Taylor Swift’s NFL Jacket Designer, Kristin Juszczyk, Opens Up About Losing Her Mom to Breast Cancer

Whether you’re a football fan or a Fashion Week follower, September is an exciting month. NFL wife-turned-designer Kristin Juszczyk has taken on even more: As we head toward Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October, Juszczyk—who’s recently dressed figures like Taylor Swift and Simone Biles—is sharing how it shaped her life to lose her mom when Kristin was 18.

Kristin’s mom was diagnosed and treated early, but her breast cancer recurred and she eventually passed away when Kristin was in high school on Long Island. With more than one in three patients diagnosed with early breast cancer, Kristin, the youngest sibling of three, has partnered with Novartis on Understand eBC Risk, a campaign to spread awareness about early breast cancer, to help those diagnosed understand their personal risk of cancer returning, and to educate about how maintenance therapy may help them beat the odds of recurrence.

Juszczyk told us she learned design on YouTube—”It was really a love that I found later in life, and you can go to YouTube and you can learn how to do anything!” she said—and both her mom and her husband, San Francisco 49er Kyle Juszczyk, inspired her success in powerful ways. This fall, she’s secured a licensing deal with the NFL…meaning for the first time, she can expand from bespoke, one-of-a-kind pieces to apparel for all fans.

Here, she opens up about her journey.

This interview has been edited for length.

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The Healthy by Reader’s Digest: We’d love to hear a bit more about your background. Where did you learn design?

Kristin Juszczyk: It was just a lot of trial and error, a lot of playing around and figuring out what I know and what I don’t know, and a lot of video tutorials. I’ve been so blessed to be able to have dressed the celebrities that I have dressed, but my goal has always been to dress the fans. Just to walk into the stadium to see fans wearing my clothing is definitely a goal of mine.

The Healthy: That’s amazing. Is there a way that your mom inspired you to pursue your passion in life?

Kristin Juszczyk: My mom was really such a light, and one of the things that I think my mom always wanted was to be a dual-income household—I know that was something that always really weighed on her. We actually have this time capsule Christmas ornament that I look at every year, and it’s really sweet. It’s a scroll, and it lists out her hopes and her dreams. And I know one of the things on there was that she wanted to be a dual-income household, and I always carried that into my life. I always wanted to find a way to make work a passion of mine and not just be strictly going to work.

And my husband is such an inspiration in the sense where he followed his dreams and now his career is his dream, and he is so lucky to call football work. I was always inspired by him … I don’t view it as work. My mom, unfortunately, because she was always in and out of remission and treatment, she definitely dabbled here and there in different types of jobs. My mom always wanted to be a career woman, so I have carried that on.

The Healthy: Can we talk a bit about your mom’s journey through cancer? How long was she fighting it?

Kristin Juszczyk: Mom was diagnosed with cancer before I really even knew the world. It was when I was a baby. She had cancer my whole life. She was in and out of remission.

I remember times my mom didn’t have cancer, and then I remember times when it came back, but to me, that was my norm. I didn’t really know anything else, and my mom always had a smile on her face and always was so positive. She always wanted to protect us kids. I don’t think we were 100% always in the know of what was happening, but I think she did that as a protective mechanism. But with that being said, I had 18 beautiful years with my mom, and I wouldn’t be where I am or I wouldn’t be the person I am without those 18 years. So even though it was definitely cut short, I’m blessed with that time.

The Healthy: Did losing your mom play any role in inspiring you to throw caution to the wind and pursue this design dream?

Kristin Juszczyk: I think it’s definitely a perspective. I think when somebody loses a loved one that is really close to them, especially at a young age—and your mother—you deal with trauma at a young age and you kind of realize that your health is your wealth. When you have your health, you can put a lot of things in perspective. Everyone has bad days, but when you think about your worst day, nothing seems bad compared to that. So I think it’s definitely motivated me to take risk and put myself out there, because I dealt with something that was true heartbreak. In my mind I’m like, Nothing will ever compare to that. So even if I hear a million Nos today, or a million Nos for the next year about my business, that’s OK because I have my health. That’s amazing. I feel like that’s really been a good perspective for me, and I’m not scared of rejection because of that.

The Healthy: Are there ways that you are extra mindful of any risk that you might have?

Kristin Juszczyk: I really feel like knowledge is power and just being able to just research. Everyone has their own different risk factors, meaning with your physicians or taking a holistic route, we just have so much knowledge at our fingertips nowadays. So there’s really no excuse not to do the research.

I’m really excited to be a part of the Novartis campaign. I recently learned that one in every three survivors of early breast cancer are at risk of their breast cancer coming back. The eBC Risk campaign is launching so that we can have as much resources at our fingertips for any patients who are undergoing their own diagnosis—or [for] people that were in my shoes and are looking to help maybe a parent or a loved one. It’s really important to also recognize everyone’s different risk factors. I think there’s a lot of advocacy around early detection, but there also should be advocacy around recurrence.

I look back and we had internet back when I was younger, of course, but nowadays, everything is just so quick and you have so many answers right there at your fingertips. Research as you possibly can because every situation is different. We can’t compare ourselves to anyone else’s treatment because we’re all individuals and all our bodies are different. Treatments can help you and it could not help me. Just doing your [research] and meeting with your physician is probably the best step.

The Healthy: Things get really busy around this time of year, including when it comes to nutrition. Can you tell us a bit about your typical wellness routine?

Kristin Juszczyk: I think Kyle and I definitely prioritize health in our household. I mean, his body is his temple for work, so it definitely rubs off on me. Kyle and I actually really try to grow a lot of our own produce. We have a garden at home and a hydroponic garden as well. So we do a lot of that.

We definitely prioritize sleeping. Sleep is such a big recovery for your body. We try to eliminate stress. I also think that having positive outlooks on life is super important in your health as well.

The Healthy: What is one self-care routine that you refuse to skip?

Kristin Juszczyk: Right now I’m really into red light therapy. That is something that I do every single day. Kyle really brought that into our home, and he does that at his facility at work. So that’s something that I do every day in my morning routine.

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• ‘Here’s How I Knew I Had Breast Cancer’: One Survivor’s Story Following a Slightly Delayed Mammogram

• 9 Symptoms of Breast Cancer That Aren’t Lumps Every Woman Should Know