Embracing Body ConfidenceWhile Protecting Yourselfin the Sun
- Co-hosts Hoda Kotb, 57, and Jenna Bush Hager, 40, recently discussed nude sunbathing on their self-titled show, TODAY with Hoda & Jenna.
- Jenna began an impromptu lecture on protecting yourself in the sun, ultimately admitting that she had indeed gone to a nude beach in her younger years.
- While Hoda has not had the, um, freeing experience, the breast cancer survivor has recently shared how much she embraces her bodyand vows to never give up bikinisnow that she’s finally feeling comfortable after a painful double mastectomy that she underwent in 2007.
As Jenna contemplated her response on whether her younger self would go to one, Hoda quipped, “Your younger self already did go to one.”
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Hoda’s Breast Cancer Journey
While Hoda didn’t seem to have followed suit in her hey day, the breast cancer survivor has admitted she’s taken a fondness to bikinis in more recent years.
Hoda underwent a double mastectomy in 2007 and has often shared how traumatizing it was for her to adjust to her scars and new body. Luckily, she was able to shake that, become empowered, and now in turn, consistently empower others.
“You don't think that you'll ever feel good about yourself, because you're always going to be hiding, hiding, hiding, hiding,” Kotb recalled of the moment she saw her mastectomy scars.
Body Image and Adjusting to a New Normal After Cancer Treatment
For most women, that particular moment when you first see yourself after mastectomy surgery is often said to be one of the hardest parts of the journey.
"You know when you look, and you're like, 'That's me now?! Like, this is the body for the rest of my life that's going to carry me through?'" she shared of the traumatic experience. "You don't see it as: The cancer is gone. Right then, that moment, you see it as this horrible (thing)."
When Should You Consider a Mastectomy?
The Making Space podcast host began her long road to healing with the help of another survivor, who gave her the courage to show her scars for the first time.
"Shortly after I had my surgery, there was a woman who was older, an aunt of my friend," she said. "Her name was Harriet. And she said to me, 'Let me see your scar. I had the same.’"
The women showed each other their scars. "It was a very poignant and moving moment for me. It was a life-changer."
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