Emma Claire is no stranger to facing fears head on and handling terrifying situations with grace and positivity. In a time when many of us watch the news in fear of the upcoming changes to our political landscape, one could argue holding on to some positivity and hope is of the utmost importance. That’s what makes Emma Claire so admirable. If you follow her on instagram, you’ll find photos of her glammed up and stage-ready for her burlesque performances. In others, you’ll find her beaming as she documented her final treatments for breast cancer.

Having grown up in Richmond but ready for a new challenge, Claire relocated to New Orleans to pursue a job in vintage clothes reproduction. Naturally, she wanted to get all of her annual health check ups before making the move. That’s when her doctors found evidence of the cancer.

“I had no symptoms at all, whatsoever, nothing. I didn’t even really use my insurance much,” Claire recalled. “They found it because they decided to do a mammogram. I’m only 25. They don’t usually do that until you’re 30.”

Claire’s age held a lot of significance for her. On one hand, she was unusually young to have been diagnosed with breast cancer. “Everyone I knew that had cancer was old or very young when they had it,” she said.

On the other hand, her age enabled her to stay on her parent’s insurance, for which all us young folk have Obamacare to thank.

“Obamacare did physically save me. He changed the cut off to 26. Without that I wouldn’t have had insurance,” said Claire. “I’ve been able to have all these procedures, countless procedures. I went from chemo to a double mastectomy, reconstruction, radiation. I was able to get it all done in a year, and get it quickly done because of the Affordable Care Act allowing me to stay on the insurance, allowing me to get reconstruction.”

The conversations surrounding the repeal of the Affordable Care Act have instilled worry in much of the public, especially here in Richmond. Claire said she’s mostly concerned about a lack of replacement plan should the ACA be repealed.

“I know Obamacare has its issues… I just need to know what they’re gonna replace it with,” said Claire. “It’s a very volatile time right now.”

While the cancer wrecked havoc on her, Claire turned the worst of it into positive experience. She’s back doing burlesque after taking a hiatus, at the encouragement of her friends who are also performers. And after returning to Richmond from New Orleans, Claire found herself cultivating a supportive community of her own. She decided to be open about what she had been going through, not only by just telling the people around her but also by posting updates on her Instagram.

She’s received incredible support from the online community.

“I started posting mostly because I didn’t want people to think that I was trying to start my new life and failed but also so that I would know I wasn’t alone,” said Claire. “But that’s why when I started posting online I was meeting other people that had chronic illnesses, other people that had cancer. And it was just nice not feeling alone.”

Posting on instagram was a way for her to remain body positive as well. Burlesque is known for celebrating all kinds of body types, and posting online and sharing her story was almost a natural step. Claire said it was therapeutic for her amidst all of the changes.

“It was hard, doing burlesque again. But now I feel much more comfortable doing it. It’s helped me embrace my body again, which is more than I could ever ask for. I’ve had other survivors come to my show and say, I’ve had cancer too. You need to be able to re-embrace yourself. It’s fun being able to reach out to people through this artistic medium. That’s why I do it still,” said Claire.

Claire said that if she were to say anything to legislators about the possibility of ACA being repealed, it would be to have empathy – and that policies that include pre-existing conditions and increased age for coverage through a parent were integral to her recovery. “When I posted about Obamacare, I had other people reach out to me being like, ‘Obamacare save my life too’,” she said. “People need to know these stores, so they can put a face to it. It’s affecting a lot of people.”

No matter who or how old you are, please make sure that you are giving yourself breast self-examinations at least once a month. If you don’t know how, you can learn here.

You can check out Emma’s instagram and look out for future performances her.

Words by Kathy Mendes, Top image via pinkphotographyrva