Show Notes

What if cancer care could go beyond managing symptoms to help patients truly heal in mind, body, and spirit? Joining us today is Melbra Watts, Executive Director of Charlotte Maxwell Clinic, a women’s health clinic in Oakland, California, offering free integrative care to under-served, low-income women with cancer. Melbra shares how this clinic goes beyond conventional care to deliver acupuncture, energy healing, nutritional counseling, and more, all in a space that honors the full person. Discover how their holistic support helps women manage pain, renew their spirits, and reclaim power in their healing journeys, transforming their treatment experience. This episode reveals not only the clinic’s impact but also the inspiration and resilience that drive Melbra’s work to make compassionate care accessible to those who need it most. Listen in for a heartening look at how love and dedication fuel a healing community!

Key Points From This Episode:

• A warm welcome to today’s guest, Melbra Watts.

• The history of Charlotte Maxwell Clinic and its mission.

• How complementary therapies can support cancer care.

• Melbra's journey and how she joined Charlotte Maxwell Clinic.

• Understanding the difference between curing and healing.

• How unresolved trauma and shame can affect your health.

• The surprisingly positive impact that the pandemic had on the clinic.

• Unpacking some of the funding and support challenges that the clinic faces.

• Volunteer practitioners and their indispensable contributions to the clinic.

• Why integrative care is essential for comprehensive cancer treatment.

• Reflections on the beauty in helping clients reconnect with their mind, body, and spirit.

Quotes:

“Studies have shown that complementary therapies actually do improve the quality of life. They actually do boost the immune system so that the women can recover from the radiation and the chemotherapy and surgeries and different kind of things that they go through.” — Melbra Watts [0:08:47]

“I have to say, the pandemic, in a way, was a gift for us because it really helped us to shift what we were doing, and we were able to take advantage of some resources that became available during that time.” — Melbra Watts [0:16:54]

“One of our principles is making sure [women don’t] – blame themselves for having contracted the illness or the disease.” — Melbra Watts [0:18:43]

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Melbra Watts

Melbra Watts on LinkedIn
Charlotte Maxwell Clinic
Gwendolyn Mitchell on LinkedIn
MOYO Institute, Inc

Love Letters 2 Our Bodies is sponsored by Moyo Institute, Inc and the Lloyd Symington Foundation
Gwendolyn Mitchell on LinkedIn
MOYO Institute, Inc
instagram.com/moyoinstitute

There are many ways in which your health and nutrition affect your chances of getting cancer and how your body recovers from a cancer diagnosis. Today on Love Letters 2 Our Bodies, Assistant Professor of the Department of Nutritional Sciences at Howard University, Dr. Linda Thompson joins us to discuss food and nutrition in relation to cancer. In this conversation, you’ll hear all about our guest and what inspired her to work in nutrition, how certain lifestyle choices increase the risk of cancer, the effect of chronic disease, stress, mental health, and food on cancer, and so much more! We delve into the kinds of foods to avoid with a cancer diagnosis and what you should prioritize in your diet before discussing organic fruits and vegetables and their benefit. Dr. Thompson even shares tips for eating nutritious foods on a low budget, shares examples of carcinogenic foods, and warns us to avoid genetically modified foods. Finally, our guest tells us what has inspired her in her nutrition journey. Thanks for tuning in!

Key Points From This Episode:

• An overview of today’s guest, Dr. Linda Thompson.

• How Dr. Thompson became interested in nutrition.

• She discusses the lifestyle factors that increase the risk of cancer.

• How chronic disease and stress are related to breast cancer.

• The foods that may increase the risk of getting breast cancer.

• Recommended foods for breast cancer survivors to eat.

• Dr. Thompson shares her thoughts on organic fruits and vegetables.

• How you can manage to eat nutritious foods on a lower budget.

• The danger of eating genetically modified foods.

• Why grill food (that’s been charred), processed foods, and fizzy drinks can cause cancer.

• What inspires Dr. Thompson in her nutrition path and life.

Quotes:

“In order to live, we have to eat and what we eat affects our quality of life and our risk of disease.” — Dr. Linda Thompson [0:04:13]

“It doesn’t matter what size you are as long as you are in good health.” — Dr. Linda Thompson [0:09:20]

“There’s so much going on in the [food] industry that we have to keep up instead of just being blind consumers. We need to really be paying attention to what we’re putting in our bodies, particularly if we’re dealing with an issue like breast cancer, or any cancer.” — Dr. Linda Thompson [0:25:31]

“We may not be able to control a lot of things in our [lives] but we can control what we put in our [mouths] for sure.” — Dr. Linda Thompson [0:29:28]

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Dr. Linda Thompson

Dr. Linda Thompson Email

‘Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers, and Prevention’
Gwendolyn Mitchell on LinkedIn
MOYO Institute, Inc

Love Letters 2 Our Bodies is sponsored by Moyo Institute, Inc and the Lloyd Symington Foundation
Gwendolyn Mitchell on LinkedIn
MOYO Institute, Inc
instagram.com/moyoinstitute

Episode 8: Show Notes
Could the beauty products you're using be silently harming your health? In this powerful episode of the Love Letters 2 Our Bodies podcast, we’re joined by Dr. Astrid Williams, Director of Programs and Initiatives for the California Black Health Network, to reveal a disturbing truth: many of the beauty products marketed to Black women contain toxic chemicals linked to cancer and other serious health issues. Join us as Dr. Williams dives into the heart of the Conscious Black Beauty Movement (CBBM), which is fighting to protect our communities from these dangers while challenging the harmful Eurocentric beauty standards that pressure women to conform. From exposing startling truths, like the fact that the $7.5 billion Black beauty industry often promotes carcinogenic products, to sharing practical ways to choose safer products and support legislative efforts that are pushing for better regulation, this episode is an urgent wake-up call. If you want to reclaim your health, embrace your natural beauty, and take a stand against toxic beauty norms that don't serve you, be sure to tune in today!

Key Points From This Episode:

• An introduction to Dr. Astrid Williams and the California Black Health Network.

• Harmful toxins in Black beauty products that contribute to breast and uterine cancer.

• How the CBBM advocates for access to clean, safe, and affordable beauty products.

• Legal protections like the Crown Act that safeguard natural hairstyles at work and school.

• The importance of rethinking (and reclaiming) our relationship with beauty.

• Eurocentric beauty standards that often pressure Black women into using toxic products.

• Why education and awareness are critical in the under-regulated beauty industry.

• Vote with your dollars: the buying power we have in the $7.5 billion Black beauty industry.

• Legislative initiative pushing for regulations to ensure safer Black beauty products.

• The scope of the CBBM and how the campaign is being received by communities of color.

• Practical tips and tools to help you choose safer beauty and fashion products.

• How to join the Conscious Black Beauty Movement and make meaningful change!

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Dr. Astrid Williams on LinkedIn

California Black Health Network

California Black Health Network on Instagram

California Black Health Network on Facebook

California Black Health Network on X

Conscious Black Beauty Movement (CBBM)

Breast Cancer Prevention Partners (BCPP)

Environmental Working Group (EWG) Healthy Living App

Think Dirty App

Clearya App

Gwendolyn Mitchell on LinkedIn
MOYO Institute, Inc

Love Letters 2 Our Bodies is sponsored by Moyo Institute, Inc and the Lloyd Symington Foundation
Gwendolyn Mitchell on LinkedIn
MOYO Institute, Inc
instagram.com/moyoinstitute