My mum got diagnosed with cancer 3 years ago, she had a tumour In her neck which was removed, she done 6 weeks of radiotherapy and healed. She had pre-cancerous cells In her voice box which became cancerous in late November/early December 2023. She was told she would have to get her voice box removed, she agreed to the surgery. After her operation, 48 hours later she took a major stroke. Affecting her right side of her body, unable to move her right side. This also affected her brain and gave her some brain damage. She has a tear in her windpipe and is now unable to get her speech valve in. She will be left unable to talk or walk post op. There is nothing they can do for her. I am really struggling with this. We knew the voice box removal was going to be difficult and we tried to prepare ourselves for a change in her, but we didn’t expect the stroke or tear and so it has changed everything. I don’t know where is best to talk about all of this but I feel I need support
Hi Izzy123 and welcome to the Macmillan Community but so sorry to hear about the traumatic journey your mum has had and the challenges you are facing.
A cancer diagnosis like this in the family can be such a challenging and stressful time but getting support from others who are dealing with the ‘exact same' support challenges can help a lot.
The New to Community is like our reception desk where we look to direct you to the best part of the Community for you to get support. The Community is divided into dedicated Support Groups (Discussion Rooms) and when it comes to the practical and emotional challenges of supporting your mum abd indeed yourself you may benefit from joining and posting in our >
and
Supporting someone with incurable cancer
…… support groups where you will connect with others possibly navigating the exact same support challenges.
To connect with a group click on the “Bold Italic Links” I have created above 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)
You can then put up your own post when you’re ready 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.
It is an emotional time supporting family so you might find this Macmillan information your feelings when someone has cancer helpful as well as this link getting help with your emotions.
It’s a challenging time for you so you may want to use 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 support all the family.
Please do get back to me if you need further help navigating the community ((hugs))
Hi Lizzy Izzy123 so pleased that my post helped - all the very best to your mum but also to you ((hugs))
