Peer Support & Advocacy
Many people find that engaging in peer support and advocacy activities can be empowering and rewarding.
Whether you’re in treatment, or struggling with how you feel after active treatment ends volunteering or advocating can help you stay connected to a positive, supportive community. It can also help you feel that you’re continuing to do something to help yourself and others who are coping with the same types of experiences you went through.
Peer support involves helping others who are going through experiences similar to yours. For example, the LBBC Breast Cancer Helpline pairs women with others who have the same type or stage of breast cancer and who are going through the same types of treatments. Becoming a peer supporter can be empowering even long after the treatment is over.
Advocacy involves raising awareness and asking elected officials to fund breast cancer research and pass laws that help people in treatment for breast cancer, those living with breast cancer and people facing cancer in general. There are many advocacy organizations to join. As with peer support, advocacy can help during and after breast cancer treatment.
In this section, you can learn more about how to get involved with peer support and advocacy.
- Recently Diagnosed
- Managing emotional side effects
- Building your community of support
- Dealing with family
- Talking with your partner about sex and intimacy
- Your Medical Needs
- What Is Breast Cancer?
- Who Gets Breast Cancer?
- Your Medical Team
- Your Treatment Options
- Genetic Testing
- Tests You May Have
- Your Pathology Report
- Emotional stages of a breast cancer diagnosis
- Wellness & body image
- Lifestyle and Practical Matters
- Your Voices
- LBBC Resources
- In Treatment
- Your Medical Needs
- Your Treatment Options
- Chemotherapy
- Common Regimens
- Hormonal Therapy
- Importance of Menopausal Status
- Radiation Therapy
- Radiation Therapy Schedules
- Targeted Therapies for Hormone-Positive Breast Cancer
- Targeted Therapy
- Targeted Therapy for HER2-Positive Breast Cancer
- Types of Chemotherapy
- Types of Hormonal Therapy
- What Is Hormonal Therapy
- Treatment Side Effects
- Treating Lymphedema
- Bone Loss
- Bone Pain
- Chemobrain
- Depression and Anxiety
- Hair Loss
- Hand-Foot Syndrome
- Insomnia and Fatigue
- Lymphedema
- Lymphedema Risk
- Managing Insomnia and Fatigue
- Menopausal Symptoms
- Mouth Sores
- Nail and Skin Changes
- Nausea and Vomiting
- Neuropathy
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- What are the Treatments for Insomnia and Fatigue?
- Your Treatment Options
- Your Emotional Concerns
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- Your Voices
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- Your Medical Needs
- Living With a History of Breast Cancer
- Your Medical Needs
- Survivorship Care Plans
- Genetic Counseling
- When to Have Follow-Up Visits
- Genetics and Family Risk
- Genetic Test Results and What They Mean
- Genetic Testing
- Genetic Testing and Your Relationships
- Sharing Your Genetic Test Results At Work
- Sharing Your Genetic Test Results With Family
- Signs Breast Cancer May Be BRCA-Related
- Your Emotional Concerns
- Lifestyle and Practical Matters
- Your Voices
- LBBC Resources
- Your Medical Needs
- Living With Metastatic Breast Cancer
- Your Medical Needs
- Coping With Your Diagnosis
- Understanding Metastatic Breast Cancer
- Second Opinions and MBC
- Your Treatment Options
- Treatment Side Effects
- Bone Health and MBC
- Bone Pain and MBC
- Depression and Anxiety and MBC
- Hair Loss and MBC
- Hand-Foot Syndrome and MBC
- Insomnia and Fatigue and MBC
- Menopausal Symptoms and MBC
- Mouth Sores and MBC
- Nail and Skin Changes and MBC
- Nausea and Vomiting and MBC
- Neuropathy and MBC
- Neutropenia and MBC
- Pain and MBC
- Your Emotional Concerns
- Lifestyle and Practical Matters
- Hear My Voice Program
- Your Voices
- LBBC Resources
- Your Medical Needs
- A Young Woman
- Your Medical Needs
- The Basics: Breast Cancer and Young Women
- Breast Reconstruction
- Ovarian Suppression
- Ovarian Ablation
- Early Menopause
- Bone Health
- Genetics and Family Risk
- Sex and Intimacy
- Fertility and Future Pregnancy
- Getting Pregnant
- Pregnant With Breast Cancer
- Breastfeeding After Treatment
- Treatments and Research
- Side Effects
- Clinical Trials
- Your Emotional Concerns
- Lifestyle and Practical Matters
- Let's Talk About It Video Series
- Young Advocate Program
- Your Voices
- More Resources For You
- Get Connected with YWI
- Your Medical Needs
- Diagnosed With Hormone Receptor-Positive Breast Cancer
- Diagnosed With HER2-Positive Breast Cancer
- Diagnosed With Triple-Negative Breast Cancer
- LGBTQ+ With Breast Cancer
- Black
- A Man Diagnosed with Breast Cancer
- A Caregiver
- A Healthcare Provider