Veteran actress Kathy Bates diagnosed with a serious chronic health condition

In 1970, Kathy Bates headed to New York to try her luck at acting. She reminisces about the time, how she was never an ingenue but managed to make it work. “I was never an ingenue,” she says. “I’ve always just been a character actor. When I was younger, it was a real problem, because I was never pretty enough. It was hard, not just for the lack of work, but because you have to face up to how people are looking at you,” Bates said.

Her broadway career took off in 1980 when she played Stella May in Come Back To The Five And Dime Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean. The actress lost out on film-screen adaptations of characters she played a few times. But when she turned 42 years old, she turned a successful start almost overnight because of her role as a psychotic fan in Misery which even earned her a best actress Academy Award.

She talked about the kind of roles she received saying, “You’re either young and glamorous and you’re going to get the lead, or it’s the opposite: you’re not attractive enough. So you’re playing the friend or the killer or the lesbian or the doctor or whatever,” she said. “But the one who gets to play the young, pretty, gets-the-boy-at-the-end role doesn’t have any power. And vice-versa: a character can have power, but not femininity.”

She started directing episodes including some for shows like Homicide: Life On The Street, NYPD Blue, Oz, and the hugely successful TV series Six Feet Under.

In her personal life, the actress has experienced some setbacks related to her health. She was diagnosed with cancer twice in her life; in 2003 and 2012. In 2003 she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer and with breast cancer in 2012.

Following her breast cancer surgery, actress Kathy Bates started to open up about her lymphedema diagnosis. She works as the spokesperson for the Lymphatic Education & Research Network.

She opened up about having lost 80 pounds over the last few years. The actress has to wear compression sleeves so her arms do not swell up. She makes sure to wear them when flying or doing a strenuous task because without them her condition tends to flare up.

She has to remind herself to slow down to manage the condition, the actress said, “If I can stop rushing, relax my shoulders, straighten my spine, breathe deeply, and focus on each little moment of completing a task, I have more confidence in my ability to live with LE. The pandemic forced me to slow down.”

She advises anyone with the condition to not let it stop them from living their life. The actress said, “Going out in public wearing a compression garment, especially when people aren’t educated about LE, can sometimes be more painful than the disease itself. However, hiding at home and living a sedentary life will only make things worse for your body and brain.”

Related Posts

If you urinate in the shower, be careful, you should know that…

Cystitis is a bacterial infection of the urinary system. It is more common in women; around 20% of women experience at least one episode of cystitis in…

Find a clever trick to solve remote control problems

Say goodbye to the hassle of fickle remotes! Discover quick and simple ways to diagnose and fix your remote with ease—no tech skills required. Common Remote Control…

I Refused to Attend My Son’s Wedding And Instead Spent the Day With His Ex-Wife

My 25-year-old son married Tina, a 23-year-old woman. At first, everything was all right. They even had a baby, but then, as if it were unimportant, my…

I grew up in Iowa and my dad used to take me to get these all the time…

Ingredients – For the Patty Melts: 1 pound ground beef, 6 slices rye bread, ½ teaspoon onion powder ,½ teaspoon garlic powder, Salt to taste, Black pepper,…

A new symbol is showing up on some parking spaces!

The handshake symbol marks designated zones at the Pembroke OPP station (77 International Dr.) for secure online meetups. These “community safety zones” let you complete online purchases…

Elvis Presley’s 1962 Private Jet Is Up For Auction – Here’s How It Looks Inside

Note: we are republishing this story which originally made the news in December 2022. Elvis Presley’s iconic 1962 Lockheed 1329 JetStar, a symbol of his larger-than- life…