Fw: From Ilena to all our members

[Guest guest]

August 31, 2002

Dearest Friends,

As many of you know, at the end of May I disconnected from my computer and my new family and I set out on an adventure South of the Border. Today I wanted to say hello to you all ... it's my 8 year anniversary of becoming involved in this Cause.

This is the third extended trip in my life to Latin America ... and it's a blast being around Spanish and exploring and living in totally different cultures again. Watching their TV and reading their magazines ... and seeing how much of the "American Dream" permeates even the poorest of Nations ... is always an opening to discuss the topic of breast implants … everyone always has an opinion. And everyone is interested.

KKJ published a very informative piece awhile back about old implants being basically "dumped" on the Mexican doctors ... and how they slithered their way back to the States ...

Also, a woman named Vica Andrade is a well known model from Costa Rica living in Mexico ... she's a bit on the edge with her work ... yet she is the only Latina I have discovered who has spoken out about her implant problems and her name comes up all the time when people learn about our Cause. I'd love to meet others.

I'm very much working to get an article on the hazards of implants published in Spanish, and someone is setting me up for a tour of one of the Plastic Surgery Factories they have in several countries ... the very aggressive PS's advertise that women can get more done for less plus have a free vacation ... it's quite shocking how much PR and advertising goes on here.

I was pleased to read the topic discussed in the Spanish edition of Cosmopolitan from February. 2002 in their Cosmo Confessions was a piece entitled "drama de melones" [Melon Drama] ... o, 23 years ago, tells the tale of always being attracted to women with big busts, but was turned off when his slim, small breasted girlfriend, who he admired for her self confidence in her body, slipped away for a vacation and reappeared with implants. It was the demise of their previously good relationship.

We're going back on the road soon and I will again be away from computers again for the most part, so I wanted to make a few comments and congratulate and thank Kathi Pureheart and all the rest of you who are still working to keep the women connected and the information flowing. Everytime I check my email, there are new women asking to connect with others and filled with the same questions you have had ...

For those wanting more support ... I also recommend these groups:

The Saline Support group run by & Patty /

Lany's Prayer Group is a great sources of support and good information. Pam Young is doing an excellent job of raising awareness there of the dangers of Tram Flaps, too.

SBIPrayerForum/

I've just learned of a new group for women with implants and MS:

BreastImplants_MultipleSclerosis/

On the flip(ped out) side ... both my ilena@... and ilena2000@... emails have become totally highjacked ... in the last few weeks I've had hundreds and hundreds of emails sent in those names, some with viruses attached ... some signing me up to lists that clog my email accounts ... none of them from me.

They can't get into my mailboxes ... they just phoney up the return address to look like it came from me (and some of you, too.) Fun game for them. Confusion is the Devil's Tool.

If you receive something suspicious, please send it to me with the headers … we have quite a bit of evidence of the source of this email terrorism. Unfortunately, Kathi is now having the same done to her emails, so desperate are "they" to dis-unite and infect this wonderful support system.

I just got some great greetings from women in our group welcoming me back, saying they had heard from me and I was announcing a meeing and various other messages ... none originated from me however. I always got requests to rejoin my lists ... currently I can not do it via Hotmail and rented computers ... I recommend getting on Kathi's lists..

Also, right before I left, Mine Enemies learned that my good friend and former spouse, was named . According to what was posted on the newsgroup, and the scores of messages I got from you ... they used his name and to send out a message pretending it was from me ... while letting all the readers know I was in Costa Rica at the time. That too, was not from me, but it certainly gave them a field day to blast me publically on the newsgroup.

I heard this week from and Kathi about women needing help to fund their implant surgeries. Kathi was correct in sharing that the Humantics Foundation has funded 4 women's explants ... however unfortunately, after 9/11, no funds have been made available to do any more explants ... or even day to day operations.

Kathi mentioned critieria and the selection process ... the women we were able to help had these criteria ...

1) Their choice was to take out the implants and scar tissue completely ... and not re-implant. Some had reconstruction with their own tissue ... and some did not.

2) None of these four women had insurance or any other means to have them removed.

I know there are many women in need of this surgery, and I salute any and all of you who can find a way to help these oft forgotten women. I only wish we could have done more.

We have a new "regular" on the newsgroup right now ... Dave Angelotti from Dow is there "educating" his professional "viewpoint" about the separation between Papa and Baby Dow, he apparently forgetting that Papa Chemical is 50% owner of Baby Dow.

Rogene and some of other women have been working very hard to educate the web ...and other ... PS's who put out dishonest information about implant safety. Here's one website with a "survey" that you may wish to visit and leave your experiences.

http://implantforum.com/surlink.html

Another are the forums at:

http://implantinfo.com/ ...

One possible group project could be the gather web PS's addresses and have someone put together a very descriptive, fact filled letter ... publish it on the newsgroup and the other boards ... basically putting these Medical Deities on notice that they need to get honest with the women.

When I did the Basden TV show, Talk or Walk in January,

http://www.humanticsfoundation.com/media.htm

the PS on with me was telling me that silicone was "inert" and also let me know he did around 40 new implanted women a week ... multiple that conservatively by just $4,000 per and that brings around $8 MILLION dollars into his practice a year. It seems to have affected his judgement. That income didn't count for all his explants ... what a Money Machine he has set up.

From my experience with the Junk Science / Silicone Manufacturers / Plastic Surgeons' massive PR Campaign to "bring back silicone" and exonerate poor Dow and the other manufacturers ... to the depths of my soul I believe,

"If not now, then when?

If not us, then whom?"

If your life experiences around your implants do not make it into some sort of medium (newspapers, magazines, TV, the internet, etc.) ... the public and those women looking for true information will get nothing but bought & sold PR/ádvertising.

I believe that all the disruption and viruses (email and personalities) that plague our group ... from within and without ... are based on the above wanting to change history, remove as much of the damning evidence against them from the internet, and continue to have women turn against each other ... assuring the ever famous Divide & Conquer.

My opinion is:

DOW ... Doing Others Wrong ... wants their deservedly damaged image squeaky clean ... they don't want people to know that nary a penny has been paid a woman since they slithered into bankruptcy in mid 1995 ... they want to be known as the generous, caring corporation who have paid billions to women, not because they are guilty of anything wrong ... but in spite of the fact that implants are "safe" ... they care.

Here is some of the latest PR … does this really sound like a bankrupt corporation?

http://www.dowcorning.com/content/news/pr_q22002.asp http://www.dowcorning.com/content/announce/new_dow_corning.asp

I can't imagine a more difficult and complex issue than this one ... and one that touches so many so deeply. This issue truly encompasses EveryWoman ... there is no simple profile for women who choose implants for many, many reasons.

God bless you all ... please stay close together and keep loving and support each other ..

I apologize for not personally responding to most emails right now ... I do read them eventually and try to pass them on to someone who can help.

Love always,

Ilena

ilena2000@...

http://www.BreastImplantAwareness.org

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