When Beauty Meets Bravery: What Angelina Jolie's Mastectomy Scars Taught Us About Reclaiming Ourselves

Angelina Jolie in 2021. Credit: Getty

The Decision No One Wants to Make

Let me be honest with you. I've sat across from hundreds of women facing mastectomies over the past thirteen years. I've watched their hands shake as they tell me about their diagnosis. I've seen them break down, not always because of their devastating diagnosis, but because of what they're about to lose.

One client said something to me I'll never forget. She looked me in the eyes and said, "My breasts were perky, plump, and looked better than any adult actress's breasts. They were my best asset. And now someone is telling me they have to go."

That broke my heart, not because she was vain, but because she was human, and they were hers.

Your breasts are not "just" body parts. They fed your babies. They made you feel feminine. They made you feel sexy. They were part of how you recognized yourself in the mirror every morning. For some women, they were the one thing they felt truly confident about.

And now someone is telling you they have to go.

Angelina Jolie in Rome, Italy on October 18, 2025   

Credit: Getty

Back in 2013, Angelina wrote something painfully honest in The New York Times: "My mother fought cancer for nearly a decade. She held out long enough to meet the first of her grandchildren and to hold them in her arms. But my other children will never have the chance to know her and experience how loving and gracious she was."

That's what this decision is really about: choosing life over everything else. Even when "everything else" includes the parts of your body you loved most. The parts you never imagined giving up.

Angelina chose her surgery so she could tell her children: "You don't need to fear you will lose me to breast cancer."

But choosing life doesn't mean the grief isn't real. It doesn't mean you wake up the day after surgery feeling nothing but gratitude. It means you're human, and you're navigating one of the hardest emotional journeys a woman can face.

The Part No One Talks About: What Comes After

Angelina's TIME France photos show her scars openly, something she'd never done publicly in the twelve years since her surgery. And do you know what she said about them?

"I share these scars with many women I love. And I'm always moved when I see other women share theirs. I wanted to join them."

That sentence broke me open. Because that's exactly what I see every single day in my work.

Women come to me after mastectomies or during chemotherapy that follows, and the first thing they say is some version of: "I just want to feel like myself again."

Not like Angelina Jolie. Not like anyone else. Like themselves.

That's where the real work begins. Not in the operating room, but in the mirror. In the moment when you look at your reflection and have to find a way to say: "This is still me. I am still whole. I am still beautiful."

And here's the truth: You don't have to do that alone.

Angelina Jolie at Cannes on May 16, 2025.

Credit: Getty

"I Don't Feel Any Less of a Woman"

When Angelina wrote about her mastectomy in 2013, she said something I think about often when I'm sitting with clients:

"On a personal note, I do not feel any less of a woman. I feel empowered that I made a strong choice that in no way diminishes my femininity."

I remember reading that and thinking: She's right. But also, it's okay if you DO feel less feminine sometimes. It's okay if empowerment comes later, after the grief.

Because here's what I've learned from sitting with women in this moment: You don't need to feel "empowered" on day one. Or day thirty. Or even day three hundred.

Some days, you wake up and you fight. You put on your prosthetic or your wig if you're also dealing with hair loss from chemo. You apply your makeup. You go to work. You smile for your kids. You show up.

Other days, you don't. You cry in the shower. You avoid mirrors. You wonder if you'll ever feel normal again.

Both of those days are okay. Both of them are part of healing.

Angelina also said this, and I think it's the most important part: "My children can see my small scars, and that's it. Everything else is just Mommy, the same as she always was."

You are still you. The scars are just proof that you chose to stay.

Angelina Jolie

Credit: TIME France

Reconstruction Isn't the Only Path to Wholeness

After a mastectomy, you have choices. Some women choose reconstructive surgery, like Angelina did. Some don't. Some aren't candidates for it. Some simply don't want it.

And all of those choices are valid.

Angelina underwent three months of operations, from February to April 2013 to remove breast tissue and replace it with implants. She made that choice for herself and her family.

But not every woman wants reconstruction. Not every woman can afford it. Not every woman's body tolerates it.

What matters is that you feel whole again. Whatever that looks like for you.

For some of the women I work with, that means a beautifully fitted prosthetic. For others dealing with chemotherapy, it also means a medical-grade wig that helps them recognize themselves during treatment. For many, it's learning to embrace their scars exactly as they are.

Angelina chose reconstruction. But she also chose, twelve years later, to show her scars. To say, "This happened to me, and I'm not hiding it."

That kind of vulnerability? That's what changes the world for other women.

The Advocacy That Matters Most

Here's what struck me most about Angelina's TIME France interview. She didn't just share her scars for awareness. She shared them with a call to action:

"Every woman should always be able to determine her own healthcare journey and have the information she needs to make informed choices. Genetic testing and screening should be accessible and affordable for women with clear risk factors or a significant family history."

And then she said this: "Access to screening and care should not depend on financial resources or place of residence."

That's the conversation we need to be having.

Because while Angelina Jolie can afford the best surgeons, the best genetic testing, the best reconstructive procedures, most women can't. And that gap in access is literally costing lives.

If you carry the BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene, you deserve to know. You deserve options. You deserve support.

And if you've already made the choice, if you've had the surgery, you deserve compassionate aftercare, whether that's reconstruction, prosthetics, wigs for chemotherapy-related hair loss, or simply a community of women who understand.

What I've Learned from Sitting with Women in This Moment

In my time working with women experiencing medical hair loss and body changes, I've learned something important: You don't need to be "strong" every single day.

What I tell every woman who sits across from me is this: "You get to grieve what you lost. And you get to celebrate what you're becoming. Those two things can exist at the same time."

Angelina Jolie said she wanted to advocate for women to have access to genetic testing and preventative care, because not every woman has the resources she does. And she's absolutely right.

But here's what I want to add: Every woman also deserves access to compassionate, judgment-free support as she figures out who she is on the other side of this.

Whether that's through a skilled reconstruction surgeon, a trusted wig specialist, a therapist, a support group, or all of the above, you deserve people who see you, not just your diagnosis.

Angelina Jolie. Credit: Stefan Rousseau/WPA Poo

You Are Not Your Scars (But They Are Part of Your Story)

Here's what I wish every woman facing a mastectomy knew:

Your scars do not define you. But they are part of your story, a story of survival, of choice, of courage.

Some days, you'll want to hide them. Other days, you might surprise yourself and feel proud of them. Both are okay.

What matters is that you know this: You are not less of a woman because of what you've lost. You are more of yourself because of what you've survived.

Angelina Jolie sharing her scars in TIME France wasn't just about raising awareness. It was about saying to every woman who's walked this path: "I see you. You are not alone. Your scars are beautiful because they mean you're still here."

And if you're reading this right now, whether you're pre-surgery, post-surgery, or somewhere in between, I want you to know the same thing.

You are still here. And that matters more than anything else.

Angelina in 2021

Credit: Getty

A Note on Resources

Angelina is right: genetic testing and preventative care should be accessible to every woman, not just those with financial means. If you or someone you love is facing these decisions, here are some resources:

• FORCE (Facing Our Risk of Cancer Empowered): Support for hereditary breast and ovarian cancer
• Bright Pink: BRCA testing resources and advocacy
• American Cancer Society: Free resources, support groups, and financial assistance programs
• Look Good Feel Better: Free beauty workshops for women in cancer treatment
• Local cancer centers: Many offer financial assistance for wigs, prosthetics, and reconstructive procedures

And if you need support navigating hair loss, whether from chemotherapy or as part of your healing journey, that's exactly why Her Signature Wigs exists.

Because every woman deserves to look in the mirror and recognize herself. Every woman deserves compassionate guidance as she figures out what "beautiful" means for her now.

Final Thoughts

Angelina Jolie made headlines this week for showing her scars. But the real headline should be this:

Thousands of women make the same brave decision every year. And every single one of them deserves to be celebrated.

If that's you, if you're the woman who just got her diagnosis, the woman who's scheduled for surgery next month, the woman who's six months post-op and still figuring it all out, I see you.

Your courage doesn't have to look like a magazine cover. It can look like getting out of bed. It can look like asking for help. It can look like crying, and then trying again tomorrow.

That's what bravery really is. Not the absence of fear, but the decision to keep going anyway.

You are not alone in this. And you are so much more than what you've lost.

 

TriMonique Burton is a Certified Wig Specialist & Medical Hair Loss Expert With over two decades in the beauty industry and a specialized focus on medical hair loss since 2012, TriMonique has dedicated her career to helping women and cancer patients regain their confidence. Having served as a specialist within Florida's Cancer Institutes, Infusion, and Oncology Centers, she brings deep insight into hair replacement solutions of patients undergoing chemotherapy and radiation. As a Certified Wig Specialist, she bridges the gap between medical necessity and aesthetic beauty, ensuring every "cranial prosthesis" is a perfect fit for the patient's physical and emotional journey. If you're facing hair loss from chemotherapy, alopecia, or medical treatment, book a free consultation here.