Understanding Grief and Loss with Metastatic Breast Cancer

Founder and Executive Director of HealWell, Cal Cates joins to discuss the many forms of grief and loss experienced in metastatic breast cancer. This session will explore the emotional, physical, and life changes that can accompany a diagnosis, offering understanding, validation, and tools for navigating this complex journey.

Resources:

• CancerCare – Free counseling, support groups
• The Dinner Party – Peer community for anyone experiencing loss, including health-related grief
• Cancer Support Community – Support groups, educational programs
• Patient Advocate Foundation – Help with insurance, medical debt, treatment access
• HealthWell Foundation – Financial assistance for medications and treatment costs
• Archangels – The Care Badge initiative reframes caregivers’ act of caregiving as an invaluable asset for potential employers
• Breasties – community for survivors, previvors, stage 4 thrivers, and caregivers impacted by breast and gynecologic cancers

Books:

• “Everything Happens for a Reason (And Other Lies I’ve Loved)” by Kate Bowler
• “Bittersweet: How Sorrow and Longing Make Us Whole” by Susan Cain
• “After the Ecstasy, the Laundry: How the Heart Grows Wise on the Spiritual Path” by Jack Kornfield