After undergoing a double mastectomy, Olivia Munn admitted she had a difficult time adjusting to her new reality.
Munn, 43, underwent the procedure in May 2023 after being diagnosed with breast cancer. One week after the surgery, Munn returned to the hospital to remove her bandages.
“I saw myself for the first time and I was in shock,” Munn told People in a story published Wednesday, April 17. “It was incredibly hard.”
Calling it a “shock to the system,” Munn reiterated that she was left feeling numb despite her doctor’s assertion that the surgery had gone well.
“I had such a hard time,” Munn continued. “I remember just looking in the mirror with him and just having no emotion, just taking in what he was saying.”
After leaving the hospital, Munn explained, the emotional floodgates eventually opened.
“When I got home, I undressed and looked in the mirror again,” she said, “and that’s when I just absolutely broke down.”
Munn has since had reconstructive surgery, which has made things “much better.”
“It’s not the same,” she noted, “and that’s OK.”
The actress began hormone suppression therapy in November 2023 to tame a future risk of cancer, which put Munn into medically induced menopause. Still, despite the struggles, she knows she’s one of the lucky ones.
“I’m here, and I’m extremely happy that I got the opportunity to fight,” Munn said. “I was given that chance, and I know a lot of people in my situation don’t have that as an option. So I’m extremely grateful.”
Candidly, Munn admitted that the entire process post-diagnosis was overwhelming, especially when it came to deciding what path to take surgically.
“There’s so much information, and you’re making these huge decisions for the rest of your life,” she said. “I really tried to be prepared, but the truth is that nothing could prepare me for what I would feel like, what it would look like and how I would handle it emotionally. It was a lot tougher than I expected.”
Munn now calls her surgical scars her “battle wounds,” which she’s more than happy to sport given the time she gets to spend with her 2-year-old son, Malcolm, whom she shares with partner John Mulaney.
“When I’m with [Malcolm], it’s the only time my brain doesn’t think about being sick,” she explained. “I’m just so happy with him. And it puts a lot of stuff into perspective. Because if my body changes, I’m still his mom. If I have hot flashes, I’m still his mom. If I lose my hair, I’m still his mom. That’s really what matters the most to me. I get to be here for him.”
