Kate Middleton, who shared last September that she had been given the all clear from cancer, has spoken candidly about how her illness has impacted on her home life with William, Prince of Wales, and their three children: George, Charlotte and Louis.
During a visit to the RHS's Wellbeing Garden at Colchester Hospital, Essex, the Princess spoke to patients about life after chemotherapy and its ups and downs. She recently cancelled a last minute public appearance at Ascot races, which the Palace said was down to Kate adjusting to the balance of work and rest as she recovers.
"You put on a sort of brave face, stoicism through treatment, treatment's done – then it's like 'I can crack on, get back to normal'," she said to patients at the hospital. "But actually the phase afterwards is really difficult, you're not necessarily under the clinical team any longer, but you're not able to function normally at home as you perhaps once used to."
Continuing on, Kate, who has not publicly specified the type of cancer she was diagnosed with, said: "It's life-changing for anyone, through first diagnosis or post treatment and things like that, it is a life-changing experience both for the patient but also for the families as well.
"And actually it sometimes goes unrecognised, you don't necessarily, particularly when it's the first time, appreciate how much impact it is going to have.
"You have to find your new normal and that takes time... and it's a rollercoaster it's not one smooth plane, which you expect it to be. But the reality is it's not, you go through hard times."
Everyone's clicking on...
The Princess added, "There is this whole phase when you finish your treatment that you, yourself, everybody, [thinks] right you've finished your time, go, you're better, and that's not the case at all."
Prior to sharing her cancer diagnosis, the Palace issued a statement explaining the Princess was dealing with some medical issues and hoped the public could respect her privacy. Unfortunately, this prompted widespread speculation about why she had stepped back from the public eye, which led to Kate ultimately posting a video on social media explaining what had been happening behind the scenes – and how wanting to protect her children was a key motivator for not discussing her health openly.
In the video, which has since been viewed by millions, the Princess said, "William and I have been doing everything we can to process and manage this privately for the sake of our young family. As you can imagine, this has taken time.
"It has taken me time to recover from major surgery in order to start my treatment, but most importantly it has taken us time to explain everything to George, Charlotte and Louis in a way that is appropriate and to reassure them that I'm going to be okay."
Since finishing chemotherapy and during her recovery, the Princess has also discussed how spending time in nature has been a tonic for her – which could in part have encouraged her visit to the Colchester Hospital garden.
