How do you define yourself as a creative?
I'm eclectic and my style is quirky. I don't live a conventional life and march to the beat of my own drum. I'm not a creative by profession, but I do embrace imagination, curiosity and personal expression as a way of life.
How did you approach care for yourself during your diagnosis and treatment?
I surrounded myself my friends and family, they were paramount to my survival. Cancer treatment definitely took me to the bottom of the ocean if you will, not only does it destroy your body, it affects your mind and mindset. People I loved were important to keeping me grounded.
I was no stranger to cannabis, it certainly helped with my nausea and other side effects with chemo (my chemo treatment was every 3 weeks for 8 full hours at a time) so I'm grateful to have lived in a a state where I had easy access to medicinal plant medicines.
I walked. I walked and I walked and I walked with my dog -- outside was my salvation, indoors felt overwhelming.
And... I realized my parasympathetic nerve system needed to be cared for almost more so post operation (I had a double mastectomy) then my physical body. I didn't need pain medications, I needed hugs and love... as well as welcoming in laughter through those I surrounded myself with.
Any other details you’d like to share?
When I realized I was most definitely going to lose my hair, I had to decide how I wanted to embrace that journey. I realized in that moment - I was not my hair, nor was I my breasts - I was Kate, whatever physical shape that took.
My daughter (a fashion designer at the time) and I decided to embrace the creativity that was afforded to me through choosing to wear scarves on my head as an accessory, rather than a punishment. We created a social media series called 'Scarves not Scars" where her design community donated their custom materials and prints for me to wear in a myriad of ways, at my discretion and then we would post regularly on social media how I was styling myself as a form of empowerment.
Also, we funnily enough, ordered temporary eyebrow tattoos while I was trying to figure out what I needed appearance wise to carry on... and after receiving them we realized how fake they truly were and ended up applying them all over our faces creating a joyous and playful memory that helped me release myself through the challenging experience of figuring out 'who I wanted to be' through my treatment.
What advice would you share with someone going through a diagnosis and treatment?
Laughter and creative expression are genuinely healing if you allow them into your care plan I swear it.
Kate (70 years old!) is the vibrant, dynamic and remarkably quirky mother of 2 rebellious women and a grandmother of the sweetest young man. A free spirit from the Midwest, who moved to the Rocky Mountains in her youth, she lived, loved and raised her daughters in ski country Colorado.
Always one to march to the beat of her-own-drum, when diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015, she embraced hair loss and a double mastectomy through a project she created with her daughter Gretchen called "Scars not Scarves" in which she chose to wear head scarves over wigs, all donated by Gretchen's design community.
Kate has lived a vibrant life wherever she landed, continuing that course most recently as she settled in with her daughter and son-in-law outside Tivoli/Red Hook. She is no doubtedly living her best life on their multigenerational estate where family and friendship combine beautifully into a life full of gardening, sunbathing and celebrating life on the daily. She is an avid swimmer, hula-hooper & dog walker to name just a few of her interests. And her eponymous style can be found regularly on weekends, when she's playing hostess with the mostest at the iconic restaurant The Corner, at Hotel Tivoli, styles to the nines, emulating her muse Iris Apfel.
