10/14/2026
October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and this cause is deeply personal to me and to High Tide. 💗
High Tide was founded by the beautiful and amazing Amanda Crittenden, who passed away in 2024 after an eight-year battle with breast cancer. The business she built is part of the legacy she left behind, and carrying it forward means remembering the person who started it.
On August 6 of this year, my best friend Alicia was also diagnosed with breast cancer. She is now recovering from a double mastectomy. Watching someone you love go through a diagnosis, surgery, and recovery brings the reality of this disease painfully close.
These statistics represent people who are loved, needed, and whose lives change with one diagnosis:
• About 1 in 8 women in the United States will develop breast cancer during her lifetime.
• In 2026, an estimated 321,910 women will be diagnosed with invasive breast cancer, and 42,140 women will die from the disease.
• Breast cancer is the second-leading cause of cancer death among women in the U.S.
• Younger women can develop breast cancer, too: about 1 in 10 women diagnosed are under 45. Men can also develop breast cancer.
Please take the time to know your body.
Make the appointment. Keep the appointment. Speak up when something changes.
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommends mammograms every two years for women ages 40–74 at average risk. Talk with your healthcare provider about your personal risk and screening schedule; some people need earlier or additional screening. If you notice a change, contact your provider instead of waiting for your next mammogram.
This month, I’m remembering Amanda, supporting my best friend through recovery, and thinking of everyone living with breast cancer, recovering from treatment, or missing someone they love.
And support matters beyond October. Bring the meal. Send the text. Offer the ride. Keep showing up.
In Amanda’s memory, and for everyone facing this disease—please make your health a priority. 💗
