What happens when cancer crashes your life and your livelihood? In episode 281 of the Gratitude Geek podcast, I sit down with entrepreneur and cancer thriver Deb Krier to talk candidly about living with Stage 4 breast cancer while still showing up for your clients, your business, and most importantly—yourself.
Deb and I don’t sugarcoat anything. We’ve both walked through cancer diagnoses, nerve damage, port drama, chemo fog, and endless unsolicited “cures.” And yet—we kept going. Sometimes we paused. Sometimes we powered through. And we both learned how to run our businesses in radically new ways.
This is the episode I wish existed when I was first diagnosed. It’s equal parts support group, strategy session, and a little redhead sass.
In This Episode, We Talk About:
- What “working through cancer” really looks like
- Tools and therapies (traditional and woo) that actually help
- How to decide what business tasks to keep, delegate, or drop
- The mental game of staying visible while your body is falling apart
- Why we should stop apologizing for our boundaries
- Deb’s philosophy: “You’re the boss. Not cancer. Not your doctor. You.”
Connect with Deb Krier
About Deb Krier:
Deb Krier is the founder of TryingNotToDie.LIVE, a platform that empowers individuals navigating cancer to live boldly and on their own terms. A seasoned marketing and PR professional, Deb brings the same fearless spirit to her work as she does to her personal health journey. Diagnosed with Stage 4 triple positive breast cancer in 2015 and later thyroid cancer, Deb has refused to let illness define her. She now inspires others to take ownership of their journey, build resilient communities, and find purpose—no matter the diagnosis.
Gratitude Shoutout:
Deb’s moment of gratitude? This conversation. And I’m right there with her.
Timestamps:
- 00:00 Intro: When business and cancer collide
- 02:30 Deb’s first diagnosis: Stage 0 to Stage 4 overnight
- 06:15 Chemo, septic shock, and working from a hospital bed
- 09:40 Why Kandas stopped her podcast—and what brought it back
- 13:10 Ports, Herceptin, insurance battles, and treatment evolution
- 19:30 Complementary therapies: What helped, what didn’t
- 24:00 Oncologists vs primary care: Why you need both
- 27:10 When to fire your doctor (and how to find a better one)
- 31:30 Humor as medicine: Princess Anastasia Beaverhousen enters
- 36:00 The real deal with medical marijuana and biosimilars
- 40:20 Cancer’s impact on business decisions and boundaries
- 44:10 Deb’s advice for newly diagnosed entrepreneurs
- 47:00 Kandas’ take: cancer doesn’t define your business
- 48:30 Moment of gratitude & wrap-up
If you're living with cancer and still running your business—or supporting someone who is—this episode is for you. Cancer might change your schedule, your capacity, and your boundaries. But it doesn’t get to take your voice.
Stay groovy, my friends.
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