In this intimate conversation, I sat down with my friend Kate Houston—a coach, creative, and courageous truth-teller—who is currently navigating breast cancer and reconstruction.

This is not a “power through it” story. It’s a living meditation on uncertainty, grief, body image, community, and the fierce tenderness it takes to belong to yourself when everything changes.

Together we explore how illness can become initiation, how creativity keeps the soul speaking, and why being seen—messy, raw, and real—is its own form of medicine.

What We Explore

• The moment life divides into “before” and “after”—and how to meet it with honesty.

• Letting grief, rage, and beauty co-exist without spiritual bypass.

• Body image after surgery: identity, worthiness, and learning to love new scars.

• How community holds what the nervous system can’t hold alone.

• Creativity as survival: punk rock, voice, and reclaiming power.

• Radical inner belonging vs. performative positivity.

• What helps on hard days: micro-rituals, movement, and telling the truth.

• Wisdom for supporters: what to say, what to avoid, how to show up.

Memorable Lines

• “This isn’t about beating anything. It’s about listening to what this moment is asking of my soul.”

• “My body changed—and my relationship with courage had to change with it.”

For Listeners On a Similar PathIf you (or someone you love) are in treatment or recovery, Kate’s perspective offers companionship, language, and permission. Take what lands. Leave the rest. Your pace is holy.

About Kate Houston -Kate is a coach and creative whose work centers on love, self-worth, and authentic expression. Her current chapter includes breast cancer treatment and reconstruction—and a devotion to telling the truth in real time.

Resources & Next Steps

• Share this episode with someone who needs gentle strength today.

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• Continue the conversation with me on Instagram and in my newsletter.