No shame in my game, I figured if I had to deal with breast cancer then it better at least come with some door prizes. In the early days it was good distraction to have a surprise box show up at the door. I want to share with you some of the resources that brightened my day or I found useful along the way.
Cancer Door Prizes(where to get the free stuff…)
If you are looking for a way to brighten your day or a friend’s day who is on their own journey here’s some of the places I had great experiences with.
- Hope Kits: These are provided by the National Breast Cancer Foundation. The boxes had all kinds of goodies in it. They allow you to gift a box.
- Hope Scarves: I love their mission! Not only do they send a scarf but almost more comforting was the letter from fellow survivors that they sent. I have since donated a scarf and shared my own story. Another thing I love about them is that if you do share then they give you feedback on the impact. They allow you to gift a scarf.
- Chemocessories: A common worry I hear and I experienced is that we don’t want to look sick. Chemocessories helps women with this by sending paired accessories and headwear. They allow you to gift a set but do request you consider a small donation to cover shipping if you are gifting a set.
- Knitted Knockers: My great-aunt Rosie gifted me this one through her church. They do need to know bra size so this one may be harder to gift BUT if you are a knitter this is one that you could do on your own. I would suggest asking before you get started on this though. Some woman may not need it or even want it.
- Hallie’s Hope: Hallie’s Hope sends a box of socks and they are nice comfortable ones too! (Like Bombas!). This was gifted to me and much appreciated.
Books/Sites
There are a lot of resources out there. Here’s the ones that I found useful.
- Crazy, Sexy, Cancer: I was familiar with Kris Carr before I was diagnosed and her book Crazy, Sexy, Cancer was one of the first books I bought when I was diagnosed. It’s full of stories, tips, and more resources.
- Love, Medicine, & Miracles: I read this book by Dr. Bernie Siegel early in my journey and recommend it to anyone healing.
- 50 Days of Hope: I was gifted this book by Lynn Eib and it brought me a lot of encouragement during chemotherapy. I have gifted this book a few times myself. This book was so helpful to me that I reached out to Lynn to share my appreciation. I never dreamed she would respond but she did and I was in awe when she did. She has other books that you may also find helpful.
- Breast Cancer Freebies: This site has a collection of resources to cover all aspects of the journey.
- Fabulous Boobies: I’ve linked directly to 15 best breast cancer blogs but this site is dedicated to providing resources.
Facebook Groups
There are many Facebook groups that you might find helpful. I found in my journey that there was a time and place for the group. When I first was diagnosed I was in the groups and they overwhelmed my newsfeed. I found it was too much. I joined the groups but removed them from the newsfeed. I used the search feature in each of them to narrow down to what I was looking for. This was very helpful! From these groups I learned tips on minimizing chemo side effects, what to take to the hospital for DIEP FLAP surgery (a mini-fan it is a must), and a place to assess “is this normal”. Here’s the ones I found most helpful for my journey or that I try to contribute to. Most are private and require membership but I found them very welcoming. (Unless you are a male…I accidentally sent one group to a male friend meaning to send it to my husband. Trying to be supportive he joined and got chased out. 🤣)
- Breast Cancer: Women supporting women
- Pink Guardians
- Hormone Positive Breast Cancer
- DIEP FLAP Support Group
Organizations
- Remember Betty: Remember Betty’s mission is to help minimize the financial burden associated with breast cancer for patients & survivors so that they can focus on recovery & quality of life. I have not personally reached out to them for resources but I have a friend on the board and I support their mission.
Good to Have
I’ve listed here things that I either found useful during surgeries and treatment. All are either exact items I got, very similar or something I have gifted to someone else because I learned I wished I had it.
Helpful after lymph node removal. I always gift these.
Great style of pillow for coming home after surgeries
Easy slip on and slip off. Wore them for every surgery and chemo
Another great pillow for travel days after surgery
#1 must take in bag for a DIEP FLAP surgery. The room is so hot and this makes it bearable.
There are so many more resources out there. I have only listed the ones that I have had personal experience or knowledge of. Comment with any that you would recommend.