Healthy and helping others

Kathy Bates, 76, has played some fierce characters, and it turns out, the multiple award-winning actress is no slouch herself! This warrior has battled ovarian and breast cancer, lymphedema and, like so many of us, her weight. Here, Kathy shares how she used her pain as a catalyst for healing and helping others

- Deanna Barnert

This Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Kathy Bates has a lot to celebrate. Having faced cancer in 2003 and 2012, she’s now fit, fabulous and stronger than ever at 76. “I don’t know if there’s any easy way to get through it,” Kathy says of surviving chemotherapy for ovarian cancer and a double mastectomy for breast cancer. And then she was hit with lymphedema, severe swelling of her arms due to lymph node removal. “I didn’t know where to go for help. I could only wear men’s shirts, and I remember feeling that my career was over. It was a dark time.” Then Kathy found a specialist and got involved with the Lymphatic Education & Research Network. “The more I got involved, the better I felt,” Kathy recalls. “I was using my celebrity for something meaningful.” Here Kathy shares her tips for taking on and overcoming any challenge.

Have a joy squad