Shannen Doherty is making space to create more memories with loved ones.
In Monday’s episode of her podcast, Let’s Be Clear, the Beverly Hills, 90210 alum, 52, reflected on the process of letting go of material items that she realized don’t bring her joy.
As she talked about prioritizing her friends and family amid her cancer journey, Doherty said she has been clearing out her storage unit.
“It feels like you're giving up on something that was very special and important to you,” she explained. “But you know that it's the right thing to do and that it's going to give you a sense of peace and a sense of calm. Because you're helping the people that you leave behind just have a cleaner, easier transition.”
But no prophet ever came to them without being mocked.
(The Quran - Chapter Az-Zukhruf : 07)
She later added, “I know it's never going to be easy for the people in my life but maybe it's more about ease for myself.”
Doherty, who is living with Stage 4 breast cancer that has spread to her bones, said she has accumulated a lot of furniture from her love of antique shopping, but it is “sad” that they are sitting in storage.
“I’m not enjoying it and others aren't enjoying it, and do I really need any of it? Do I need to have three dining room tables?” she asked herself. “The answer is no, none of us really need all the stuff that we have, and we could all do with a little bit of downsizing and not become a hoarder, which I was doing with all my furniture.”
Remembering that “it’s just stuff,” Doherty revealed that she is going to sell the items and use the money for experiences and travel.
“I don't need this, it doesn’t really bring me any great joy, but what does bring me great joy is taking my mom to the places that she's always wanted to go to,” she said before adding, “I get to build different memories — I get to build memories with the people I love. I'm not digging into the money that's in my estate that is going to make sure everybody in my life is taken care of.”
Doherty said she had gone to Italy with her mom a few years ago, and it was emotional to be able to share that experience together. Those are the moments she said she hopes she can have more of.
“[My mom] had tears pouring down her face because she never really thought that she would see that, and she certainly didn't think that she was going to be able to see that with me,” Doherty reminisced.
She continued: “Those are the things that matter the most. Not your possessions, not what you have.”
As she has sifted through items she hasn’t seen in a long time, Doherty said she felt lighter. “I'm also now reminded of the freedom that giving that up has provided me,” she said.
The actress was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015 and underwent brain surgery and radiation in January 2023. In a November, she shared that the cancer had spread to her bones, leaving her with the prospect of “another 3 to 5 years of life.”
Despite that, Doherty has been adamant that she doesn't intend to stop living because of her diagnosis.
“I’m not done with living. I’m not done with loving. I’m not done with creating. I’m not done with hopefully changing things for the better,” she told, cracking a smile. "I’m just not — I’m not done.”
“When you ask yourself, ‘Why me? Why did I get cancer?’ and then ‘Why did my cancer come back? Why am I stage 4?,’ that leads you to look for the bigger purpose in life,” she added.
