Take control of your health and wellbeing with Regarding Me, the podcast that empowers women to advocate for themselves with confidence – because your voice and your choices matter.
Join Luan, an award-winning women’s health advocate with a personal experience of breast cancer, as she shares the skills, strategies and stories behind effective self-advocacy. Whether you’re facing a health challenge like cancer or a chronic illness, or taking steps to future-proof your health, this podcast is for you.
Hear from women who’ve successfully advocated for themselves and experts who offer insights to help you advocate for ‘me-centred’ healthcare. You’ll discover how to become your strongest self-advocate in any health situation and make informed decisions that are right for you.
Subscribe now and join a growing community of women transforming their health through self-advocacy. Together we’ll make sure your voice is heard and your care reflects what matters to you most.
Looking for the FREE resources Luan mentioned, want to join the self-health advocacy movement, or have a question? Head over to luanlawriewoods.com.au!
Host: Luan Lawrenson-Woods, Self-Health Advocate™
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Take control of your health and wellbeing with Regarding Me, the podcast that empowers women to advocate for themselves with confidence – because your voice and your choices matter.
Join Luan, an award-winning women’s health advocate with a personal experience of breast cancer, as she shares the skills, strategies and stories behind effective self-advocacy. Whether you’re facing a health challenge like cancer or a chronic illness, or taking steps to future-proof your health, this podcast is for you.
Hear from women who’ve successfully advocated for themselves and experts who offer insights to help you advocate for ‘me-centred’ healthcare. You’ll discover how to become your strongest self-advocate in any health situation and make informed decisions that are right for you.
Subscribe now and join a growing community of women transforming their health through self-advocacy. Together we’ll make sure your voice is heard and your care reflects what matters to you most.
Looking for the FREE resources Luan mentioned, want to join the self-health advocacy movement, or have a question? Head over to luanlawriewoods.com.au!
Host: Luan Lawrenson-Woods, Self-Health Advocate™
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
In this deeply moving and powerful conversation, Luan speaks with Rena Patel, who was diagnosed with triple-negative breast cancer at 40—just after her daughter turned four.
Rena felt isolated, unsure where to turn, as she didn’t know anyone in her community who’d been through something similar. On top of that, she often felt unseen and unheard within a healthcare system that doesn’t always account for the diverse needs of women from ethnic minority backgrounds, or understand the different cultural perspectives of their communities. From not being shown how to identify radiotherapy burns on non-white skin to struggling to find wigs that matched her hair, these gaps added to the emotional weight of her treatment.
Connections can help change our experiences. Rena shares how finding Black Women Rising—a UK-based cancer support project for women of colour—opened the door to community, confidence, and self-advocacy. It helped her feel less alone and more empowered to ask for the care that truly met her needs.
In this episode:
• Why self-trust and speaking up are essential in healthcare
• The importance of culturally inclusive supportive care
• How shared stories and visibility reduce isolation
• The role of connection and community in building self-advocacy skills
• How openness can turn silence into strength—for you and those around you
As an Ambassador of Black Women Rising Rena is helping to build a future where all women—regardless of background—feel seen, heard, and supported. For herself, for her community, and for her beautiful daughter.
For links to the resources in this show - visit the episode blog page.
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CREDITS:
Host: Luan Lawrenson-Woods, Self-Health Advocate
Post-production: Paddy from Goosewing Sounds Ltd (UK)
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.