Fans for the Cure Online Women’s Support Group
In our conversations with families who are journeying with prostate cancer, we often hear how women in their lives have little or no support for the stress and challenges that they face in supporting their loved ones. In the months since COVID-19 spread across the globe, we have come to realize that this lack of support has created even more stress and difficulties for those women who are an integral part of a man’s prostate cancer journey.
Drawing on Our Experience
Our new Online Women’s Support Group draws on our experience of launching and running our Online Men’s Support Group. Through that program, which we launched in May 2020 as we pivoted to an online focus, we have put together an effective way for focused groups to share experiences and support one another.
About Our Online Women’s Support Group
This new program is an online way for Fans for the Cure to begin to support women who are journeying with men dealing with a prostate cancer diagnosis, treatment, or recovery. This new program is an online way for Fans for the Cure to help women to share experiences, support each other, and benefit from the company of other women on journeys through prostate cancer.
To be clear, these support groups are not formal therapy or counseling. They are a way for women to gather virtually and informally to engage in conversations and support one another.
A Group for Women, Hosted by Women
Our experience with the men’s group has made it clear that getting together with a group made up of only men can at times provide the space and comfort that allows men to share candidly with each other. We understand and embrace this dynamic. That is why our Online Women’s Support Group will be for women only, and will be hosted by a woman, Karen Shaffer. A keynote speaker at the charity’s 2017 gala, Karen is a longtime friend of Fans for the Cure and the person we envisioned for the role when we imagined launching a women’s support group.
Our FIRST Meeting
We will hold our first Online Women’s Support Group video calls on a bi-weekly basis. Our next online support meeting is scheduled for:
Tuesday, December 1, 2020 at 7:00 ET
