On Thursday, Kate Middleton will celebrate her 43rd birthday after a year of health challenges and time away from the spotlight. According to the Daily Mail, the Princess of Wales plans to observe the occasion “quietly” with friends and family because her children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis, are back to school this week. But someone who knows Kate well told the tabloid that she will be reflecting on how far she has come throughout her “incredibly turbulent” year.
“When you think of where she was this time last year, she’s in a much, much better space,” the source said. “As Catherine herself said, she’s looking forward to the future with hope and a new appreciation of life. However, she has also had little choice but to take a step back and focus on herself, which inevitably has led her to reassess where their priorities lie.”
When Kate checked into the London Clinic for abdominal surgery in January, her condition wasn’t an emergency, but the Mail reports that she was aware of the seriousness and potential for a lengthy recovery before it began. At first she was advised that the condition was noncancerous, but only later was she informed that the disease had been discovered.
According to the Mail, Kate’s friends agree that “it’s impossible to go through that kind of trauma and not to be changed as a person.”
Though Kate and William’s kids are back in the classroom, Kate is still planning a slow return to her duties as a working royal. A royal source told the tabloid that her experience with the disease led her to focus on her children and her family, though a commitment to service was still a priority for Kate and Prince William.
“Cancer impacts on your perspective, and what you have seen in the decisions they have made over the last year is that family and their children continue to be at the center of their universe,” the source said. “Both Their Royal Highnesses have a strong commitment to duty, service and using their platform for good. But what they are working on is ways they can balance themselves as parents with being the Prince and Princess of Wales.”
While still undergoing treatment, Kate made a few high-profile appearances at Trooping the Colour in June and Wimbledon in July. Following her September announcement that her treatment had ceased, her engagements were more frequent, including November’s Remembrance Day at the Cenotaph and her annual carol service, Together at Christmas. She will reportedly be pursuing a similar pace in 2025.
“There is no huge reset button that’s going to be hit in January,” the royal source added. “What we will actually see is a slow continuation of the Princess balancing her recovery and her public-facing duties, as she outlined back in September.”
Behind the scenes, the princess has continued working closely with her Kensington Palace staff on long-term projects like the Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood. The Mail adds that the public-relations upheaval that took place before she announced her diagnosis caused the couple to massively increase the size of their media team. This year, for the first time, she and William are also planning to issue royal warrants to the companies and brands that supply them with clothing and other household items, as King Charles III and Queen Camilla continue to do.
That said, we likely will not get too much advance notice when it comes to her public appearances. “It’s about pace,” another source told the tabloid. “I think she would also prefer to confirm only when she is certain she can attend events, rather than get anyone’s hopes up and then have to pull out.”
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