Better Than Before Breast Cancer with The Breast Cancer Recovery Coach

What if you didn't have to wait for something to go wrong to grow?
In this episode, I'm sharing why so many women stop reaching for support once life starts to feel stable and how that pattern quietly keeps you stuck. We talk about the difference between the discomfort of crisis and the discomfort of growth, and why choosing growth creates a completely different life experience.
I also walk through the connection between your emotional state and your physical health, including how stress, joy, and connection influence inflammation and immune function.
This is about continuing to show up for yourself, not because something is broken, but because you want more out of your life.
 


Resources Mentioned:
Work with Laura:
https://www.thebreastcancerrecoverycoach.com/health 
Download the app:
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/breast-cancer-recovery-coach/id6720763813

 


Let's Connect!
If this episode helped you breathe a little easier, please share it with a friend or leave a review. Every share helps spread this message of hope, healing, and whole-person wellness.
💌 Join my email list for weekly wellness tips & podcast updates → The Breast Cancer Recovery Coach
💌 Join the Better Than Before Breast Cancer Life Coaching Membership → Life Coaching
💌 Join the Living Well After Breast Cancer Community → The Living Well After Breast Cancer Community
👩‍💻 Follow me on Instagram for daily inspiration → @thebreastcancerrecoverycoach
👩‍💻 Follow me on Facebook → The Breast Cancer Recovery Coach
🎙 Subscribe & leave a review on Apple Podcasts → Better Than Before Breast Cancer with The Breast Cancer Recovery Coach
🎥 Watch on YouTube → @BetterThanBeforeBreastCancer

Emotional pain is not just in your head. It is happening in your body.
In this episode of the Nutrition After Breast Cancer: Just the Facts series, we look at the connection between emotional and physical pain through both lived experience and research.
When you feel exhausted, overwhelmed, or stuck in a loop of thoughts, there is a biological reason for it. Your nervous system is responding exactly the way it was designed to.
But understanding that changes everything.
You will walk away with a clearer picture of:
Why pain can feel overwhelming and never-ending
How your brain processes emotional experiences
Why avoidance can quietly shrink your life
What it looks like to actually move through pain in a healthy way
This is a grounded, honest conversation about what it means to live in a body that has been through something hard and how to care for it moving forward.

 

Resources Mentioned:
Work with Laura:
https://www.thebreastcancerrecoverycoach.com/health 
Download the app:
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/breast-cancer-recovery-coach/id6720763813

 
 
 


REFERENCES
Roerink, M.E., van der Schaaf, M.E., et al. (2015). Fatigue in chronic inflammation — a link to pain pathways. Arthritis Research & Therapy, 17(1), 294.
Research on central sensitization in chronic pain conditions.
On memory, the amygdala, and emotional pain reactivation:
Hanson, R. Research on negativity bias and memory encoding.
LeDoux, J.E. Research on the amygdala, fear memory, and emotional reactivation.
Research on the autobiographical memory system and the persistence of pain (neurocognitive framework for chronic pain).
On naming emotion and nervous system regulation:
Lieberman, M.D., Eisenberger, N.I., Crockett, M.J., Tom, S.M., Pfeifer, J.H., & Way, B.M. (2007). Putting feelings into words: Affect labeling disrupts amygdala activity in response to affective stimuli. Psychological Science, 18(5), 421–428.
On self-compassion and physiological regulation:
Neff, K.D. Research on self-compassion, cortisol, and heart rate variability.
On psychological and emotional stress as inflammatory drivers:
Alschuler, L. Cancer Therapies teachings, Metabolic Terrain Institute of Health.
 


Let's Connect!
If this episode helped you breathe a little easier, please share it with a friend or leave a review. Every share helps spread this message of hope, healing, and whole-person wellness.
💌 Join my email list for weekly wellness tips & podcast updates → The Breast Cancer Recovery Coach
💌 Join the Better Than Before Breast Cancer Life Coaching Membership → Life Coaching
💌 Join the Living Well After Breast Cancer Community → The Living Well After Breast Cancer Community
👩‍💻 Follow me on Instagram for daily inspiration → @thebreastcancerrecoverycoach
👩‍💻 Follow me on Facebook → The Breast Cancer Recovery Coach
🎙 Subscribe & leave a review on Apple Podcasts → Better Than Before Breast Cancer with The Breast Cancer Recovery Coach
🎥 Watch on YouTube → @BetterThanBeforeBreastCancer

Cheri lives in Duluth, Minnesota with her adventure partner, Brent, along the stunning shores of Lake Superior. A two-time breast cancer thriver—first diagnosed with Invasive Ductal Carcinoma Stage IIIA in 2019 at 39 years old, and again with Metastatic Breast Cancer in 2021 at 41—Cheri continues to live life with strength, joy, and purpose.
She leads an active, outdoor-centered lifestyle and seeks inspiration in nature, camping, fishing, hiking, and traveling. Cheri finds peace in collecting rocks, capturing her surroundings through photography, and nurturing deep connections with her family and friends.
With over seventeen years of experience in the outdoor and fashion industries in leadership roles, Cheri blends her professional expertise with a B.A. in English and an M.A. in Communicating Arts to share her story through the power of writing. Cheri is a published author whose work has appeared in Wildfire Journal, the only literary magazine created for and by those "too young" for breast cancer and the Boundary Waters Journal, a nationwide wilderness canoe country magazine. Cheri is also trained as a 2026 Hear My Voice Breast Cancer Advocate with Living Beyond Breast Cancer, a national nonprofit organization providing trusted information and a community of support to those newly diagnosed, in treatment, post-treatment, and living with metastatic disease. Cheri looks to alchemize her experience into advocacy and chooses to live intentionally every day to honor her health and healing.
 

Resources Mentioned:
Work with Laura:
https://www.thebreastcancerrecoverycoach.com/health 
Get The Breast Cancer Recovery Coach app:
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/breast-cancer-recovery-coach/id6720763813
Learn about the Becoming You 2.0 coaching program
https://www.thebreastcancerrecoverycoach.com/you
Follow Cheri:
https://www.instagram.com/chender1/
Episode #420
https://www.thebreastcancerrecoverycoach.com/420
Wildfire Magazine
https://www.wildfirecommunity.org/
Boundary Waters journal
https://www.boundarywatersjournal.com/

 

Let's Connect!
If this episode helped you breathe a little easier, please share it with a friend or leave a review. Every share helps spread this message of hope, healing, and whole-person wellness.
💌 Join my email list for weekly wellness tips & podcast updates → The Breast Cancer Recovery Coach
💌 Join the Better Than Before Breast Cancer Life Coaching Membership → Life Coaching
💌 Join the Living Well After Breast Cancer Community → The Living Well After Breast Cancer Community
👩‍💻 Follow me on Instagram for daily inspiration → @thebreastcancerrecoverycoach
👩‍💻 Follow me on Facebook → The Breast Cancer Recovery Coach
🎙 Subscribe & leave a review on Apple Podcasts → Better Than Before Breast Cancer with The Breast Cancer Recovery Coach
🎥 Watch on YouTube → @BetterThanBeforeBreastCancer

What if your thoughts were creating physical changes in your body?
In this episode, we are looking at the science behind mindset and how your brain, your expectations, and your thought patterns influence your health in very real ways.
From negativity bias to the nocebo and placebo effects, I break down the research that shows how your mind impacts stress, symptoms, and healing.
You will learn why fear-based thinking feels automatic, how it affects your body, and how to start shifting your thoughts in a way that actually works.
This is not about positive thinking. It is about understanding how your brain works and learning how to guide it.
 

Resources Mentioned:
Work with Laura:
https://www.thebreastcancerrecoverycoach.com/health 
Download the app:
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/breast-cancer-recovery-coach/id6720763813

 
 
 


REFERENCES
Baumeister, R.F., Bratslavsky, E., Finkenauer, C., & Vohs, K.D. (2001). Bad is stronger than good. Review of General Psychology, 5(4), 323-370. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1037/1089-2680.5.4.323 
Rozin, P., & Royzman, E.B. (2001). Negativity bias, negativity dominance, and contagion. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 5(4), 296-320. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1207/S15327957PSPR0504_2 
Beecher, H.K. (1955). The powerful placebo. Journal of the American Medical Association, 159(17), 1602-1606. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/303530 
de la Fuente-Fernández, R., Ruth, T.J., Sossi, V., Schulzer, M., Calne, D.B., & Stoessl, A.J. (2001). Expectation and dopamine release: Mechanism of the placebo effect in Parkinson's disease. Science, 293(5532), 1164-1166. https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.1060937 
Kaptchuk, T.J., Friedlander, E., Kelley, J.M., et al. (2010). Placebos without deception: A randomized controlled trial in irritable bowel syndrome. PLOS ONE, 5(12), e15591. https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0015591 
Benedetti, F., Amanzio, M., Vighetti, S., & Asteggiano, G. (2006). The biochemical and neuroendocrine bases of the hyperalgesic nocebo effect. Journal of Neuroscience, 26(46), 12014-12022. https://www.jneurosci.org/content/26/46/12014
Haas, J.W., Bender, F.L., Ballou, S., Kelley, J.M., Wilhelm, M., Miller, F.G., Rief, W., & Kaptchuk, T.J. (2022). Frequency of adverse events in the placebo arms of COVID-19 vaccine trials: A systematic review and meta-analysis. JAMA Network Open, 5(1), e2143955. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2788172
 
 


Let's Connect!
If this episode helped you breathe a little easier, please share it with a friend or leave a review. Every share helps spread this message of hope, healing, and whole-person wellness.
💌 Join my email list for weekly wellness tips & podcast updates → The Breast Cancer Recovery Coach
💌 Join the Better Than Before Breast Cancer Life Coaching Membership → Life Coaching
💌 Join the Living Well After Breast Cancer Community → The Living Well After Breast Cancer Community
👩‍💻 Follow me on Instagram for daily inspiration → @thebreastcancerrecoverycoach
👩‍💻 Follow me on Facebook → The Breast Cancer Recovery Coach
🎙 Subscribe & leave a review on Apple Podcasts → Better Than Before Breast Cancer with The Breast Cancer Recovery Coach
🎥 Watch on YouTube → @BetterThanBeforeBreastCancer

In this episode, I'm joined by Kristy Griggs, founder of Training Through Treatment, to talk about the role exercise played in her experience with stage four breast cancer.
Kristy was told to rest during treatment. But what she discovered was that movement helped her physically, mentally, and emotionally in ways she did not expect.
She shares how she navigated the difference between needing rest and choosing to show up anyway, how exercise supported her through treatment, and how it ultimately led her to create a nonprofit that helps others access movement during cancer care.
Listen to learn:
• The difference between "I need rest" and "I feel uncomfortable but can still move" • How exercise supported treatment and recovery in real time • Why community matters during and after a diagnosis • What "vigorous exercise" actually means and why it matters • How to start moving even when energy is low
This conversation is a reminder that movement does not have to be perfect to be meaningful.
 

Resources Mentioned:
Work with Laura:
https://www.thebreastcancerrecoverycoach.com/health 
Training Through Treatment Website:
https://www.trainingthroughtreatment.org/
 
Follow Training Through Treatment on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/training_through_treatment?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw==
 
Follow Kristy:
https://www.instagram.com/kristygriggs?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw==

 
 

Let's Connect!
If this episode helped you breathe a little easier, please share it with a friend or leave a review. Every share helps spread this message of hope, healing, and whole-person wellness.
💌 Join my email list for weekly wellness tips & podcast updates → The Breast Cancer Recovery Coach
💌 Join the Better Than Before Breast Cancer Life Coaching Membership → Life Coaching
💌 Join the Living Well After Breast Cancer Community → The Living Well After Breast Cancer Community
👩‍💻 Follow me on Instagram for daily inspiration → @thebreastcancerrecoverycoach
👩‍💻 Follow me on Facebook → The Breast Cancer Recovery Coach
🎙 Subscribe & leave a review on Apple Podcasts → Better Than Before Breast Cancer with The Breast Cancer Recovery Coach
🎥 Watch on YouTube → @BetterThanBeforeBreastCancer