10/05/2026
Hello Rooted Community,
October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, but for me, breast cancer awareness is much more than wearing pink.
It is personal.
My breast cancer journey changed my life in ways I could never have fully understood before experiencing it myself. As a nurse and now a Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner, I spent years caring for and educating women. But becoming the patient gave me an entirely different perspective.
There is something different about sitting on the other side of health care.
I learned what it feels like to wait for answers. To have questions. To experience fear and uncertainty. To make decisions about your own body while still trying to continue with everyday life.
And I learned just how important it is for women to listen to our bodies, know our history, ask questions, advocate for ourselves, and make our health a priority.
Today, I am grateful to be able to call myself a breast cancer survivor. But survivorship does not mean forgetting what happened. It means carrying the lessons forward.
One of the biggest lessons I carry with me is this:
Your health deserves your attention.
Please know what is normal for your breasts and your body. Keep your recommended screenings. Know your family history. And if something does not feel right, speak up.
You deserve to be heard.
🗳️ Our Voices Matter, Too
Advocacy doesn't stop inside the doctor's office.
The decisions made in our communities, our state, and our country can affect health care, maternal health, women's health, education, families, and access to community resources.
I am not here to tell you who to vote for.
I am encouraging you to be informed and participate.
For Texas voters, the upcoming November 3, 2026 General Election dates are:
Voter registration deadline: Monday, October 5
Early voting: Monday, October 19 – Friday, October 30
Mail-ballot application deadline: Friday, October 23 (application must be received)
Election Day: Tuesday, November 3, 2026. Texas Secretary of State
On Election Day, Texas polls are open from 7:00 AM–7:00 PM. Texas Secretary of State
You can check your registration and find official Texas voting information through VoteTexas.gov.
Your vote is your voice. Use it.
đź“– Stress and Your Body
My own wellness journey has also reinforced something I have taught women for years: stress does not simply stay in our minds. Our bodies carry it, too.
That is part of why I wrote Stress and Your Body: Understanding, Reconnecting.
This book isn't about becoming a bestselling author for me. It is about reaching women.
I want women to better understand the relationship between stress and the body, recognize what their bodies may be communicating, and become more intentional about reconnecting with themselves.
If you have been pouring into everyone else while putting yourself at the bottom of the list, I wrote this with women like you in mind.
The eBook/Kindle and paperback are available on Amazon.
Purchase Stress and Your Body on Amazon & Kindle
🌿 A Final Note From Me
Breast cancer changed me.
It strengthened my commitment to women's health, patient education, advocacy, and creating spaces where women feel comfortable asking questions about their bodies.
So this October, my message is simple:
Know your body.
Protect your health.
Ask questions.
Use your voice.
Vote.
And make room to care for yourself, too.
Thank you for continuing to be part of the Rooted Whole Woman Wellness community.
With gratitude,
Calandra Eddington-Chavis, MS, APRN, WHNP-BC
Rooted Whole Woman Wellness, PLLC
Clinical Care Meets Holistic Healing
Rooted Whole Woman Wellness
P.S. If there is one thing my journey has taught me, it is that women's voices matter—in the exam room, in our communities, and at the ballot box. 💗
Click here for an update from The Rooted Whole Woman Collective PLLC!
