Today we’d like to introduce you to Dana Donofree.
Dana, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
My life changed forever, the day I turned 28 years old. That was the day I heard three words that will never be forgotten, “You have cancer.”
I was diagnosed with breast cancer a day before my birthday. No family history. No warning signs. No reason for concern. Just a lump, actually a really tiny lump, one that felt like it was nothing more than a pimple. That tiny little lump I found on my own, in the shower, not looking for it in a monthly exam, completely by accident.
Fast-forward through the longest year of my life. Doctor after doctor, surgery after surgery, treatment, therapy, treatment. Then it happened. I woke.
My life had changed. My body had changed, and it wasn’t a temporary change. It was going to be forever. I was no longer the young woman I was before cancer, not physically, not mentally.
I knew I needed to do something about it. I didn’t know what for the longest time, and then it came to me. Every morning I woke up and I knew I was different. Every morning my foreign breasts now attached to my body dictated how I was going to feel that day, how I was going to dress, and how I was going to express myself. I found that wearing a sports bra or a camisole was not allowing me to be me. It was all because I could no longer wear a “normal” bra.
It was that one little detail in the morning that continued me down a path of low self-esteem, low confidence, and body image. All I needed to do was design a bra that fit, that was comfortable, and made me feel like me. So, I did.
I took my fashion design background and experience and applied it to something that would change my life (again) forever.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Waking up in the morning, not knowing what is looking back at you in the mirror is a struggle. There are actually no words I can use, to sum up the hate I had for myself, for my body, and for cancer. I wanted to control it so bad, but there was nothing I could control. Cancer had control. It wasn’t until I really took back my life that things got better. I took back my body by tattooing over my long mastectomy scars, and I took back my life by creating something that would make a difference not just in my life, but in the lives of others just like me.
I had a purpose again. It was the hardest years of my life to get there. They say “the highs and the lows” or the “peeks and the valleys” but they never really tell you what to expect. Once you see darkness, it is really dark, and when the light shines for you, it is really shining. We all have (or will have) turmoil at some point in our lives. It’s how we face it that makes the difference. My advice: Take one day at a time because one day is sometimes all you get.
Please tell us about AnaOno.
AnaOno is my dream come true. Since my earliest memories and as a fashion designer, it was always my dream to have my own business, to have my own fashion line, and to bring the world something I thought was beautiful and express this in my own way. It took me a long time to get there. I worked at several fashion companies, grew my experience in design and development, sourced products around the world, did sales, did marketing, and then launched a business. It is not just AnaOno that makes me proud. It’s the hard work we do for the community. We bring to light many conversations that are often hidden in the shadows, stories of the lives of patients that are swept under the rug, because they aren’t pretty and they aren’t pink. We know we are not a pink ribbon. We are faced with a chronic illness, sometimes a life-threatening illness every day of our life, but it doesn’t mean we aren’t living. We hope to live fully, and proudly. Cancer doesn’t get to take that away.
Do you think there are structural or other barriers impeding the emergence of more female leaders?
I was always a bit oblivious to the barriers of female leaders. This is mostly because my entire experience has been in the fashion industry, where I feel these lines are a bit blurred more than other industries. My eyes were opened when I started a business, a business that required outside funding to grow, and business for women by women, especially women’s health. Then, I saw them, loud and clear. It’s unfortunate that there are barriers that exist in our culture to drive success away from minorities because so many of us are trying to solve big problems that exist in this world. But because we are solving problems, often times, bettering the lives of so many living on this earth, and aren’t power hungry or money hungry individuals, we are seen as weak or undeserving. This is deeply embedded in our culture, and as long as we band together, lift each other up, and support one another, we can drive and even force change. I am proud to be a part of the generation making an impact on closing these gaps. I am proud to own a business during these times. Although hard, I hope to pave the way for the many that will follow me so they have equal opportunities in the workforce.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.AnaOno.com
- Phone: 866-879-1744
- Email: cs@AnaOno.com
- Instagram: @AnaOnoIntimates
- Facebook: @AnaOnoIntimates
- Twitter: @AnaOnoIntimates
- Other: @DaynaDono
Image Credit:
Bio: Roohi Photo, AnaOno: Julie Holder Photography
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