Living well with the impact of cancer
22 May, 2014
City Health Care Partnership CIC (CHCP CIC) and Penny Brohn Cancer Care are working alongside each other to provide Living Well with the Impact of Cancer, an introductory course to provide tried and tested techniques to help support people affected by cancer.
Cancer affects people in so many ways, the Living Well course encourages people to explore the meaning of cancer in their life with people who understand the journey.
Anna Buckley is a wife and mother of two and was 37 when she was first diagnosed with breast cancer. She said,
“I think cancer is still one of the most frightening diagnoses you can be given, we have a morbid fear of hearing this word. Despite the improvement in survival rates and improved diagnosis for most major types of cancer, when you are first diagnosed it is hard to make sense of anything.”
When she was given the news, Anna decided to it would be a good idea to do some research, however this wasn’t an easy task,
“There is so much conflicting information out there, anyone searching for clarity is left reeling at the enormity of trying to separate fact from fiction.”
Anna underwent her treatment with no complications, but within a year she had a recurrence of the original cancer. Now three years on Anna remains upbeat,
“My last meeting with my consultant was positive and the more time goes by without further recurrence or chronic pain anywhere else in my body, the better it looks and the more positive my prognosis becomes.”
Anna believes that the information, knowledge and support that she was looking for needs to be available to all who want to access it, and she hopes to help make that possible:
“East Yorkshire especially seems to be particularly lacking in accessible places to get complementary help and advice. Having experienced this first hand, the idea started to take hold that I should use my experience to help others and to bring some of the information and techniques that have helped me to others who might need it.”
Through the internet Anna discovered Penny Brohn Cancer Care, and would have liked to attend their courses, but their centre in Bristol was too far to travel whilst she was still undergoing treatment.
“I found out recently that they had recently started running courses in Hull. Their services and courses were very much in line with the support I had received and wanted to be able to pass onto others.”
The ‘Living Well with the Impact of Cancer’ course is a three day course held over consecutive weeks and Anna found it extremely useful.
“They focused on the ‘Whole Person Approach’ looking at how a cancer diagnosis can affect you physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. It was informative, interesting and full of vital and potentially life-changing advice without being prescriptive, off putting, or scary.”
“In addition to being given access to all this great information completely free of charge, much of which I had paid a lot of money to find out about initially. It was also the first time I had been in a space with a number of other people who really knew what getting a cancer diagnosis is like. I found it quite liberating to be able to talk freely and without reservations to others who could genuinely understand.
“I feel very grateful to have met some really lovely people both on the course and facilitating it, and I would definitely recommend this course to anyone who wants to get a bit of control back into their lives.”
The next course will be taking place on three consecutive Thursdays, 12th, 19th and 26th June 2014 starting at 10am and finishing at 4pm each week at CHCP CIC’s Business Support Centre, 5 Beacon way, Brighton Street, Hull. To book on to the course or for further information visit www.pennybrohncancercare.org/living-well, email booking@pennybrohn.org or phone 01275 370111.
