For years, The Home Edit cofounder Clea Shearer’s brand of books, products, and streaming shows inspired fans who wanted to revamp their spaces. Little did she know that she’d soon be seeking inspiration of a much more pressing variety after a 2022 diagnosis of stage 2 invasive mammary carcinoma, an aggressive form of breast cancer.
“Diagnosis day was definitely the lowest moment of my life,” Clea recalls. “When I woke up the next day, my first thought was, ‘I am a cancer patient.’ I didn’t know how I was going to make it through, and I think that that is a very normal feeling. I cried to myself every hour of the day, and tried to tell myself I would be okay. Then it would hit me again, and I would just wail.”
Changing the Narrative on Cancer
Clea struggled with mood swings and a nagging feeling of hopelessness — that is, until she decided to follow through on a previously planned trip to Paris that was intended to celebrate her 40th birthday.
“There was a turning point in that trip where I started to feel really empowered and think, ‘You know what? Forget this. I am going to crush this disease,’” she smiles. “There was a typewriter in our suite, and I started writing a letter to cancer on it where I was like, ‘you should be afraid of me, I’m not afraid of you,’ and it really changed my perspective.”
With this newfound shift in attitude, Clea discovered an inner strength that prepared her for the biggest fight of her life.
“I started to realize this isn’t a ‘why me?’ situation. It’s like a ‘why not me?’ situation,” she explains. “One in eight women get breast cancer? Let me be that one woman. I have all the resources, I have the family, the friends, the work flexibility. I have the best medical care, I have all of these things at my disposal, so let me take on cancer.”
Of course, like most people who are unexpectedly thrust into a lifestyle-changing battle, Clea didn’t truly know what to expect.
“Hollywood has done us no favors in portraying the cancer journey,” she chuckles. “When I was diagnosed, I immediately expected to be bedridden and sick all the time, and that simply was not true for me. Of course, everyone’s experience is unique, and of course I was going to be sick and have bad days, but I actually experienced a lot of times where I was just with my family and friends where I was able to laugh and find joy in things. I think a lot of people don’t associate that as being possible, so it was really important for me to find out.
Turning Pain Into Purpose
Since that fateful day in 2022, Clea’s quest to conquer cancer has been buoyed by an even more powerful mission: to share the experiences and insights she’s picked up along the way, culminating in her amazing new memoir, Cancer Is Complicated: And Other Unexpected Lessons I’ve Learned.
“When I was diagnosed, I made a promise to myself that I would turn my experience into something that could help others,” she recalls. “I wanted to put everything out there — the good, the bad, the ugly, the very raw and unfiltered. I wanted to be that friend for someone else who felt really alone and isolated in their feelings. Writing it was very cathartic for me, but the actual reason I wrote it was because if I could help even one person feel better by sharing what I’ve learned, then I knew it would be worth it.”
One of the biggest lessons Clea has learned? A successful war against cancer often requires a team effort. Cancer is Complicated offers plenty of advice for partners, family, friends, or anyone who is part of a patient’s all-important support system.
“Cancer is a hard disease to describe to people because there are so many emotional ups and downs … a real roller coaster,” Clea explains. “You have moments where you appreciate your loved ones, but then you have moments where you randomly get resentful because they can leave and go to a concert or go on a trip. That’s why it’s important for others who aren’t patients to read this type of stuff so that they understand that there’s a lot going on beneath the surface.”
Show Up for Those You Love
With a deep appreciation for the support she’s received from family, friends and fans all over the world, Clea also offers great advice for those who want to help their own loved ones but don’t know how.
“Everyone wants to help — to provide as much comfort and care as possible, but we don’t always know what to ask for,” she explains. “Whether you want to bring over dinner once a week or sit with your loved one during a chemo treatment, figure out the way you want to show up and just do it. A patient is going through enough, and that support is invaluable.”
