Gallery
The traditional narratives that women need breasts to feel whole, hair to feel feminine, and that body image and quality of life inevitably suffer after mastectomies doesn’t tell the whole story.
These incredible women have unexpected, inspiring truths to share about loving their bodies and lives on the other side of breast cancer…
Mastectomies challenge women’s identities and lead to re-evaluation of existential values. After mastectomy, women can feel an important part of themselves is missing - as individuals and women. As a result, research studies often conclude, body image, intimate relationships, and quality of life suffer.
The women featured in this project, however, have provided an unexpected, empowered perspective that we are honored to share. The have found peace, beauty, connection, and confidence in their bodies and lives.
My port scars make a greater than sign over my heart, and it’s true: I am greater than the sum of my parts.
Pink ribbon, breast cancer ‘survivorship’? That’s not where it’s at for me.
Over most of my life I’ve considered myself a survivor. I say that word, I don’t know, a handful of times every week. Because life is hard. It’s constantly throwing curve balls at you.
So, do I personally resonate with the word survivor? Yep, because that’s what WE all are. People. That’s what we’re doing - all of us - every single day.
I didn’t want reconstruction but I wanted to keep my nipple. It’s a connection to my daughter - it’s how I fed her, it’s life-giving, nourishing. But I couldn’t find a single picture of what it would look like to have a nipple-sparing mastectomy without reconstruction, so I took a leap! I love that I got to keep the part of my breast that mattered to me.
