Community News - Macmillan Online Community

"I have always thought that giving up is not an option, it's more of a stepping stone to what is next" - thoughts from our Community Champion, Mike

Last week on the Community, we spotted this response from Thehighlander , one of our dedicated Community Champions. We couldn’t help but share it, it epitomises the very essence of peer support and that’s what the Community is all about. Enjoy… On the 10th May 1999 I was told that I had a rare type of Skin Lymphoma, so for over 20 years I have lived all the levels of acuity and stress so do understand the 'low' moments a cancer diagnosis brings... what did I do to overcome them? 20 years back I was told that my condition would 'get' me at some point in time, someday, some year but with no calendar... I very quickly come to realise that I could not let my condition define me. A good consultant friend told me very early on in my diagnosis that "all the stress and worry in the world would…

Ellen - Macmillan
Getting a breast cancer diagnosis: Issy’s story

“When I think about my cancer journey, I think about choices. It was about choosing to take ownership of my own personal cancer journey.” You might remember Issy from her recent feature on Community News , where she shared her story following her breast cancer diagnosis and how her relationship with her partner and herself evolved. As part of Breast Cancer Awareness Month 2022 , Issy is back to talk about another part of her story. This time, Issy talks about how important it can be to be an advocate for yourself and to listen to your body. She talks about how her own determination to ask for further tests and to keep talking to her doctor, was crucial in getting diagnosed. Issy has shared her story as a video as part of Macmillan’s Digital Storytelling project. Macmillan’s Digital Storytelling…

Eliza -Online Community Team
Cancer and Covid- Ruth's Story

October is Breast cancer awareness month and to mark this, Ruth sharing her cancer experience of being diagnosed with Breast cancer during the Coronavirus pandemic. Ruth talking about becoming a mum and being diagnosed, all during a national lockdown. I never thought I would be diagnosed with breast cancer, at 32, with a 7-week-old baby. I also never thought that I would be on my own when I heard those fateful words. But thanks to Covid and a nationwide lockdown, I was. I had found a lump in my breast whilst pregnant but thought it was due to the changes my body was going through anyway. However, after my daughter was born, the lump was still there. I also had problems breastfeeding on that side, so I decided to go to the GP to get it checked out. By this point, I was more worried about…

Megan- Online Community Team
Finding human connections and support: Rubina’s story

Receiving a cancer diagnosis can feel lonely and isolating. But you don’t have to feel alone. There’s lots of support available for you, although you may not know at first where to find it. We’re here to help here on the Online Community. Every month, we share a person from Macmillan’s Digital Storytelling project here on the Online Community. Today, we’re featuring Rubina. Rubina was diagnosed with bowel cancer. It took a long time for Rubina to receive a diagnosis, she felt her primary care did not fully investigate her concerns. By the time Rubina was diagnosed, her cancer was already advanced. Rubina felt very disappointed, angry and frustrated as there was no compassion or empathy from her medical professionals when she needed it the most. She couldn’t share her feelings as she didn…

Eliza -Online Community Team
Bereavement in the media - coping with grief

Today we are back with the third instalment of our series on coping with bereavement. This series aims to start conversations about grief and loss and provide reassurance that there is support out there if you have lost a loved one to cancer. Today we wanted to spend some time thinking about bereavement and the media and the effect it can have on those who are grieving. Whether you are watching your favourite television program, listening to the news on the radio, or scrolling through social media, today we are going to explore how the topic of death can sometimes feel like a trigger for those who are grieving, and how to navigate your relationship with the world on your screen or over the radio. We are also welcoming back our Community Champion DaveyBo today who helps support members in…

Former Member
Cancer & Me 35 Years On – Vol 2 – Best Friends Forever

Flame lily (watercolour) by Willo Today in our Community News blog Willo is back with the second instalment of our new series called ‘Cancer & me 35 years on’ . In this series, Willo, known on the Community as patsyann85 , tells us about her experience of being diagnosed with Anal cancer in 1986 while living in Zambia. We will be sharing more of Willo’s writing and incredible artwork throughout the next few months in the Community News. If you missed Vol 1, 'T o begin at the beginning' , you can click here to catch up. Here is Willo to tell us more about today’s piece: Visiting a doctor at any time can be embarrassing, but when it involves anal examinations and biopsies – and two of the doctors concerned are people you meet socially, well, it doesn’t get much worse! That said, there is…

Former Member
"It's heartwarming for me when I see in print that someone has wished me well...it's better than any pill I could take." - 'What the Community means to me...' Vol 1: tvman

Here on the Community News Blog we want to showcase just how much support, friendship and kindness is shared on this site every single day. To try and shine a light on this we are starting a new series called ‘ what the Community means to me…’ which looks at some of our member’s stories, how they came to find the Community and what it means to them to be on the site. In our first volume today tvman shares his story, why not take a moment to read through? Tvman about to plant bulbs with his grandson and wife watching. Tvman’s story I was diagnosed with Myelodysplasia (MDS) in March 2015. This diagnosis followed a period of time that my haemaglobin level was up, it was down but the general trend was downward. So in February 2015 I underwent a bone marrow examination. Getting the sample taken…

Former Member
"Summer is a time to eat lots of fresh, seasonal vegetables." - Dining with an Ostomate

We’re well and truly into Summer now, and Debbie – our ‘Chef to the Ostomates’, is back to talk to us about her favourite fresh, seasonal vegetables, and also to share with us a rather delicious ‘Courgette and mozzarella bake'. All of Debbie’s recipes are of course designed with Ostomates in mind, and in case you’d missed any of her recipes to date, you can find them all in our Ileostomy, colostomy and stoma support group here . Summertime – Courgettes and tomatoes: "For me, the stars of the season are courgettes and tomatoes." Summer is the time to eat lots of fresh, seasonal vegetables. For me, the stars of the season are courgettes and tomatoes, particularly if you are lucky enough to be able to grow them yourself. In my early days as an Ostomate, I peeled the courgettes, but after…

Former Member
Wellbeing Wednesday tips: February

In case you missed it, earlier this year we introduced ‘Wellbeing Wednesday's’ – the day of the week where we bring to you our weekly tip on improving your wellbeing; be helping improving sleep, coping with stress, or a couple of mindfulness tips to help you look for the positives throughout the day. It’s last day of February today, so here’s a summary of our tips to date: Mindfulness: Mindfulness is the basic human ability to be fully present, aware of where we are and what we’re doing, and not overly reactive or overwhelmed by what’s going on around us. Mindfulness is a skill. It requires work like any therapy and practice like any skill. You can find out more on the MIND website here . What was good about your day? Finding the good on the bad days can be hard. Trying to find…

Former Member
"I think the power of song is massively understated..." - Music and your wellbeing...

Whatever the difficulties you might be facing in life right now, listening to or playing music helps people cope – it’s a way of expressing how we feel, and for many people an accessible way of venting difficult thoughts or emotions. Music can energise us, reduce stress and promote wellbeing – it’s no surprise then that music, your favourite artists and songs are a regular topic of discussion across the Community. Here’s what our members have been saying about music and its benefits... Post Your Favourite Cancer Anthem Here, members have compiled a playlist of songs that have helped them as they’ve faced cancer. “Six years ago, we wondered if we dare look into the future and this song helped us both through chemo at a scary time.” "It's very catchy and it would help to stop the…

Former Member
"I felt as though I was in a dream" - Janet's story

Today in Community news , we’re sharing Shaun’s story from his wife Janet’s perspective. If you missed Shaun talking about his experiences with head and neck cancer, click here to catch up. I always felt sad for anyone that had got any type of cancer, but nothing had prepared me for the long road to come. When my husband found out he had cancer in his left tonsil and lymph nodes, we were devastated. We came out of the hospital numb and in disbelief. We both cried together, but Shaun was definitely the stronger of us. I felt as though I was in a dream. Everything that followed would take me probably a year to write, because I have never known a man be put through as much. It broke my heart to see him so poorly. "I felt as though I was in a dream" After the diagnosis, there…

Eliza -Online Community Team
When Positivity Hurts: Insights from the Online Community

Maintaining a positive outlook can be incredibly helpful when coping with a cancer diagnosis. Although positivity has a role to play in staying emotionally healthy, it isn’t always healthy when it becomes the only focus. A number of Online Community members have shared how painful and isolating it can feel if a loved one repeats certain positive phrases or overly optimistic attitudes whilst ignoring the more authentic negative feelings a person might be struggling with. When a focus on positivity dismisses someone’s true feelings, it can become “toxic.” We published our first blog on toxic positivity in 2023. It resonated deeply with the Community, inspiring us to write a follow-up blog last year. Now, we’re back with part three. This edition highlights members' comments from Toxic Positivity…

Dylan - Online Community Team

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