Episode 8 - Jane Elliott: How navigating cancer treatment led to founding adaptive clothing brand Brighter Day

Transcript

Maddy: This podcast is recorded on the lands of the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin nations. We pay our respects to the traditional custodians of this country and elders past and present. We extend our respects to any First Nations, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people joining us today.

Larissa: Welcome to today's episode of No Spoons to Give, the podcast where we explore life's ups and downs with neurodivergence, chronic illness and disability. And we chat with the voices that make our community so wonderful. I'm Larissa and I've got the lovely Maddy here sitting next to me. Maddy, how are you?

Maddy: I'm doing well today. Struggling a bit with temperature dysregulation, but doing okay. What about you?

Larissa: I'm doing good. Melbourne has been really warm lately, but I'm sure typical Melbourne weather, it will be raining by the time we leave the studio and we'll just have to take that in our stride.

Maddy: Absolutely. Melbourne weather changes almost as much as my chronic illness does.

Larissa: That's it. Have you got a recommendation for me today?

Maddy: I do. And in shocking news, it is a book. It's a book called I'll Let Myself In: Breaking down doors, claiming space and finding your wheels by Hannah Diviney. It's an honest and warmhearted memoir made up of a series of personal essays about a young disabled woman living with Cerebral Palsy, who is finding herself as an activist, a writer, a journalist, and an actor. Hannah has done such incredible work for the disability community and I'm just ready to see her star in her very first Disney Princess film. Disney, get on it.

Larissa: Absolutely.

Maddy: She's got a petition and everything.

Larissa: That is amazing. And I love Hannah. I've been following her for a long time. Hannah, if you're listening, we love you.

Maddy: We'd love to chat with you... maybe.

Larissa: I have got a recommendation for you.

Maddy: Great.

Larissa: I'm going to mix things up today and recommend an app that I've been using. So very exciting. I have dabbled in the Calm App on and off for quite a few years. I tend to forget to open it when I need it most, but I've recently noticed that they've added a whole ADHD series, which I've been finding super useful. It's very neuro-inclusive with its language, and the sessions are just genuinely really helpful, particularly the SOS overwhelm session. And this is not sponsored in any way. Not that we have podcast sponsors.

Maddy: We do not.

Larissa: But yeah, just thought I'd add that in. But yeah, it's a great tool for when you're feeling overwhelmed if you need help sleeping, that type of thing. So definitely recommend that. And just the Calm App as a whole.

Maddy: Okay, great. I'm going to have to check that out. I definitely could do with being a little bit more calm.

Larissa: Calm, if you're listening and you do want to sponsor us, this is your opportunity.

Maddy: You've got your opportunity right in front of you. So today we're speaking with Jane Elliott. Jane is the inspiring founder and co-designer behind the functional adaptive fashion brand Brighter Day. Through her personal experience in receiving cancer treatment, she has now tapped into her lifelong love of fashion to create a stylish range of garments that intuitively adapt to the needs of ongoing medical procedures.

Larissa: I just love that Jane is led by curiosity and problem solving and has continued to learn more about medical devices that people have for all kinds of treatments and illnesses so that she can keep making adaptive clothing to meet the needs of many others. Jane, thank you so much for joining us today. We're so excited to be chatting with you.

Jane: Thank you. I'm so happy to be here. Lovely to speak to you both today.

Larissa: Your journey in creating Brighter Day is deeply personal and related to your own experience. Can you share how your experience as a cancer patient led to designing adaptive clothing?

Jane: Yeah, so when I was diagnosed and started treatment, I was really struggling when I had to have so many cannula access and because of previous surgeries, I could only have access from one arm. And so that made it even more frustrating and painful and difficult for the nurses. And one nurse one day suggested to me, "You should get a chest port put in." And I'd never heard of it. And I spoke to my doctor and he said, "Yep, great idea." So I did a bit of research and it turns out it's been the best thing. I've had my chest port in now for seven years, and I've used it for all of my treatments, all of my blood draws, whenever I need to receive fluid or anything like that. It is just one less thing that I need to worry about, knowing that they will get access straight away and I can have my treatment no problem.

But the main thing that I was coming up against every time I would now go in for treatment was that I had to think about my clothing a lot differently and made sure that I had the right access so that it could be accessed by the nurse properly, safely with a sterile field. But also, I was in a public hospital, so often you're in a public setting and I like to have a bit of privacy, obviously, and I just found that I was struggling to find the right clothes that allowed me the right access. So after searching around online, I couldn't really find a whole lot. And I just sort of thought maybe I can put a zip in a T-shirt because I love to wear T-shirts, and I got my mum to help me do that. And that was really what changed everything. The nurse that was helping me the first time was shocked and she said, "This is a great idea, now I've got enough access and it's comfortable for you." And so it kind of just went from there really.

Maddy: There is so much more to accessibility than people typically realise. It also extends to what we wear. What challenges do you think people with chronic illnesses, disabilities or those receiving treatments for medical conditions face when it comes to clothing, and how does Brighter Day solve them?

Jane: There's quite a few things that come into play here. The main thing for me obviously was accessibility to the medical device or access where you need to get lines. So if you're connected to a line for even one day, let alone, some people are connected for days on end, it's how do you get dressed to either bathe, have a shower, or to change your clothing if something needs changing? And it's also things like comfort. So a lot of fabrics can cause either friction or if you've got sensitivities to certain fabrics, if you're going through hormonal changes due to cancer treatment, which is really common. I find now I can't wear polyesters, so I choose all sorts of different natural fibres like linen and cotton, bamboo. So it lets your body breathe while you are having treatment while you're in a hospital environment. So that's how I approach, you know, designing the clothes.

They're not only functional in the way that they can adjust and adapt, but the fabric choice itself means that the person is going to be comfortable in their environment and comfortable in their own body. And that that fabric isn't going to make your whole experience even worse. So I also like to use colour as well because I felt that often when I would go into hospital, you tend to fade into the background. And when I would wear colour, nurses would often comment, compliment, and say, "Oh, you look great. Everything's so bright, you look lovely." And you can see it uplifts them as well. But it also gave me a lovely boost. And realistically that's where the name Brighter Day came from because it really did brighten my day, just one little comment from somebody. So I really enjoy having the two or three elements. There really is the function, the colour, and the fabric choices to make sure that everyone's comfortable.

Larissa: I love that. And I love how you're considering so many things in your design as well. For many people, getting dressed can be quite a mindless task and it's not something we often think twice about, but for other people it can be a source of frustration or even pain. How do your designs help people feel more comfortable, confident, and gain back a sense of that independence and dignity?

Jane: One thing that I really noticed once I'd made a couple of shirts for myself, this is well before I'd started the brand and started designing for others, is that I had two shirts that I knew that I could wear every time I was going to the hospital. So back then it was probably once or twice a week, whether it was a blood test or receiving treatment on my clinical trial. And so when I was so fatigued and so exhausted, it meant that I didn't have to make another decision that morning. All I had to do was roll out of bed, open my wardrobe and say, "That's my T-shirt for today." Because I know I will have easy access to my port. It's not one more thing I just don't have to think about. And I think when you're in the depths of a lot of medical treatment, especially cancer treatment, fatigue is something that almost everybody gets.

And it varies along the way, depending on your treatment and where you are at. But little decisions like that, if you can remove some of those out of your day, it's just one less thing to worry about. And so now that I have a range of clothes that I can choose from, I know that they all fit, they're all comfortable, and they all are fit for purpose. So when I open my wardrobe now, if I go to treatment, I've got a bit of a bigger range to choose from, obviously, but it still narrows down the field of, "What am I going to wear today?" I can choose exactly from this selection and say, I know everything here I'm going to be comfortable in. I can go have a scan in because the zips are metal free. So I just choose from that pile. And that's just one less thing to have to worry about every day.

Maddy: Being able to just know what to wear when you wake up, that saves so much time, energy, and planning, which obviously can contribute to the fatigue, all that planning. So that's such a great way to address that problem, I think. So I was wondering, with Brighter Day, did you involve other patients, disabled people, or healthcare professionals in the design process to ensure that Brighter Day met their needs?

Jane: Yes, I definitely had. It's one thing that I wanted to prioritise and I keep in mind as I keep designing and moving along as well, there's a couple of reasons. Obviously I'm coming from a personal experience that I wanted to solve a problem that I have, and I know that there would be a lot of other people with similar challenges, so I wanted to make sure that was represented. But I also have some feelings about creating a business and trying to sell products to people who are disabled and who are in some of the worst times of their life. So it took me a while to reconcile that, where I made sure that I'm coming from the right place, I'm coming from a place of wanting to help people and provide a service and a product that people can really align with.

And I'm not someone that's just coming and seeing a gap in a market and trying to make a million dollars out of it because it's just nothing like that. And the other thing that I like to prioritise is because I've essentially been out of work now for, I mean, apart from the business, it's probably been about five years. I had to stop my job pretty soon after I was diagnosed because my treatment was so gruelling. And so many disabled people, so many people who are on cancer treatment or other medical treatment, long-term treatment, we don't have the ability to work a standard job or a standard career even because of how our health affects our time and our energy.

And so I really want to make sure that I support people who are also working for themselves, who are disabled or undergoing treatment, things like that. So I've worked with a lot of graphic designers as well as some of the print designers and now my copywriter. So it's all those sorts of ways that I find I can connect with the community. They really understand it on a better level. So I'm not having to teach somebody who doesn't understand it, how to connect with my audience or how to make sure that the message is correct because they already get it. So now that we have great chats about it, I'm sort of already here and now we can sort of talk further about the product or talk more about the messaging that we want to get to the audience now.

Larissa: I love that. So you've spoken a bit about how Brighter Day and having access to clothing that I guess you enjoy and that helps you in your day-to-day has helped you. Have you received any feedback from your community on how Brighter Day clothing has made an impact to their day-to-day lives?

Jane: Yeah, absolutely. Which is the best part because it's one of the things that, especially when you're working on your own, you're working on an idea and I think it's the best idea, but until you can get feedback from other people to say, "Oh my gosh, I can't believe this doesn't exist before, or I haven't found anything like this before." It sort of solidifies that I've made the right choice and I'm going to keep pursuing it. Because it's a hard yard running a business and funding a fashion business is insanely difficult.

So those are the comments and compliments and feedback that I sort of run on because I know that I keep going, I'm in the right direction and I'm helping the right people. I have also had a lot of feedback from people who once they find out about it, they say, "Gosh, I wish this was around when I was having treatment," or, "I wish I knew about you when my mum was going through breast cancer or something." And so that again, just reinforces the idea that it is needed and people are wanting it. So now I'm just looking to spread the word even further.

Maddy: Ithink that you've made such a good point in having this product where people would just, they would be falling over themselves to have had it in the past, but now that you have it, I mean, they're going to be spreading the word to everyone who's been struggling to find fashion that's beautiful, but also works with the treatments that they're receiving or their disability or chronic illness. We're going to just take a quick ad break and we'll get back to talking a bit more about adaptive clothing and how that has really worked in the design process.

Larissa: Hey Maddy, do you want to know what one of my favourite profile features is on Spoony?

Maddy: That you can use it to post more photos of your dog?

Larissa: I'll take any opportunity I can to post dog pics, but no. Did you know that Spoony allows you to share your support needs on your profile so that your new friends can understand you a bit better? On mine, I've got routines, quiet spaces, energy conservation, and visual schedules because we all know how much I love mind maps and naps.

Maddy: That's so cool. Can I put energy conservation there? I have to pace my energy or else I get really exhausted?

Larissa: You absolutely can. There's so many cool profile features that make Spoony unique to any other social platform. You can also display your conditions or illnesses, share your interests, and let people know how your energy levels are tracking by using our signature Spoon status. I'd really encourage people to check it out for themselves. You can sign up for free using the link in this podcast, or you can find us in the App Store or Google Play.

Maddy: So adaptive clothing is often designed with function over style. How important was it for you in creating something that feels fashionable and empowering?

Jane: Something that I really wanted to focus on in the beginning was that every time I went to hospital, especially when you go to have a scan or a test or anything like that, is they give you scrubs or a gown. And one, they're so crusty and they hurt and they're frustratingly uncomfortable, but they're also the same colour as everybody else. So you blend into the walls, you blend into being another patient. And what I found more often than not is that staff end up treating you as another patient. And yes, you are a patient, but I really wanted to recognise that you're also a person and you have a personality. And that's something that can often get lost when you're going through a long-term treatment is that your identity sort of becomes this disease or challenge or whatever's happening. And so I really wrestled with that for a long time and once I started wearing colourful clothing or brought my own clothes to wear in a scan, I just felt that that was, again, just such a small decision, but it made a big difference on the day.

And so when I was designing these clothes, I really wanted to think about that and think that I don't want these clothes to look like medical clothes. I don't want them to look like scrubs. I don't want them to look like a gown that everybody else is wearing. I want them to look like street clothes or something that you would love to wear going out for lunch. And the idea came then I was thinking about, "Okay, if someone is going to have a scan and then they're going to go meet their friend for lunch, you don't have to change. And again, that's one more thing that comes up over and over again when you're in hospitals a lot is that you're constantly changing. You're constantly taking your clothes off and your body almost is not your own anymore. And so it's about taking back a bit of power, taking back some autonomy into who you are. And really remembering who your personality is and who you are and your identity and reflecting that in the clothes that you wear.

Maddy: I love that so much. That's absolutely true. With those scrubs, you absolutely fade into the background and having something that really connects you to being more than just a medical body, it's so wonderful. I'm going to have to be looking up for my next hospital stay where I can get some of your beautiful clothes.

Larissa: Just picturing too, in a beautiful world, a whole hospital full of patients wearing Brighter Day. Imagine how even for the healthcare workers as well, it just brings so much joy to everyone.

Jane: Yeah, and that's something that's, it really does. Again, these things seem small, but over time, and when you really think about it, we've got so many crappy things to deal with through the days of treatment that that small little thing can actually make all the difference. And the look on the healthcare workers' face and the enjoyment that they get to see new colourful things is great.

Larissa: Absolutely. I love that. What are you working on this year for Brighter Day? What's next then? Are you working on expanding the product range or new materials or anything exciting in the works this year?

Jane: Yep, it's a bit of both. So I've very soon got coming out. It's a plain T-shirt actually, so going a little bit away from it, but I'm also trying to incorporate that some people don't love to wear bright colours and bright patterns, but they still need adjustable adaptable clothes. So I'm still using colour, but not patterns in this sense. And so this will be very standard T-shirt style that has zip access for chest port, Hickman lines, and then moving into winter and looking at long sleeve options. So we've got a great jumper coming and then also one that is for children.

So unfortunately there's a lot of children that need long-term medical care as well. So those will have access both for chest area and for arms as well. So we're looking at people who don't necessarily have a chest port or a Hickman line and they have cannula access. So you still sometimes need adjustable and adaptable for that because it can be really cold in the hospital or it's the middle of winter and you're getting cold anyway. So those are what I'm looking for moving into winter and they're not too far away. I've finished my sampling and so now we're moving into production soon.

Larissa: Wow, that's super exciting. And I can't wait to see what you do with kids ranges as well. I mean, yeah, I'm sure there'd be some super fun patterns and things that can bring smiles to everyone's faces, so we'll definitely keep an eye out for those. That's probably a great spot to wrap up on. Jane, thank you so much for chatting with us and sharing more about your personal story and Brighter Day. It's been amazing getting to know, I guess the lovely face behind Brighter Day and your story. And yeah, we really appreciate you taking the time to chat with us.

Maddy: Thank you so much, Jane. It's been wonderful.

Jane: Thank you so much.

Maddy: Where can people find out a bit more about Brighter Day?

Jane: So you can read all about us and see all the products on our website, which is brighterday.com.au. And we're on the regular social channels, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok at brighterdayau. And we are looking to expand into hopefully getting either stocked in some retail pharmacies and things like that. So if you've got any ideas about where you'd like to see any clothing stocked, please let me know. All the contact details are on our website.

Larissa: Absolutely. And we'll share all of that in the show notes as well, so people can quickly find you and follow you and check you out.

Jane: Perfect. Thank you.

Larissa: Thank you.

Maddy: Thank you so much. This podcast is brought to you by Spoony, a safe space for neurodivergent chronically ill and disabled people to make friends and find support. Spoony is the world's very first social app designed with accessibility at its core. If you like this episode, it would mean the absolute world to us if you could hit subscribe or share it with a friend. If you'd like to join our Spoony community, you can download the app on the App Store or via Google Play. And if you'd like to keep up to date with us on social media, you can follow us via the links in the show notes.