Hello,
I feel a bit lost at the moment. I’m at 32 year old single parent, to two boys. I was told around 8 years ago that I have the BRCA 1 gene. I have a HUGE phobia of being out to sleep (apparently stemmed from my first cat, when I was 7, who died under anaesthetic) almost two year ago, I finally agreed to have the double mastectomy and reconstruction surgery. Friday gone, I was given a date which is in 7 weeks. I am absolutely petrified! I know I need to do it for myself and my children but I am so scared. I am worried that I will end up coming home on the day without having the surgery. It doesn’t matter if this op is tomorrow, 7 weeks or 10 years, I will never be ready. Please if anyone has any advice pre op/post op, I would greatly appreciate it. Thank you.
Hi Jadey and a warm very welcome to the Macmillan Community but sorry to hear about the journey you are on. Navigating the treatment journey can be such a stressful and challenging time but getting support from people who have walked the ‘exact same' journey can help a lot.
The Community is divided into dedicated Support Groups (Discussion Rooms) so can I recommend you join and posting in our dedicated BRCA Positive support group. This is a safe place to talk to others with a similar diagnosis, treatment experience, to ask questions and get support.
To connect in with the group click on this link> BRCA Positive then once the group page opens click on “Click to Join” when the black banner appears or “Join” under “Group Tools” (this all depends on the device you are using)
When you are ready you can introduce yourself by clicking “+new” or “+” in the top right next to the group title. You can copy and paste the text from this post into your new post.
The Macmillan Support Line is open 8am-8pm (timings may differ across services) 7 days a week on 0808 808 00 00. This service provides cancer information, practical information, emotional support, benefits/financial guidance or just a listening ear.
We also have our Ask an Expert section but do allow a few working days for a reply.
Talking to people face to face can be very helpful so do check to see if you have any Local Macmillan Support in your area, do also check for a local Maggie's Centre as these folks are amazing and give support to all the family.
Do get back to me if you need further help navigating the community but in the meantime all the very best.
