KATIE NOWICKI
Katie got dealt a bad hand.
No way around it.
(With this being said, Katie is not accepting any new bookings.)
**Back in June, Katie was diagnosed with stage 2 breast cancer.**
July 2023
For Katie, the last two months have been an emotional roller coaster—fear of not knowing the outcome, worrying about how she will financially get through this. Katie lives alone with her cat Gus. Many of the bills she acquires are solely her responsibility. But with the cost of rent, electricity, gas, daily/monthly bills and now the medical bills, it’s hard to keep her head above water. As many of you know Katie is a tattooer, which means no employer benefits and a lot of paying out of pocket. Health insurance is outrageous and deductibles are high. Vacation pay and time paid off are nonexistent.
We'll get through this! Of course we will. Katie is a tough, determined person. But "this" is about four months of chemotherapy, then surgery, then radiation treatment. Multiple $1,000-plus medical bills have already come in and we've barely started. It is very expensive to be sick in this country!
We'd like to be past this whole ordeal come Christmas time with as little medical debt as possible. Any little thing helps!
Little treatment update: August 2023
“The first round kicked my ass, I didn’t know what to expect. To be honest, I drugged myself on nausea meds (to get ahead of it) and gave myself the worst restless leg. As week 3 came to an end, I was able to enjoy one night out that weekend before my treatment started up again and got to dance with friends at the @theglitterboys ! ✨
This time, I’ve slept … ALOT. 55hrs in the past 4 days. Luckily I have had barely any nausea and navigating this round seems a little bit easier. But the exhaustion of daily activities is hard. My hair is falling out quicker than I would like and I’m starting to see bald patches. Which is heart breaking, coming form a girl that has had long hair the majority of her life. I love myself with a shaved head, but straight skin is gonna take some time getting used to. Physically I am changing, but mentally I am trying to stay as positive and as strong as I can. Some days are harder than others and I’ve never been more thrilled for the end of a year.
Again I want to extend a sincere thank you to everyone that has made this period of time easier. From donating, to giving me longer hugs, stopping by to say hi, sending me memes and just not making my cancer the center of the show. It is the elephant in the room at times I would like to ignore.
In a few weeks (9/17) my twin and best friend @shades.of.kay is having a benefit show (Bills for Bosoms 🎀) for me at @rr_brewingco ! There will be some awesome raffles, live music by Jon Francis and permanent jewelry by @vibrantbeauty._ !! This event is from 5 - 8:30pm! Come if you can and put a few back for me!”
-Katie
PS: My bday is the week before and it would mean the world to see all your smiling faces this weekend ♥️
Update on Katie October 2023…
“Hello everyone! First and foremost, I want to express my heartfelt gratitude to each and every one of you who has reached out and generously donated to support me throughout my breast cancer journey. Your support has meant the world to me, and I am truly overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and kindness.
In recent weeks, we have held a few benefits in my honor, and I was truly moved to see so many familiar faces from my past and present. The support from my village is immense, and I will forever cherish the love and encouragement you have all shown me.
Looking ahead, I have two more treatments followed by surgery and radiation scheduled in the coming months. My hope and prayer are to put this challenging chapter behind me by 2024, so I can once again immerse myself in creating beautiful art for all of you. In the meantime, I have been keeping myself busy, working on stained glass and drawings whenever I have the energy and inspiration. However, nothing compares to the joy I feel when I see the smiles on my clients' faces and get back to tattooing. Your patience and kind words have been a true source of strength for me during this time.
Lastly, I want to emphatically say, "fuck cancer." It's a battle we are fighting together, and I am determined to overcome it with your support. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for standing by me and being a beacon of hope in my life.”
Sincerely, Katie
November Update on Katie…
“My last round of chemo was on 11/16! I’m now patiently waiting for my blood counts to come back up for surgery, which will happen at some point this month 🤞🏻 This will consist of a lumpectomy that will remove the tissue that was cancerous along side some surrounding tissue and some lymph nodes under my armpit. The recovery for this is 4-6 weeks. Once my incisions heal, I will be up for radiation! In the meantime I will undergo immunotherapy every 3 weeks, which they say is similar to getting a bag of fluid.
I am beyond stoked for chemo to be over, but the road ahead of me is still long. I can see the end, but it still feels so far away.
I want to thank all my clients for their patience and the IG world for all the support they have given me. Cancer literally robs ya of your everyday life and to say I have been mentally/emotionally fine is an understatement. This has been friggen hell.
Here’s to hoping 2024 is easier on me and I can get back on my feet doing what I love.” ❤️
-Katie
December Update on Katie…
“What a freaking year?!?! Am I right?! I know I’m not the only one looking forward to putting this past year in the past. I want to thank all my clients, once again, for your patience and support. I finally got a surgery date for 1/9, and I can not WAIT! While I spend the next 4-6 weeks after that healing, I’ll have a better idea on when I can return to work. Spring 2024 is all about rebirthing! So my clients who had booked days, keep an eye out around February for rescheduling days! I’m so looking forward to seeing all your smiling faces, giving hugs (if you’re into that) and creating art for you all once again! “
Lots of love,
-Katie ♥️
January Update on Katie…
✨Surgery is done! ✨💪🏻👊🏻
“Rumor has it the tumor was gone and the lymph nodes showed no trace. Still waiting on the official pathology on those, but Cancer can suck it, cause I’m gonna live forever!”
-Katie
February Update on Katie….
✨Blessing y’all with a selfie and an update! ✨
“Just got back from the radiation doc and it looks like I’m going to be getting 30 rounds of radiation! This will happen over the course of 6 weeks, occurring M-F! Sounds like a lot, but I’ve been through hell and back - and this is the finale folks! 😅 During that time I will be emailing clients who had booked appts and anyone that had standing deposits with no dates booked. I’m not sure the time frame that they will fill up, so my books will still be closed as I take care of them first.
I want to thank all my clients for their patience and all y’all for the ongoing support! The future is looking bright my dudes and I can’t wait to be back in the saddle!! Dip and Rip for life!”
-Katie
Welp, todays the day…I’ve tried to think of a light hearted way to say this and make it easy to tell everyone, but in reality none of this is easy and it all sucks…. on June 5th I found a lump in my breast. I have been diagnosed with stage 2 breast cancer. The last few months have been some of the hardest days of my life, but I have some really amazing people by my side that have helped me on some of the darkest days.
Over the next several months I will be undergoing chemotherapy treatments, followed by surgery and radiation. As I navigate through, I am not sure how much I will be able to work, or even if I should try. With that being said, I’m going to be rescheduling appointments with a TBD date and putting you all on a waitlist for when I return. As much as I want to continue to work, I don’t want the quality of my work to fail because of the side effects of the drugs I will be getting and would rather give you all the quality tattoos you deserve when I am able. I know some of you may be upset, and I am too. Tattooing has been my life for the past 17 years and consecutively for the last 7. I wake up, eat, breathe and sh!t tattooing. This all sucks, very much.
I’m going to keep busy by making glass, so make sure to follow @bigsassglass to stay up to date with these idle hands and snag a piece if you would like.
As if having cancer isn’t stressful enough and I now have to figure out how I am financially going get through this. Not only do I have my monthly bills to pay, I have thousands of dollars in medical bills stacking up.
Everyone that has asked me if there is anything they can do, this is what I need.
My boyfriend @billshaner_ has set up a go fundme to make this next chapter easier for me. Please share and help if you can.
Now I’ll be right back, i gotta go kick some butt ♥️
Let’s help this beautiful soul out!
