Hugs from Heaven for Sister Warriors

In this episode, I have a wonderful conversation with Alexa who is a recent breast cancer warrior and thriver.  As part of her treatment, Alexa had a mastectomy, chemo, radiation, and a hysterectomy.  In addition to multiple laughs we share, we also dive deep into shared struggles in our fight to reclaim our feminine identity and define what it means to be a woman post breast cancer.  Alexa was so brave to share about herself and the details of her struggles.   We cover many topics including hiding under clothes, anxiety ridden sex, letting go and letting it be, breast cancer reconstruction options and important factors to consider, practices that help mirror beauty back to ourselves, being at home with new sense of self, the importance of labels we use to define us, practices and people that help us feel truly loved and celebrated, slowing down and breathing so choices are not made out of fear, liminal space and transformed lives, and the influence of culture and others on our sense of feminine identity before and after breast cancer.  We end our conversation with Alexa sharing a personal story about a dolphin experience near the end of her treatments which will inspire all of us to embrace the moments and look for the messages that are given to inspire and guide us on our journey to health and wholeness. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/a-helene-robinson/message

In this episode, I have a wonderful conversation with a fellow breast cancer Thriver, Jen. Jen is a stage four breast cancer Thriver, and if you really want to be inspired, you must listen to this episode! Even if you’re not a breast cancer Warrior or Thriver, I promise that you will become inspired listening to this episode! I start the episode by learning more about her as a human being and as a woman because it is so important that breast cancer doesn’t overshadow all the other wonderful aspects of our personal identity. At about 17 minutes into the podcast we start to discuss her journey through breast cancer. We talk about living in liminal space as a stage 4 Thriver, hope through struggle, beauty, shame, finding your voice, advocating for yourself, embarrassing moments, breast cancer and sex, emotional growth, spiritual growth, freedom, and savoring life. There are so many great questions we discuss! Here a just a few. What helps you feel worthy of love and celebration? How did you learn to re-open your heart to allow for romantic love and connection? How have people’s expectations of you shaped your feminine identity and perceptions of beauty throughout your life? What are practices that help you mirror your beauty back to yourself so that you can be both flawed and fully loved and liked? How has your breast cancer journey helped you to shed the boxes we put ourselves in? How has it helped you to see yourself more clearly and to love yourself more? How did you learn to let go of your old ideals of beauty and welcome in your new beautiful self? How has breast cancer impacted your relationship romantically and with your friends? What freedoms have you gained through breast cancer and how has it helped you to savor life? --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/a-helene-robinson/message

In this episode I talk with a colleague of mine who is an expert on resilience, Dr. Tom Becker. We discuss his recent research with veterans, Effects of Resiliency on Perceptions of Adversity, Health, and Health-Related Goals, and how it can apply for breast cancer sister warriors and thrivers. In their study, they explain how the ability to adapt to adversity is a requirement of human survival and well-being. An example is the environment of warriors: separation from family and friends, resocialization away from principles such as the sanctity of life, and the ordeals of battle. In their study, they propose that resiliency influences physical health through perceptions of past adversity, and indirectly affects the commitment to future health goals. Their hypotheses were supported and, in fact, resiliency played a larger role in veterans’ post-military adjustment than they anticipated. We also discuss some of our personal experiences with the arts and explore the relationship to our own resiliency. Some of the topics discussed in this episode include the important of language and labels on resiliency; holding both grief and gratitude; importance of perspective on developing resiliency; trust, cooperation, risk, resiliency; the role of the arts in resiliency; engaging in the creative design process and personal empowerment; and important considerations to remember when one attempts to measure resiliency. Dr. Tom Becker is a well-loved and highly cited professor of management in the Muma College of Business at the University of South Florida Sarasota Manatee campus. With degrees in industrial and organizational psychology, he has conducted many studies examining resilience and his research has been cited more than 11.000 times. He has also received many teaching and research excellence awards. He has worked with prominent organizations to improve individual and organizational effectiveness, including Blue Cross Blue Shield, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, McDonald’s, Newport News Shipbuilding, Procter & Gamble, the US Army, and other healthcare, manufacturing and service organizations. He is also a fellow of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology and the Association for Psychological Science. For more information on his research you can find him at https://www.sarasotamanatee.usf.edu/academics/faculty-listing/dr-thomas-becker.aspx Please join me on July 24th for my first live virtual retreat for breast cancer warriors and thrivers. The Sister Warrior Art Project (SWAP). We will engage our minds, hearts, and bodies through creative movement, journaling, and small group sharing. You can see a flyer on my personal Facebook page (Helene Robinson) or on my Instagram at hugsfromheaven4. It is free but limited to 30 participants so please email my assistant for more information and to register: madisynmmitchell1@gmail.com. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/a-helene-robinson/message

This episode is dedicated to all the sister warriors we have lost to triple negative breast cancer. Since triple negative breast cancer is such an aggressive breast cancer, it is crucial that we share lessons learned to pay it forward for others. In this episode, I share my top two lessons learned from my journey to help detect aggressive triple negative breast cancer earlier and make more informed treatment decisions. I also discuss the importance of developing critical thinking, creating our own beauty, and connecting with Breast Cancer Prevention Partners and with the Breast Cancer Action Network for information and advocacy efforts in the prevention of Breast Cancer. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/a-helene-robinson/message

In this episode, I am honored to have a conversation with Dr. Russell Jaffe. Dr. Jaffe’s practical contributions to clinical medicine and to healthcare policy focus on functional, predictive tests and procedures designed to improve the precision of both diagnosis and of treatment outcomes; he has authored nearly 100 articles on the subject. Honored as an International Scientist of 2003 by the IBC, Oxford, England, UK for his lifetime contributions to clinical medicine, biochemistry, immunology, methodology, and integrative health policy, Dr. Jaffe is appreciative of the recognition of his peers. He has served on the American Board of Clinical Metal Toxicology and coordinated its certification training program. America’s Top Physicians 2005, Who’s Who in America; Who’s Who in Medicine and Science; Who’s Who in Business and Engineering all have included him in recognition of his contributions to science and community. Dr. Jaffe is the recipient of the Merck, Sharp & Dohm Excellence in Research Award, the J.D. Lane Award, and the U.S.P.H.S. Meritorious Service Award. He teaches and lectures widely on nutritional immunology and treatment guidelines for chronic autoimmune and immune dysfunction syndromes and has helped elucidate the causes and consequences of immune defense and repair functions in health and disease. He is also founder and chairman of ELISA/ACT Biotechnologies, and MAGique BioTherapeutics. We discuss the silicone hypersensitivity cell culture delayed allergy test that he developed and the immune system “black box“ of inflammation and autoimmunity to accurately detect why the immune system is not working.  We also discuss why many clinicians are unaware of the newer tests, the financial and quality of life consequences of not identifying the cause of chronic inflammation and autoimmunity, solutions to improve our medical system, and resources to help guide you in what you should eat, think, and do based on 4 self-assessments, 8 predictive biomarkers, including the delayed hypersensitivity tests.   Resources:  elisa/act.com, perque.com, betterlabtestsnow.com, healthstudiescollegium.org --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/a-helene-robinson/message