A Little Trip To The Isles Of Scilly

My Month In Photos | September 2014

At the end of August we went on our first family holiday abroad. I say first as it is our first one with all of us together, Ella's first time abroad. I think that me being diagnosed etc just gave my family the YOLO attitude and even though they had to scrimp and save they booked a holiday to Spain. We had an amazing time and was lovely to spend some well needed special family time together. Ella loved her first time on a plane which was amazing. I had to get special travel insurance to travel abroad and I found one that was a reasonable price.

This month we paid a visit to the aquarium, who doesn't want to see some huge sharks and exciting fish? We are lucky to have a local aquarium that is close to us. It is something to do on a rainy day and although it is pretty pricey £11 ish, you receive a free year ticket so you can visit as many times as you like all year. Esme loves it so we take her a lot. It is a brilliant place to take the little ones and keeps them amused for a few hours. I have to admit I do love a trip to the aquarium and love to eat our lunch in front of the huge tank, so relaxing!

September month was Childhood Cancer Awareness Month Me and my family joined in last year with the big bucket collection and managed to raise over £200. This year we done another big bucket collection and managed to raise a total of......DRUM ROLE ........

Which is AMAZING! We really enjoy doing it every year and you get to hear so many inspirational stories about people who have been supported by the CLIC Sargent cancer charity. They are an amazing charity who make a huge difference to peoples lives who are affected by cancer. If you want to get involved in the big bucket collection you can here

Another place we visited this month is trago mills. I go here quite often, a few times a year. It's a lovely place to go to walk around, look at farm animals and visit the shopping store. 

Out and about again, me and my nan visited Truro in Cornwall. I haven't been here since I was younger and god it is such a beautiful place. The cathedrial was closed when we went but we were able to walk around it outside and it is so beautiful. The shopping village is also so beautiful, all the shops are built inside really cute buildings and don't look like your usual high street shops. I am definitely returning in a few weeks to do some Christmas shopping as it is such a beautiful town.

Fatigue

Since being diagnosed with cancer in 2012 I have suffered with extreme tiredness and I have been told that it is a side effect from the stem cell transplant. It isn't a normal tiredness feeling, It's hard to explain, it's more like a body aching, drained feeling tiredness. My consultant had told me it is most likely because of all the treatment I have received. Yes it was 2 years ago but I didn't realise that your body takes time to recover and this is something I need to do before getting back to a normal working life. I know people who are back to work full time and are doing great and this make me feel like a complete failure but at the end of the day I need to keep reminding myself that 1. People receive different treatment 2. People respond to treatment differently. I can feel that in myself I am so much better than I was last year which is a huge positive, I have more energy and most importantly my immune system is bloody brilliant. 

Fatigue can effect people in different ways. The common effects include:
- Feeling of having no energy
- Lack of concentration
- Having trouble thinking, speaking or making decisions
- Difficulty remembering things
- Feeling breathlessness after light activity 
- Difficulty sleeping
- Feeling more moody or emotional 

Before being diagnosed with cancer and having treatment, I never suffered with these side effects and although I am so grateful to be alive and well today, fatigue is a horrible thing to suffer with. The most annoying thing I find is finding it so difficult remembering things and having no energy. I am 21 years old and to feel the way I feel is not normal for my age which frustrates me the most. 

Managing Fatigue
There are many ways to manage fatigue 
- Eating well and drinking a lot of fluids
- Light exercise such as walking or I find swimming helps a lot
- Sleeping 
- Relaxation 
- Counselling 
- Support Groups

I hope this post reassures anyone that it is normal to suffer with fatigue. Talking to people does help and I have found how common it is with cancer patients/survivors by talking to others. 

My Month In Photos | August 2014

I cannot complain about the amazing summer I have had this year. I am finally beginning to feel myself and my main aim was to enjoy myself as much as I could and doing what I do best. Venturing around different places. 

I was lucky to be able to return to the Isles Of Scilly again this year which was absolutely amazing. I am amazed by how beautiful and peaceful it is there and am so privileged to have been able to stay there for 10 nights thanks to one of my best friends Kath and her family. If you are no familiar where the Scilly Isles are they are located just 30 miles from the tip of the Cornwall coast ( lands end) Such a beautiful and breathtaking place.

I am going to write a separate blog post with the amazing photos I took of the Scilly Isles. 

I attended my dads cousin's wedding reception at the beginning of August which was beautiful. They had a marquee located by the water and it looked stunning. It was nice to see a lot of family members who I hadn't seen in a long while, a lot of them hadn't seen me since I have had my transplant so it was great to hear comments that I look so well. That's the problem with forgetting sometimes. I go through fazes of forgetting it happened and I need to now conform to the fact that it will always be a part of me and it can never be forgotten. I am just so grateful to be well and alive now :)

Baking buns and cookies with Esme :) She always ends up eating the mixture which results in having very small buns.