6th March 2026
Notes From A Founder,
by Lauren Mahon
6th March 2026
Notes From A Founder,
by Lauren Mahon
The Otherland
Where Anything Goes
The Otherland is a parallel world, a realm that reveals your many personalities. You’re fearless, subversive, and transformative. Think of it as a mirror universe, where you can explore your darkest fantasies and indulge your sensuality for the many versions of you.
From lace to latex, corsets and fishnet styles—we’ve got all you’ll need for this Halloween and beyond.
For the next instalment of our series, we speak to Lauren Mahon, founder of GIRLvsCANCER, a charity and inclusive community that works to end isolation and smash the stigma surrounding cancer. The conversation brings together core Bluebella and GIRLvsCANCER values: to empower women to seek pleasure and indulge their sensuality, whatever they’re experiencing.
She tells us how she navigates the world as a female founder, the achievements and challenges that come with championing such a meaningful cause and how she remains confident and sensual amidst it all.
In honour of International Women’s Day, we have partnered with the charity and, at no extra cost to you, 5% of every purchase throughout March will be donated to the charity.
*Donation selected and applied in shopping cart.
GIRLvsCANCER was born from an incredibly personal experience. At what point did you realise your story could become something bigger?
It’s a really hard thing to pinpoint tbh. From the get-go, the response from the cancer community was electric and it gathered at speed, which was so gorgeous because I realised then that I wasn’t alone and that GIRLvsCANCER was resonating with the right audience. But I guess the moment it started to hit home was when I received ‘The Triumph Award’ at Stylist Magazine’s inaugural Remarkable Women Awards in 2019.
I’m generally quite a confident woman, but my sister Hayley - my plus one for the evening - still talks about how mad it was seeing me so shell-shocked. I was completely overwhelmed by the scale of it. I mean, just the fact that I was being recognised in a room full of females I admire was wild. From music icons to fave actresses to Olympians and activists who were doing far more impressive things, like changing the blummin’ law. I was truly shooketh.
Receiving the award for my work with GIRLvsCANCER on such a renowned and respected platform made me realise the impact was way greater than I had imagined.
What has surprised you most about becoming a charity founder and champion for women going through similar experiences?
The fact that I’m a charity founder knocks me for six most days. That was never on my Lauren Mahon bingo card. But neither was cancer to be fair. What’s surprised me most is the extent to which women’s health is a shambles. Like we know it is on some level, but the more I hear about the experiences of others it really is insane and fatally negligent.
I’ve also been surprised by how the media and brands often have a very exploitative way of leveraging my community for commercial gain. They’re interested when it’s all headscarves and headstones, then are quick to discard. No fee to pay for therapy after pouring out our traumas so that you can sell a pink piece of toot. Outreaching without due diligence on a patient's current situation causes huge emotional collateral damage.
It’s definitely gotten better over the years since I was diagnosed. But there is still a tendency towards charity campaigns that are rooted in trauma porn rather than real investment in improving conditions for the cause. Ya know?
We loved the ‘Smash The Stigma’ campaign. How has your relationship with your own body/sensuality/sexuality changed through illness, recovery and advocacy? What stories do you hear from other women?
In all honesty, it’s still something I massively struggle with. I do the work as a means of forcing myself into a sensual mindset with my body. Not only can desire be affected by medical side effects, personally, I have found that my relationship to my body has altered in that I don’t trust it. I’m so grateful to this incredible infrastructure for keeping me alive and getting me through huge physical trauma. Yet. The trauma is stored deep in every cell of my body and that is an internal struggle that often puts sexuality on the back burner.
The feeling is similar for so many of the women in my community. Especially for those with more severe surgical outcomes, such as mastectomy or ostomy. A very visual reminder of this trauma. It breaks my soul.
That’s why it is so vital to see this sexual reconnection as a muscle to be trained. To feel strong in that side of yourself. For yourself. It’s not easy, but it’s important and something I not only champion but practice myself. We all deserve to feel ourselves. In whatever way you want to take that.
GIRLvsCANCER was born from an incredibly personal experience. At what point did you realise your story could become something bigger?
It’s a really hard thing to pinpoint tbh. From the get-go, the response from the cancer community was electric and it gathered at speed, which was so gorgeous because I realised then that I wasn’t alone and that GIRLvsCANCER was resonating with the right audience. But I guess the moment it started to hit home was when I received ‘The Triumph Award’ at Stylist Magazine’s inaugural Remarkable Women Awards in 2019.
I’m generally quite a confident woman, but my sister Hayley - my plus one for the evening - still talks about how mad it was seeing me so shell-shocked. I was completely overwhelmed by the scale of it. I mean, just the fact that I was being recognised in a room full of females I admire was wild. From music icons to fave actresses to Olympians and activists who were doing far more impressive things, like changing the blummin’ law. I was truly shooketh.
Receiving the award for my work with GIRLvsCANCER on such a renowned and respected platform made me realise the impact was way greater than I had imagined.
The Otherland
Where Anything Goes
The Otherland is a parallel world, a realm that reveals your many personalities. You’re fearless, subversive, and transformative. Think of it as a mirror universe, where you can explore your darkest fantasies and indulge your sensuality for the many versions of you.
From lace to latex, corsets and fishnet styles—we’ve got all you’ll need for this Halloween and beyond.
How do you personally reconnect with yourself on days when confidence feels harder to access?
It varies day to day depending on the feeling. Being with my real ones helps the most. Getting outside of myself and seeing myself through the eyes of those that love me is a very powerful thing especially in a digital age. Helps me to remember who I am, what I stand for and that I actually really love the woman I’ve become.
Being in service always reminds me that we all have an important part to play in our collective wellbeing too. That could be helping someone with their shopping bags, handing back a dropped toy, complimenting an outfit or smiling at passers by.
For me confidence rarely comes from the visual or physical but more of a call to how I feel I show up and am received in the world. As w*nky as that sounds! If I feel confident of myself on the inside it has a domino effect.
Also the really obvious stuff like meditation, journaling and being in nature does properly do the job. Annoyingly. It’s one of the many reasons that I moved to the seaside. To be able to access these ways of being way more easily than I could in London.
As we move towards International Women’s Month, we spotlight our recent Modern Sensuality Panel Talk event, discussing the results from our global study and celebrating the community campaign.
To celebrate the launch of our Modern Sensuality global study and Community Campaign, we hosted an intimate panel event at Selfridges Cinema. In a room filled with influential women, the discussion unpacked the findings of our research exploring female empowerment, pleasure, and what it truly means to reclaim sensuality in today’s world — from the bedroom to the boardroom.
Presented by writer and broadcaster Emma Louise Boynton, the conversation brought together Bluebella Founder & CEO Emily Bendell, campaign star and author Charli Howard, and award-winning researcher Candice Hargans.
Building a charity rooted in vulnerability must require a unique kind of leadership. How do you protect your energy while staying open and authentic?
That, my loves, is something I’m still trying to figure out. To be open hearted is to also allow the tough stuff in too. I don’t think you can be truly authentic whilst cutting the cord connecting you with the tougher stuff.
I like to think I’m pretty good at being honest about the fact I’m struggling. I say it to those closest to me and those in my online orbit. It allows me to erect firm boundary lines albeit with soft edges. I never pretend to have it all figured out or to know exactly what I’m doing and I reckon that’s why I’m able to connect with other women quite easily. Because I’m very honest about wanting to be a disciple of my community’s wisdom, not just dish out falsehoods when I feel as though I’m falling apart.
GIRLvsCANCER was also built during and beyond my own breast cancer diagnosis which gave the charity a unique and powerful pull for the community. However much of this was built on shared trauma - trauma bonding if you will. Which is amazing as I was able to serve the community in ways that only someone with shared lived experience can. But. And it’s a big but. Doing so whilst trying to heal and process my own cancer meant that my cup wasn’t just empty. The well was bone dry pal.
In 2023 I had to step back from GIRLvsCANCER for a while as I just had nothing left to give. The charity started to feel like being in survival mode 24/7 and I knew in order to realign and be rooted in my purpose I had to step off the carousel. That was the only way to protect my energy long-term.
Now in 2026, almost ten years since diagnosis and the start of GIRLvsCANCER I feel so ready to pick up my plans with the charity. It will be in a much more measured, meaningful way that allows me to collaborate with the community to make a tangible impact for those dealing with cancer now and for those to come. I hope that this alignment with my babes at Bluebella will be a stunning kickstart to the next chapter of GIRLvsCANCER.
In honour of International Women’s Day, we have partnered with the charity and, at no extra cost to you, 5% of every purchase throughout March will be donated to the charity.
*Donation selected and applied in shopping cart.
Ends 31st March 11.59pm.