Community News - Macmillan Online Community

Supporting each other through dying, loss and bereavement: Linda’s story

“From the greatest loss of my life, came the birth of a new beginning and a new way I could help my community.” As Linda says in her video and many people say on the Online Community, you may feel that nothing can prepare you for your loved one’s final days and coping with bereavement. Many people may feel they’re not sure what to expect when a loved one is dying. As part of Macmillan’s Digital Storytelling Project, Linda has created a video to share her experience supporting her mum through end of life. She also talks about her decision to found a charity, No One Dies Alone Ayrshire , to support people who are at the end of their life and their families. We’re sharing Linda’s story this month as part of National Grief Awareness Week . Linda’s video is called “A Hand to Hold”, which you…

Eliza -Online Community Team
Coping with the last celebrations with your loved one

When a loved one has an incurable cancer diagnosis, it may be hard not to think about what might be the last time. The last holiday season, the last birthday. Here in Macmillan’s Online Community, we’re here to help you through what may be the hardest days and time of year. Wee Me’s husband was diagnosed with a Glioblastoma brain tumour in September 2020. She has previously shared her experience as a carer and family member on Community News. In today’s blog, Wee Me is talking about how she’s learned to navigate and cope with “the lasts.” “My husband’s initial prognosis in September 2020 was that he had 12-15 months left with us. The question “is this the last…?” reared its scary head several times during those all too quick months.” The festive season will be upon us before we know it…

Eliza -Online Community Team
Winter Picture Festival - Let's get creating and sharing!

Many of you might remember last year's Winter Picture Festival , where many of you shared pictures of your art, crafts, dogs and beautiful snowy scenes. Across the site, we know many of our members love sharing their creations, photography and paintings. The Winter Picture Festival is a celebration of your creativity, and an opportunity to bring joy to yourself and other members here on the Online Community. To join in with the Winter Picture Festival, all you need to do is upload a picture in the "Winter Picture Festival" discussion thread. We’ve set up a discussion thread in the “Express Yourself” group . We’d love to see everyone getting involved using the “Reaction” buttons to let other members know you liked their picture! It would be lovely see pictures on a winter or festive theme…

Eliza -Online Community Team
Cost of cancer- need new clothes as a result of cancer?

The need for new clothing is the next topic of our ‘cost of cancer’ blog mini-series. If you haven’t yet read the ‘Need help with transport and parking fees’ blog , you can click the link to read it. We know there are often additional costs incurred due to a cancer diagnosis and the ‘cost of cancer series’ is highlighting a few of the costs that members of our Online Community have. Like our previous blog in the series, we will feature conversations from different Online Community groups and include support information. “ It's not just bills cancer patients could use some financial help with, it's the day to day things that they don't get support, like bra costs, prosthesis, hospital parking/triage long waiting or… clothing costs. Having to buy new clothes, just to accommodate the weather…

Moderator - Macmillan Community
UPDATED: Online Community downtime - Monday 5th December

UPDATE: Due to unforeseen circumstances, we have had to re-schedule our update for next Monday, 5th December. This means that the Community will be up and running as usual tomorrow. The site will be inaccessible between 1pm-7pm on Monday 5th December. We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause and if you have any questions, please do post in the comments section below. As users of our Online Community, we want to update you with some key information about some upcoming essential maintenance. On Monday 5th December we will be updating our Community to the latest version of the software we use to provide the platform. We’re doing this to ensure the site continues to run smoothly for our users. The update will also fix some technical issues, which we’ve talked about below. In order…

Ellen - Macmillan
When your parent has cancer: Bertrand’s story

Bertrand describes that he was at the pinnacle of his life when his papa was diagnosed with cancer. Faced with handling becoming a parent himself and navigating his papa’s incurable diagnosis, Bertrand has created a video about finding what he calls “The Grey Area.” A loved one’s cancer diagnosis can have a huge impact. It can be difficult to find the balance between taking care of yourself, your career and your family, alongside looking after your loved one who has been diagnosed. Bertrand felt he needed to navigate a new stage in his relationship with his parent. He needed to reconcile with needing his papa’s support and guidance, while supporting his papa too. “I wanted his guidance, but I didn’t want to bother him. As I felt that surely any issue I had was minor compared to what he…

Eliza -Online Community Team
The cost of cancer - need help with transport and parking fees?

This new miniseries about the additional costs a cancer diagnosis can cause, is highlighting a few of the most common concerns members of the Online Community talk about in our forums. We know that cancer can have an impact on your finances and we often see members talking about the cost of transport and parking when attending hospital appointments. If this is something you are concerned about, hopefully you’ll find the information in this blog helpful. Some people need to travel a long distance for hospital appointments which can cause a lot of worry when it comes to arranging how you will get there. Arranging your own transport arrangements can feel overwhelming especially when looking at the cost involved with parking, fuel or public transport. Even if you aren't travelling far, these…

Megan- Online Community Team
On the road to recovery

Like many roads and paths in life, being on the road to recovery after cancer treatment isn’t always straight forward. Every path is different and everyone’s road to recovery has challenges. One thing that lots of people find in common is the comfort found from connecting with others in similar situations here on the Online Community. The Community is a place to share personal experiences and to help each other through the difficult moments. Hopefully reading the following experience of members finding their own road to recovery will be helpful. “…One day at a time continues to be my mantra and I’ve realised that this stage of recovery is also very hard with glimmers of normality followed by big crashes!! I’ve found this site very comforting.” Community member, Head and neck cancer forum…

Megan- Online Community Team
Lung Cancer Awareness Month - support and kindness shared in the lung cancer forum

November is Lung Cancer Awareness Month. In this Community News Blog we will be catching up with the lung cancer forum on the Community. The lung cancer forum, which you can find here is a friendly online support group for anyone with lung cancer , or for anyone supporting a loved one with lung cancer . It’s a place where you can share your thoughts, worries and anything else you might be going through with people who have been there themselves. Read the blog to find out what support has been shared in our lung cancer support community recently. “I have only been a member here for just over a week but find it really helpful.” Community member, lung cancer forum Thinking of joining the Community for support? When you or your family member has been diagnosed, it can be a whirlwind…

Steph - Online Community Team
What do you need from the Online Community?

Do you want to let us know what you think about the Online Community? We’ve launched our annual survey for 2022! We want to hear what you would like to see on the Online Community, and how you've found your experience so far. The survey should take no more than 10 to 15 minutes to complete. The survey is anonymous. Please complete our survey here. This survey is designed to give you an opportunity to provide feedback on your experiences of using Macmillan’s Online Community. This helps us to make improvements where needed and ensure that it continues to be a valuable resource for people living with cancer. If you have any questions or want to find out more, please feel welcome to contact us at community@macmillan.org.uk .

Eliza -Online Community Team
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