‘I’ve always believed that kindness is real beauty’

For most of her life, Kara was known for her long, red hair, but after undergoing treatment for breast cancer, it soon began to fall away. “Losing my hair was a big thing for me,” she explains. “I tried the cold cap to hang onto whatever I had, but I wasn’t seeing the best results.”

To learn how to best manage her changing appearance, Kara attended a free workshop by Look Good Feel Better, and it was here she gained the confidence to say goodbye to her remaining locks.

“Wearing a headscarf into that room full of all those women that complimented me on how it was done, and then I was asked to show them how I had styled mine, that then gave me the confidence to walk out and make the decision on my terms,” Kara says.

“I think I needed that workshop and that boost, and being part of that group to see that. Seeing the other women just rocking a bald head and just looking beautiful in it, it gave me the confidence to walk away and part with my hair.”

Run by the Cancer Patients Foundation and supported by companies like Revlon, Look Good Feel Better aims to teach women and men affected by cancer how to manage the physical, psychological and social impacts of their treatment.

During in-person and online workshops, volunteer experts teach participants how to style headwear, look after their skin and apply make-up. And while focusing on your appearance may seem trivial in the face of something as daunting as cancer, for Kara, these workshops helped prove that beauty really is more than skin deep.

“I’ve always believed that kindness is real beauty,” she says. “Being surrounded by incredible support networks, like Look Good Feel Better, I think the kindness that everybody showed, that sense of ‘you’ve got this; look how far you’ve come’ — that really shows beauty.”

Strength in connection

Although cancer can be an isolating experience, Kara thanks the Look Good Feel Better workshops for connecting her with other women going through the same experience.

“Being in that space with different women at different stages in their journey, different walks of life, we were all very different but very similar, sharing one common link,” Kara explains.

As anyone diagnosed with cancer would know, it’s easy to lose your confidence and sense of self, but as Kara learnt during her workshops, it’s important to look after yourself.

“Doing something for myself, whether it’s five minutes of putting some make-up on or taking a little walk outside, that bit of self-care and self-love has been powerful,” she explains.

Bold moves

As well as teaching her the power of making time for herself, the Look Good Feel Better workshops also showed Kara how to deal with the loss of her defining features. “Make-up to me just used to be a chuck-it-on-and-go thing,” she reveals. “Learning how to pop on a bit of eyeshadow to make your eyes pop, blending in your brows, being taught how to work with features that are already there and enhance those was really impactful.”

With no government funding, Look Good Feel Better relies on the generosity of its sponsors to provide support to people undergoing cancer treatment. Revlon has been supporting the charity for more than 30 years and this is its fourth year running its International Lipstick Day donation campaign, where between July 10 to August 6, Revlon will be donating $2 from every Super Lustrous Lipstick sold in Chemist Warehouse to Look Good Feel Better.

“I think Revlon’s Super Lustrous Fire and Ice is my favourite shade,” says Kara. “As a busy mum of two boys, I can just pop a tiny bit on, blend it through with some gloss and run out the door. I feel like putting on lipstick gives you that sense of power. It’s the first thing people see and the first thing they notice — it’s always a bold move.”

Look Good Feel Better is free and available to any person undergoing any treatment for any cancer, anywhere in Australia. Visit lgfb.org.au or phone 1800 650 960 for more information or to register for the program.