Well, friend...
This is not the episode that I thought I'd ever be recording.

Honestly, if you'd asked me a few months ago what we'd be talking about on the podcast, this wouldn't have even made the list.

Not even fuckin close.

On April 21st, I went in for a mammogram and ultrasound, because I had noticed a very large lump that appeared in my right breast.

And over the next month or so, Travis and I found ourselves sitting in exam rooms, waiting for phone calls, asking questions we never imagined we'd have to ask, and hearing words that changed our lives forever.

You have cancer.

Stage 4 Triple Negative Breast Cancer.
Inoperable.

Those words hit a helluva lot differently when they're about you.

One minute you're planning your summer... the next you're learning a whole new language made up of scans, pathology reports, treatment options, biomarkers, appointments, opinions, and statistics.
So many fuckin statistics.

Of course, the first few weeks were a blur. There were so many tears, some moments of mountainous fear, and LOTS meditation.

There were also a lot of moments where we sat quietly on the couch staring into space because neither of us knew what in the hell to say.

Most importantly - there were lots of moments of intentional joy, laughing hysterically, dancing in the kitchen with Juniper, and going on walks in nature just to looked at the clouds.

From the beginning, Travis and I did what we've always done when life hands us something hard... we got very curious.

Since then, we've spent countless hours researching, reading, studying, listening, learning, and talking with people from all over the world.

We've met with surgeons.
Oncologists.
Nurses.
Functional Medicine practitioners.
Integrative doctors.
Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioners.
Researchers.
Cancer survivors.
People who chose conventional approaches.
People who chose integrative approaches.
People who combined both.

If there was information to learn, we wanted to learn it.
If there was a question to ask, we asked it.
If there was a story to hear, we listened.

I've spent more time inside the National Library of Medicine than I ever thought possible. And definitely more than I every wanted to haha.

And through it all, the golden thread has been hope.
SO MUCH DAMN HOPE.

Not just pretending everything is fine, complete denial, or that toxic positivity shit.

Real hope.

Hope that grows when you meet people who have walked incredibly difficult roads and discover that human beings are far more resilient than we often give ourselves credit for. And that our bodies are WAY more innately intelligent than we even know or understand.

I've had the privilege of speaking with survivors, advocates, practitioners + people whose stories have completely changed the way I view what's possible. Especially because they chose a path similar to mine, with non-toxic treatment.

And while this journey is still incredibly new...I can honestly tell you that I have more hope today than I did the day I was diagnosed. A lot more.

My path won't look like everyone's, and that's okay. Every person has to make the decisions that feel right for them. Cancer treatment is a very, very personal choice.

Travis and I have spent the last several months gathering information, building our team, strengthening our faith, asking hard questions, and intentionally choosing how we want to walk through this season.

And now...I finally feel ready to share it with you.

This episode is super vulnerable and raw. It's one of the most personal conversation I've ever recorded.

And I know that it will help someone, inspire someone, or simply give someone more hope.

Thank you for letting me share this part of my journey with you.

Love ya,
Coach Heather

RESEARCH RESOURCES:
1. https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT05318469?cond=Cancer&intr=Ivermectin

2. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12200854/

3. https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0348260

BOOK RESOURCES:
Chris Beat Cancer, Radical Remission, Radical Hope, Discovering The German New Medicine, Cancer is Not a Disease, Cured (by Jeffrey Rediger MD), The Metabolic Approach to Cancer, Cancer (by Louise Hay), Love Medicine and Miracles, Heart Minded, How to Starve Cancer, Womens Bodies Womens Wisdom, and so much more

GO FUND ME:
https://gofund.me/86238cffc