CB Wellness Labs Quarterly Report — October 2025

The Energy Behind Resilience: How Emotional Recovery Drives Peak Performance

Katrina Foe

Everyone in leadership talks about resilience. But few ever stop to ask what it costs.

For Katrina Foe, functional medicine expert, bestselling author, and founder of Cancer Freedom, resilience nearly cost her life.

"I was the kind of person who just kept going no matter what life threw me," she told me during our interview for the Quarterly Report. "But what I learned through my own cancer journey is that sometimes, what we call resilience is really suppression."

The Myth of Resilience

When Drive Becomes Detachment

Foe's story began like so many high performers — constant motion, relentless drive, and a belief that hard work could outpace exhaustion.

But when she found a lump while nursing her fifth child, the façade cracked. "It was surreal," she said. "I lived what I thought was a healthy lifestyle, but under the surface, I had unprocessed emotional trauma, a toxic marriage, and layers of stress that I had never dealt with."

Her wake-up call came when she was "kicked out of a cancer clinic for asking too many questions." That moment, she says, "was the best thing that could have happened." It forced her to stop outsourcing her intuition and start trusting her own body.

Ocean depths representing inner journey
"Our bodies are designed to heal themselves — when we give them what they need"
— Katrina Foe, Cancer Freedom

The Science

Sunset horizon representing hope

Understanding Root Causes

While fighting cancer, Foe realized something radical: disease isn't random. "It's not one thing that causes cancer," she explains. "Out of the ten root causes we address, most people have seven or eight. Our body is incredibly resistant — we've got backup systems for our backup systems."

Her now-famous 10 Root Cause Drivers of Cancer model integrates metabolism, hormones, toxins, stress, emotional trauma, and the microbiome. She teaches that each of these systems is a spoke in the same wheel — and when one breaks, the entire structure wobbles.

"About a year before diagnosis, most clients experienced something that deeply hurt their heart," she said. "If that emotional trauma isn't resolved, it's stored in the body. You can't supplement your way out of that."

Aircraft soaring through clouds

The Science of Energy Edge Recovery

As both a Master Restorative Wellness Practitioner and a second-generation Master Pilates Teacher, Foe connects emotion, biology, and movement. "I use a ketogenic diet with all my clients," she shared. "The ketones don't just shrink tumors — they stabilize mood and neurological function. I've seen bipolar go into remission."

She laughed softly as she recalled her biggest unlearning: "I grew up terrified of fat. Now 80% of my diet is fat — and I've never felt better." Her integrative framework blends emotional recovery, nervous system regulation, and nutritional precision — backed by relentless testing.

"We always test, not guess," she said. "Because even what we think we know — like estrogen always being high in breast cancer — isn't always true." Her process includes genetic panels, toxin analysis, and Vitamin D testing — all tied to energy regulation and emotional stability.

Luxury yacht representing journey
Executive lifestyle

The Executive Edge

Executives, founders, and clinicians alike face the same paradox: high output, low recovery. Foe sees it every day — in her cancer clients and in the high-achieving entrepreneurs she mentors.

Wellness journey

Emotional Processing

"They're incredible at taking action," she said, "but they often avoid feeling. It's easier to do a detox or buy a supplement than to sit with your emotions."

Medical testing

Testing Before Breaking

"I'd get everyone functionally tested — before the crisis. You can see disease patterns years before symptoms appear. We could slow this epidemic down, if not stop it."

Three Micro-Recoveries for Real-World Resilience

1 Breathing exercise

Boundary Breathing

When stress spikes, step away and breathe until your shoulders drop. It resets cortisol in under 90 seconds.

2 Sunlight exposure

The Light Check

Step into sunlight or use UVB light for one minute per hour. Light exposure restores circadian rhythm and supports Vitamin D synthesis.

3 Emotional awareness

Emotional Acknowledgment

When tension hits, ask, "What emotion am I avoiding?" Labeling feelings moves them from limbic chaos to cognitive clarity.

Takeaway

Foe's journey from burnout to biological mastery reframes what it means to be resilient in the modern world.

Real resilience isn't endurance.
It's regulation.
It's recovery.
It's the audacity to rest before you collapse.