Even if being asymmetrical or flat is a valid choice for women who have undergone mastectomies, and that is how I usually feel best, there are no rules that say we should not wear a prosthetic bra now and then, or every single day, if it makes us smile or forget for a fleeting second that cancer can be disfiguring. There is no reason to feel self-conscious.
PUBLISHED May 22, 2018
Felicia Mitchell is a poet and writer who makes her home in southwestern Virginia, where she teaches at Emory & Henry College. She was diagnosed with Stage 2b HER2-positive breast cancer in 2010. Website: www.feliciamitchell.net
Is it hypocritical for me to wear a bra with a prosthetic breast? I pondered this question as I stumbled on my own words while reading my poem, "Cancerversary" recently. In this poem, I talk about holding another woman's infant in the crevice of my chest. The poem clearly identifies me, the narrator, as a woman missing a breast. Yet there I was at the podium, wearing a blouse that revealed two breasts.
Years can go by without my wanting to wear any kind of bra. In the past month, I have worn my prosthesis three times. The trend started when I dressed up for a 1920s-themed party. While the only thing that really matched the Roaring Twenties was an art deco necklace from one of my grandmothers; the little girl in the 62-year-old me had a ball getting dressed up.
I wore a purple sheath I bought when I was still in treatment because I needed more colorful clothing. On my head, I fashioned a headband of a favorite chemo scarf, silk tie-dye. At the last minute, I decided to wear the bra, too, for all kinds of reasons, not the least of which is every now and then I try it out. (I have had it for years. It will never wear out.) To top the outfit off, I used eyeliner.
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