Episode 236: Turning Grief into Resilience with a Purpose, with Author, Patient Advocate and Blue Faery Founder Andrea Wilson Woods

About this episode

Andrea Wilson Woods shares her journey of turning grief into resilience through advocacy after the loss of her sister to cancer.

“Resilience doesn’t mean you’re not broken—it means you keep going anyway.” ~ Andrea Wilson Woods, Author of Better Off Bald: A Life in 147 Days, Patient Advocate and Founder of Blue Faery Grief. The loss of someone we love is likely the most devastating of human experiences. And while death is a part of life, the death of a young person proves particularly wrenching. Author of Better Off Bald: A Life in 147 Days, Andrea Wilson Woods suffered the loss of her younger sister Adrienne after a desperately critical and short illness due to a rare liver cancer. Adrienne's illness and death affected Andrea in countless ways, among them hopelessness leading to thoughts of suicide. Ultimately, Andrea began to channel her grief into advocacy, noting the lack of resources for patients and families during her sister's illness. Refusing to let despair consume her, Andrea began to take intention, imperfect action to address the needs of families and patients and founded Blue Faery, an organization created to provide education, support, and hope to those affected by bile duct cancer. What began as a response to personal heartbreak evolved into a mission-driven community—one rooted in…

People in this episode

Host: Mary Fran Bontempo

Guest: Andrea Wilson Woods

Topics covered

• grief
• resilience
• advocacy
• cancer awareness
• personal growth

Keywords

• grief
• resilience
• advocacy
• cancer
• Blue Faery
• personal growth
• mental health

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Blue Faery

Books & works: Better Off Bald: A Life in 147 Days

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