Kate Middleton is experiencing a variety of emotions right now.
While Middleton, 42, looked strong and optimistic at the Trooping the Colour ceremony last week, Queen Elizabeth’s former press secretary, Ailsa Anderson, pointed out that the mother of three is still grappling with the fact that she has cancer.
“She might be the Princess of Wales, but she is still a mother and wife and going through the same set of emotions and worries and fears as anyone else in that set of circumstances would be,” Anderson told PEOPLE on Thursday.
Middleton took six months away from the spotlight before making her grand public return at Trooping the Colour, after sharing a new update on her health.
She told fans that she’s going through chemotherapy and is “not out of the woods” yet.
But Middleton put on a brave face last Saturday when she stood on the balcony at Buckingham Palace for the birthday celebrations for King Charles III, who also has cancer.
“It would have been difficult to tell that either the King or the princess had been ill and undergoing some pretty rugged treatment,” royal author Bedell Smith told PEOPLE.
At Trooping the Colour, Middleton was joined by the rest of the royal family, including her kids Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, 9, and Prince Louis, 6, to watch the traditional military flypast.
Middleton had a few cute interactions with her children during the ceremony, including when Louis whispered something to his mom and told his parents how in awe he was over the 30 jets that flew over the palace.
Royal historian Amanda Foreman told PEOPLE that Middleton is focused on caring for her children as she goes through cancer treatments.
“The children won’t remember Mummy shaking hands or really care, but they will recall Mummy making cakes [or when] she went off to the local shop and bought something or took them somewhere,” Foreman said.
The Princess of Wales told the world about her cancer diagnosis in a pre-recorded video on March 22, after speculation began swirling about why she had been noticeably absent from the public spotlight.
“This of course came as a huge shock, and William and I have been doing everything we can toprocess and manage this privately for the sake of our young family,” she said at the time about her diagnosis.
Days before the Trooping the Colour ceremony, Middleton revealed that she was well enough to attend the event.
“I am making good progress, but as anyone going through chemotherapy will know, there are good days and bad days,” she said.
“I am learning how to be patient, especially with uncertainty. Taking each day as it comes, listening to my body, and allowing myself to take this much-needed time to heal,” she added.
After Trooping the Colour, royal expert Katie Nicholl claimed that the ceremony took a toll on Middleton’s health.
“She was on her feet for a long period of time,” Nicholl told “Entertainment Tonight.”
“There was a moment where she was watching the parade . . . and was offered a seat, which she gratefully accepted. That’s just a bit of an acknowledgement that she is not as strong, not as fit, as she was before she went into this treatment.”
Middleton and the palace have not revealed what type of cancer she has.
