © 2018 Upper Hudson Planned Parenthood, All rights reserved.  Thank you for joining our list Our mailing address is: 855 Central Avenue Albany, NY 12206

Great Stuff Coming up for Upper Hudson Planned Parenthood

Coming up with Upper Hudson Planned Parenthood Galentines Day! Channel your inner Leslie Knope and come join us on Tuesday, February 13th at the Savoy Tap Room in Albany for a fabulous evening celebrating Upper Hudson Planned Parenthood! We'll have raffles, prizes, live music, food, and drink specials going throughout the evening. Tickets are $15.00 in advance, and $20.00 at the door. Each ticket comes with 3 raffle tickets - additional raffle tickets are $5.00. All proceeds benefit the Upper Hudson Planned Parenthood. Thank you to Assemblywoman Pat Fahy for emceeing, and Savoy Taproom for hosting. We can't wait to see you there Get your tickets HERE  Savoy Tap Room 201 Lark Street Albany, NY Tuesday, February 13, 2018 “The Vagina Monologues” Cafe 217 in Albany for the 11th year will host an evening of a three-course meal and a staged reading of Eve Ensler’s play “The Vagina Monologues.” Scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Feb. 18 through 20 at the cafe, located at 12½ Delaware Ave., the program costs $35 per person, plus tax and tip. The event is presented by ABB Event Productions, which since launching the performances has donated a portion of the proceeds, so far totaling $23,000, to Upper Hudson Planned Parenthood. Reservations are required; call 518-253-9821.  Cafe 217  121/2 Delaware Avenue,Albany, NY 12208 February 18 to 20   #CelebrationForChoice   For more than forty years, the U.S. Supreme Court has affirmed that under Roe v. Wade, the constitution protects every woman’s right to make her own personal medical decisions about abortion. The landmark Roe v. Wade Supreme Court case was decided on January 22nd and each year we hold our Celebration For Choice event around this time in commemoration. This event honors leaders in our community who work to promote reproductive justice and protect access to health care. Upper Hudson Planned Parenthood supporters, including local and state legislative leaders, clergy, health care and women’s health advocates will attend this annual celebration to commemorate the 45th anniversary.   We hope you will join us and our supporters at this remarkable occasion on Thursday, February 22nd 2018 from 6:00pm - 8:00pm GET YOUR TICKETS TODAY!    The Renaissance Albany Hotel 144 State Street Albany, NY 12207 “10 Inches for Planned Parenthood” Art Auction and Fundraiser Art auction and cocktail event to raise money for Upper Hudson Planned Parenthood. Music by the amazing Honey Slider! The event is being hosted by Albany Sister March Action Group and The Hollow Bar + Kitchen. For more information, visit the Facebook page HERE! If you are interested in submitting a 10 inch by 10 inch original artwork, please visit this FORM.     The Hollow Bar and Kitchen. Wednesday, February 28 6 PM - 9 PM #RegisterToday   Join Reproductive Health Advocates from Across New York State! Our reproductive health care and rights are under constant attack, but YOU can make a difference. Mark your calendar now to save the date for New York State’s Day of Action for reproductive health on Tuesday, March 13, 2018, at our state capital, Albany, NY. There is no charge for our state’s Day of Action which includes: Educating lawmakers on reproductive health care issues  Lunch  Planned Parenthood rally  Pre-event educational webinar  Don’t miss this – plan now to use YOUR VOICE in Albany on  Tuesday, March 13, 2018.  REGISTER HERE TODAY!

45 Years of Roe v Wade!

45th Anniversary of Roe v. Wade

#45thAnniversary of Roe v. Wade   Today is the 45th Anniversary of the landmark Supreme Court decision, Roe v. Wade, giving women across the country the right to access safe, legal abortion. This year, leading up to our annual Roe v. Wade Reception, Upper Hudson Planned Parenthood will be hosting a series of FREE film screenings on access to abortion and reproductive health care across the country.  Our first screening will be of Birthright: A War Story. Birthright is a feature length documentary that examines how women are being jailed, physically violated and even put at risk of dying as a radical movement tightens its grip across America. The film tells the story of women who have become collateral damage in the aggressive campaign to take control of reproductive health care and to allow states, courts and religious doctrine to govern whether, when and how women will bear children. This is the real-life “Handmaid’s Tale.” Our FREE SCREENING of Birthright will be held TONIGHT on the 45th Anniversary of Roe v. Wade, Monday, January 22nd at Albany Law College.   GET YOUR FREE TICKETS NOW!  The Dean Alexander Moot Court Room 4th floor at Albany Law 80 New Scotland Ave, Albany Film starts at 6:15pm, panel discussion to follow #CelebrationForChoice   For more than forty years, the U.S. Supreme Court has affirmed that under Roe v. Wade, the constitution protects every woman’s right to make her own personal medical decisions about abortion. The landmark Roe v. Wade Supreme Court case was decided on January 22nd and each year we hold our Celebration For Choice event around this time in commemoration. This event honors leaders in our community who work to promote reproductive justice and protect access to health care. Upper Hudson Planned Parenthood supporters, including local and state legislative leaders, clergy, health care and women’s health advocates will attend this annual celebration to commemorate the 45th anniversary.   We hope you will join us and our supporters at this remarkable occasion on Thursday, February 22nd 2018 from 6:00pm - 8:00pm GET YOUR TICKETS TODAY!    The Renaissance Albany Hotel 144 State Street Albany, NY 12207 #RegisterToday   Join Reproductive Health Advocates from Across New York State! Our reproductive health care and rights are under constant attack, but YOU can make a difference. Mark your calendar now to save the date for New York State’s Day of Action for reproductive health on Tuesday, March 13, 2018, at our state capital, Albany, NY. There is no charge for our state’s Day of Action which includes: Educating lawmakers on reproductive health care issues  Lunch  Planned Parenthood rally  Pre-event educational webinar  Don’t miss this – plan now to use YOUR VOICE in Albany on  Tuesday, March 13, 2018.  REGISTER HERE TODAY!

Photos from the 2018 Women's March in Albany

View more

Poor Body Image May Result in Infrequent Breast Self-Exams

US News Reports:

"Our findings suggest that greater breast size dissatisfaction is significantly associated with less frequent breast self-examination, lower confidence in detecting breast change and greater delay in seeing a doctor following breast change," Prof Viren Swami said. 

"Promoting greater breast size satisfaction may be a means of empowering women to incorporate breast self-examinations and breast awareness into their health practice. And promoting greater breast awareness may be a useful means of helping women view their breasts in more functional terms, rather than purely aesthetic terms," he said.

While these reports may be discouraging, they're not terribly surprising.  We already know that people who are overweight may have difficulties and fears about getting a checkup, and the visits can leave patients feeling even more unhappy with themselves if they've been told things they don't want to hear by their doctor.

However, it's particularly sad to me that one can be so disappointed by their own physical appearance that they don't even want to touch themselves to ensure their own health and safety. It's easy to preach that we need to take care of ourselves; that we only get one body and we need to cherish it, but I know that it's easier said than done. 

Be kind to yourself. Remember, one in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime; that's more than 266,000 new cases expected in 2018 alone.  Early detection is of vital importance. Here is some more information on breast self-exams from the National Breast Cancer Foundation.  Women need to perform them regularly not only for detection, but so that we can get to know the topography of our breasts so it's more apparent if something unusual appears. Personally, I have a card hanging in my shower to remind me, and I try to check at least once a week.  Don't forget!