When 52-year-old Rebecca Herron found out she had breast cancer, she says she was stunned. She didn’t have any idea how to tell her family or what to do next.
She has since figured out her treatment plan, starting with chemotherapy. “And then I’ll have surgery,” she says, “and then I’ll have radiation, and then I’ll be put on some kind of hormone therapy for 5-10 years.”
But her treatment plan isn’t all Rebecca has figured out. She’s also found a way to take back some control during a situation that makes so many people feel helpless and vulnerable.
Rebecca decided to photograph part of her breast cancer journey in the hopes of inspiring others. She used the opportunity to shave her head before her hair had a chance to begin falling out on its own. She took charge and made the decision before cancer and chemo could make it for her.
Kimberly Young Photography agreed to capture the moment free of charge at the Vintage Oaks Ranch in Axtell, Texas. She snapped photos as Rebecca’s husband and other members of her family cut her hair away piece by piece.
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“My husband, when Nick pulled the first strand to cut my hair that’s when it kind of all became real. I was starting to break up, I’m not usually a crier and it kind of broke me,” says Rebecca.
“I hope someone can see Rebecca and feel inspired by her journey because she is someone to be inspired by,” Kimberly says. “For some people, that is kind of what makes them who they are, and some people hide behind things like that, and for her to accept what she’s going through and shave it off the way she did, like I said, she handled it so gracefully, and I’m very honored to know her.”
Rebecca says things have definitely changed since she shaved her hair off:
“It’s cold, it’s a lot colder for sure. You can definitely feel the air and you know it’s taken me a long time just to do this, because it used to give me goosebumps,” says Rebecca.
All the same, Rebecca has been able to get through her cancer treatment with the strength of her friends and family by her side. “My side effect symptoms have been very, very mild and I attribute that 100% to the prayer force that’s been behind me and supporting me 100%,” she says.
Check out the video below to see this poignant event for yourself.