Dr. Shani: You May Have Cancer, But Cancer Doesn’t Have You

Going through cancer treatment can be a blur and a whirlwind process.   You may feel that you’re getting funneled from one treatment to the next, with no time to stop and process what is actually going on, and with no time for yourself!   Local Portland, Oregon area doctor Shani Fox has made it her mission to change this typical process.  Unlike traditional doctors, Dr. Shani takes care of you holistically.  She practices naturopathic medicine in order to fix the root cause, not just bandage the symptoms.  For example, an oncologist will take care of a tumor, while Dr. Shani will take care of the rest of the person during treatment – physically and emotionally. 

As a naturopathic doctor, she looks past traditional treatment and wants to heal the whole person.   Each person has a different individual experience while undergoing treatment, so she looks for ways to properly nourish each patient to get sufficient nutrients based on the situation.  She also looks for ways to increase energy and help you recover while finding ways to prevent future cancer so you don’t have to go through this experience again.  Dr. Shani really is a doctor for the body, mind, and spirit. 

After meeting Dr. Shani over coffee at a local pancake house in SE Portland, she was dressed in her Barre3 gear and out and about on a Sunday morning. Yet despite her welcoming and casual attire, she was extremely professional, motivating and inspirational. Her knowledge of how to treat your body while experiencing such a traumatic journey was something that I gravitated toward immediately. 

She spoke of topics that us cancer survivors think about frequently – Is soy ok for you? What kind of exercise should I be doing? Any vitamins that I should take? Am I making the right health choices? And so much more.

Dr. Shani’s mission is to put you back in control of your life during cancer treatment, which is so incredibly important.  There is a weird thing that happens when you go for your last chemo or radiation treatment and you feel – “It’s done (thank God!)…I’m so happy, but now what? How do I keep fighting this to make sure it doesn’t come back?”

When asked to provide some words of wisdom to patients, Dr. Shani emphasized the fact that “you may have cancer, but cancer doesn’t have you.”  In order to regain control during this hectic time, you have to believe in that statement and believe in a healthy future after cancer.  In believing that there is life beyond this roadblock, you can put yourself back in control of your wellness. 

We’d like to thank Dr. Shani Fox for her incredible inspiration to women fighting pretty everywhere and for showing them that they do have options to consider during their treatment.   We encourage you all to learn more about Dr. Shani’s practice, watch her video or get in contact with her, by visiting her website: www.drshanifox.com.

Feeling the Love from Sock Dreams

Going through cancer treatment is uncomfortable in more ways than one. Lying on an exam table, getting chemo or going through a radiation treatment, there is always one thing that happens: your feet are always cold!

When we started choosing what special items to include in our Fighting Pretty Packages, a pair of fun, cozy, socks was a definite. Instead of relying on the hospital to give you those ugly slipper-socks, in years past, we’ve included all types of socks – fuzzy socks, leopard socks, heart socks and more. 

In late 2014 after Fighting Pretty ventured west to Portland, Oregon, founder Kara Dolce reached out to local sock company, Sock Dreams and magic happened. The team at Sock Dreams was immediately interested in helping women feel strong and beautiful through cancer treatment by donating 100 pairs of socks for our Pretty Packages.

They created one design with three colors: pink stripes, blue stripes and brown stripes. Initially, these “Fighting Pretty crew socks” were exclusively designed for our Pretty Packages, but due to popular demand, Sock Dreams included them as a product listing on their online website and will be donating 20% of the sale to Fighting Pretty! A true win-win for all!

We cannot thank the team at Sock Dreams enough for all of their love and support for women battling cancer everywhere. As we are sending beauty and strength in our Pretty Packages, Sock Dreams is the perfect partner to send the love!

If you would like to order a pair of Fighting Pretty crew socks, you can visit the Sock Dreams website: www.sockdreams.com or Order Here. And lastly, if you would like to order a Pretty Package that will include these socks, visit our website www.fightingpretty.org and click Request Form.

Though she be but little, she is fierce.

Meet Elizabeth Tague, an ex-college women’s rugby player and loving middle school math teacher who was diagnosed with stage two breast cancer at just 32 years old. Now, only four years later, Liz is living happy, healthy and cancer-free.

You may remember Liz from a prior Fighting Pretty blog post about “Pumping the Positivity.” Liz considered herself to be a healthy cancer patient who was going to do whatever it took to stay focused and beat breast cancer.  And she did it.

I knew Liz well before either of us were diagnosed with breast cancer. Liz and I played women’s rugby together during college and she was my mentor. My real big sister didn’t go to school with me, but Liz was there – to watch over me, protect me and teach me. She was always an inspiration.

After hearing of her diagnosis only a few years after my own, I was heartbroken for her. But I knew she had the fight in her to not only beat this horrible disease, but to challenge it with poise and vigor.

As our second woman featured as part of the Fighting Pretty Iconic Women series, Liz Tague is our fierce hero.

At the shoot held in New York City with photographer William Philbin, Liz chose a pearl necklace as an accessory to her already-bright wardrobe. It made her feel beautiful. As soon as she put the oversized pearls around her neck, her entire expression changed. Liz was Fighting Pretty.

Those pearls now belong to Liz, and you will frequently see her sporting them whenever she is celebrating her health, her triumph and her very happy and healthy life with her husband Brian.

Here’s to you Liz, may your February be full of love, and may you forever fight with ferocity as a woman who is truly Fighting Pretty.