Featured Grant Story: The Inside Out Foundation

What is the Inside Out Foundation?

The mission of the Inside Out Foundation (IOF) is to restore their clients' inner and outer beauty through aesthetic products and healing outreach services. They strive to make their clients not only look beautiful, but feel beautiful. IOF clients have either suffered or are suffering from hair loss, disease, environmentally-caused conditions, or are survivors of traumatic events.

The Inside Out Foundation provides clients with prosthetic breast forms, mastectomy bras, and wigs. The impact is two-fold: the products equip IOF clients with what they need to avoid potential health issues after surgery and the services provided by the IOF staff's years of expertise coupled with compassionate care given to each client results in an excellent experience and much-improved client self-esteem through this process.

Not only do these services positively impact IOF clients, but also their friends and family. Often the IOF see these support individuals accompany clients during visits to provide emotional assistance during their experience. The IOF structures their services to allow full participation for all present and they welcome those important people in their clients' lives to experience the IOF's services right along with the clients. This results in comfort, education and support for everyone, but just the client, and therefore leaves a positive impact on the client unit as a whole.

The Inside Out Foundation in Action as Told By an IOF Staff Member

We recently had the pleasure of providing resource to a client who falls in the low socioeconomic bracket of our community, and what a joy she was! This particular client suffers from bipolar disorder and schizophrenia, and most of her teeth are gone due to lack of care because of cost barriers. She came to us in need of a breast form, mastectomy bra, and a wig since her bra was more than ten years old and her wig was unusable. She was making due with the items she had because she could not afford to replace them.

Her former doctor in Plainview referred her to us, and she was able to schedule transportation to and from her appointment. Both Karla and Alexis met with her and fitted her for two new wigs, the proper size mastectomy bra, and knitted and silicone breast forms. Both members of the staff visited with her to properly assess all of her needs, and during that process, discovered that she very much needed a compression sleeve and machine for her lymphatic swelling in her right arm. This often happens after breast surgery in which the cancer has spread to the lymph nodes, and without proper care, can lead to significant additional health issues. We were able to connect her with one of our business partners to get her sleeve and machine at no cost to her.

All of these services were provided to this client at no cost, and have enabled her to venture out of her home much more often since she previously felt extremely self-conscious about her appearance. She is not only living a happier and fuller life because of IOF products and services, but she is also now at much less risk for cardiac and other health problems due to the machine our business partner was able to provide for her. Her life is completely changed because she came to our facility that day.

To learn more about the Inside Out Foundation, please visit them online at www.theinsideoutfoundation.org, or on Facebook.