NHS

Hi Moomy,

I didn’t have a will until I became ill. Looking back it was not  wise to not have one but my wife and I had ours done through McClure solicitors who only ask for you to make a donation to charity as their fee. I too found it quite emotional but then felt quite peaceful once it was done, a big box ticked off. 
Good to hear she will be able to do the treatments herself going forward as the less time we need to spend in hospital the better. 
Regards

Mark

Daughter has managed her first solo immunoglobulins!  Yay! She’s had a slightly ‘tight’ feeling in her chest but says that’s the same as she normally gets but the headache from a large hospital I/G dose is a worse symptom, and of course she didn’t get that.

Hugs xxx

I feel quite upset posting this but I was talking to a fellow transplant patient yesterday on Zoom. We shared a ward for a while last year and have kept in touch since but he informed me that one of the nurses on the ward who looked after us both so well committed suicide. She was only 25 years old and came across as been a very happy and bubbly person. 
Although I don’t know the circumstances around it I think it highlights how stressful cancer is not just for the patients and their families but also for the medical professionals who are treating you. It’s not just a job to them, they genuinely care and seeing people get better must be wonderful. The downside to all this is they often see people who unfortunately don’t get better and this must be so hard for them to get out of their thoughts on a daily basis. 
I’m genuinely sad thinking that a person who went out of their way helping me and many others through our darkest hours couldn’t find anyone to help them through theirs. 
My thoughts and deepest sympathies go to all  her friends and family. 
Regards

Mark x

Oh Mark this is so sad. The staff are so dedicated and indeed, even over the short period of time we become like family to them and them to us.

There are a few staff members we got to know very well and indeed keep in contact with now.

One specific nurse who looked after me over both my Allo’s was going on maternity leave the day after her shift was finished, this was during my first Allo. When I went in for my second Allo she was the first person we meet, it was like meeting a long lost friend...... she immediately said that she had had a girl and had us in mind when she named her

I do feel for you and a big Highlander man ((hug)) coming your way.

This is such sad news Mark. If I think back to my own mental scars from my time in hospital, it must be so much worse to see it day in, day out. It takes a very special person to work in these units. It is so sad that we can’t get to people before they take this action. That’s why I see it as my mission to talk about these things, make sure they are not swept under the carpet, help people to realize they’re not alone and to help give them some strategies to get through most dark of times.

If anyone is reading this who feels they are in that zone, please reach out, speak to someone, make it known how you are really feeling. There is support out there, there is a better way out and how you’re feeling can’t and won’t last forever.

All the best

Greg

Such sad news, Mark; I guess anyone doing a difficult emotion-laden job is bound to get personal lives mixed in with their patients.

i felt incredibly hard hit when a lovely lady that i strongly advised to get her care shifted to the Christie, lost her life partway through the transplant stage; but I was told firmly that she had been VERY sick when arriving, and to not in any way blame myself. It helped but I still think of her.

i too think that anyone who gets involved with what is an emotionally charged treatment process, whether patient or carer, needs their emotional health taken care of too. 

Hugs xxx