Relaxation, Resilience, and Restoration: Sleep’s Position in Most cancers Wellness with Dr. Kristi Graves, Elissa Kalver, & Mary Helen Rogers – Higher Sleep Council

Welcome again to Catching Zzz’s, the podcast the place we discover the science tales and methods that assist us reside and sleep higher.

Immediately, we’re speaking about one thing that touches so many lives: breast most cancers. However this dialog isn’t about worry. It’s about energy, group, and the methods we are able to thrive collectively.

I’m joined by two inspiring girls. First, Dr. Kristi Graves, a professor and researcher at Georgetown College, who research most cancers survivorship and well being disparities.

We’re additionally joined by Elissa Kalver, who was identified with stage 4 metastatic breast most cancers in 2021 and is redefining what it means to beat most cancers and reside her most genuine life.

She’s the founding father of the primary nonprofit reward registry for most cancers sufferers referred to as WeGotThis.org. Neither of our friends are sleep scientists, however they each know the profound function that sleep performs in psychological well being, therapeutic, and high quality of life.

Immediately, we’re going to discover how the remainder matches into the larger image of surviving and thriving, whether or not you’re a affected person, a caregiver, a researcher, or a beloved one.

In the course of the dialog, we cowl all kinds of matters, together with fatigue whereas having a severe sickness, remedy of unwanted effects and insomnia, sensible self-care routines, psychological well being methods, and extra.

MEET DR. KRISTI GRAVES

Dr. Graves acquired her Ph.D. in Medical Psychology from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State College and accomplished post-doctoral coaching on the College of Kentucky. She is a tenured Professor of Oncology and a member of the Most cancers Prevention and Management Program at Lombardi Complete Most cancers Middle. Since 2021, Dr. Graves has served because the Affiliate Dean for School Growth at Georgetown College Medical Middle. Dr. Graves conducts analysis centered on most cancers survivorship and translational genomics, with a selected emphasis on group engagement and addressing well being disparities.

Dr. Graves is co-leading a UG3-funded examine by the Nationwide Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Analysis (NIDCR) from NIH to develop a web-based choice support to advertise knowledgeable choices about radioactive iodine remedy for sufferers identified with intermediate threat thyroid most cancers. This work follows an R01-funded mission to discover signs skilled by sufferers identified with thyroid most cancers who acquired radioactive iodine remedy. In collaboration with researchers at Northwestern College, Dr. Graves serves as website principal investigator on a examine funded by the Nationwide Most cancers Institute to judge written peer help to scale back signs amongst sufferers handled with stem cell transplant.

One other space during which Dr. Graves conducts work is elevating consciousness about genetic counseling and testing for most cancers threat. She was a number of principal investigator on a not too long ago accomplished NCI-R25 award to coach group well being educators, affected person navigators and promotoras about hereditary breast and ovarian most cancers in Latinos. This coaching mission is known as ARBOLES Familiares (Household Tree).

CONNECT WITH DR. KRISTI GRAVES

WEBSITE: Georgetown College

MEET ELISSA KALVER

As a record-breaking saleswoman and former collegiate athlete, Babson Faculty alum Elissa Kalver has all the time identified what it means to succeed. After a life-changing prognosis, her lifestyle and her inside struggle grew to become extra necessary than ever.

Her prognosis hasn’t stopped her from celebrating life or working in service of others – the truth is, it has pushed her to create WeGotThis.org, the first-ever non-profit reward registry for most cancers thrivers and caregivers. WeGotThis.org’s mission is to construct a group of giving and receiving that helps most cancers thrivers and supporters reside their finest lives.

Sharing her journey additional, Kalver authored her ebook We Acquired This: How I Realized to Thrive with Terminal Most cancers which launched in spring of 2025. The ebook brazenly explores matters equivalent to chemo remedy, fertility preservation, what NOT to say to a most cancers affected person, and extra. Via her expertise and insights, Kalver goals to encourage us to reside our most genuine life potential – and most cancers is just not a prerequisite.

Thriver, founder, speaker, writer, and Andover, MA native, Kalver resides in Los Angeles along with her husband Eric and daughter Ellie.