In this episode I sit down with Amanda Lentz, host of Who We Become: Life Beyond Change, to talk about something we don’t say out loud enough: that surviving a life-threatening illness comes with its own kind of grief.

Amanda found out she was BRCA-positive at 28. She felt a lump in 2020, and at 34 (in the middle of COVID), she was diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer. In this conversation, she takes us through six months of chemo, a double mastectomy, six weeks of daily radiation, and a later hysterectomy to lower her risk. And, the layers of loss underneath all of it: facing her own mortality, grieving her body, going through menopause at 35, and missing years of her kids’ childhood while she waited for her recurrence risk to drop.

Amanda is five years in remission now, and she’s honest with me about what’s still there. The intrusive thoughts, the therapy, the community that held her, and how movement and intentional living have become part of how she heals. If you’ve ever felt like grief isn’t just about death—if you’re grieving a body, a version of yourself, a timeline you thought you’d have—this episode is for you.

In this episode, we cover:
✨ Amanda’s BRCA-positive diagnosis at 28
✨ Being diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer at 34, during COVID
✨ What treatment really looked like
✨ The layered grief of mortality, early menopause, and body changes
✨ Grieving missed time with her kids while living in “wait and see”
✨ Life five years into remission—intrusive thoughts, therapy, and community
✨ How movement and intentional living became part of her healing
✨ How to support someone going through cancer treatment (patient or caregiver)

Amanda’s podcast, Who We Become: Life Beyond Change, digs into exactly this — who we become on the other side of change we didn’t choose. Go find her show after you listen here.

Connect with Amanda:

• https://www.amandalentz.com/
• https://www.instagram.com/lifebeyondchange
• https://www.youtube.com/@lifebeyondchange

Connect with me:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lossesbecomegains/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lifewithgriefpodcast/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/losses.become.gains
• Website: https://lossesbecomegains.com/
• Work with me one-on-one: https://lossesbecomegains.com/work-with-tara
• Shop the LBG Daily Journal: https://lossesbecomegains.com/journal

Support the podcast: https://buymeacoffee.com/lifewithgriefpodcast

📖 Life Beyond Grief Substack: https://taraaccardo.substack.com/