Naomi’s St Helena’s Hospice Fund

2020 has been a tough year for everyone with the ongoing issues with COVID-19 . It most certainly was not the year I was expecting and on top of that in March I was diagnosed with cancer of the bowel which had spread to my lymph nodes, my liver and my lungs. Thinking back to that moment, I recall the sympathetic look on the consultants face whilst telling me the cancer is not curable and therefore my condition is terminal.

That was then in March, and now we are in November going into December.
My journey has been a rollercoaster of ups and downs. Moments of hope when the results of the last scan showed the chemotherapy working well. And unfortunately the moments of sadness when my most recent scan results showed progression of the cancer as the chemotherapy has stopped working. This has led to increased pain which is sadly impacting on my day to day abilities.

The support I have received from different professionals from different organizations has been fantastic, and most notably the care and support I have received from Single Point at St Helena’s hospice. This support has been especially amazing. Single Point have provided me with my own nurse who is at the end of the phone for advise and support if I need. She has been working hard liaising with doctors and consultants to try and get on top of my pain. This support has been invaluable and has led to me being able to access specialist inpatient care from St Helena hospice.

Coming into St Helena hospice as an inpatient has been one of the most scariest things I have ever had to do. However, the nurses have made my stay a comfortable and enjoyable experience. The kindness of the nurses has touched me and shown me how the simple gesture of a smile in times of darkness really does touch the soul.
I came in to the hospice in extreme pain which I have endured for months and within a week of being in the hospice, they are finally getting on top of the pain meaning that I will be able to have a quality of life again when I return home.

I want to be able to give something back to such an amazing organization who are not government funded and therefore rely on fundraising funds and charity grants.

It is fact that one in two people will have cancer in this lifetime and therefore places like St Helena are in constant high demand. They provide support to the individual with cancer and to their families at the hospice and at the family home. They provide physical and emotional support.

When I asked the hospice nurses if there is anything they need in terms of funding support for, they said, last year they applied to have the hospice extended and updated so they can provide a service to more people. Unfortunately their grant application was declined. So to give something back to this amazing team I would like to ask that people share a bit of love and kindness and donate a little money so that we can make this extension happen. Let’s do this!