For Sim, Our Patient & Carer Wellbeing Service Offered More Than Just Resources

In February 2023, Sim Briggs was diagnosed with secondary breast cancer and has accessed a variety of services from The Myton Hospices ever since. Sim said:

I knew about Myton long before my diagnosis as it’s a very prominent charity within Coventry and Warwickshire and we looked into Myton’s inpatient beds for my mum. But I was taken by surprise with everything they had to offer.

I was looking at what support groups were available to me after my secondary breast cancer diagnosis and discovered the monthly secondary cancer meetings held at Coventry Myton Hospice. I was dubious to attend at first, as the word ‘hospice’ really scared me, but I’m so glad I plucked up the courage.

The group is so supportive and talking to likeminded individuals going through something similar is invaluable. It’s the shared experience that makes me feel less lonely with what I’m going through.

From attending these sessions, Sim was assigned one of our Patient & Carer Wellbeing Nurses, Jill. After a few conversations with Jill, Sim accessed our Complementary Therapy, Counselling and attended our Exercise Groups led by our Physiotherapy team.

Sim continued:

I didn’t realise the breadth of services on offer at Myton, it was a pleasant surprise when Jill mentioned Complementary Therapy and Counselling. At that time, I was finding it difficult to process my diagnosis as my husband had been unwell too. My brain was battling with several things, like our finances, that I wasn’t properly digesting my diagnosis and what it meant. The counselling really helped to compartmentalise what was going on.

The Complementary Therapy and Exercise Group made me feel comfortable in my body again. The flexibility of these services blew me away. I have quite a bit of breathlessness when I’m active, as the cancer is in my back, lungs and liver, so they tailored and adapted the exercises for me so I could still benefit from the sessions.

But for Sim, our Patient & Carer Wellbeing Service means more than just access to these resources:

I am so grateful to have someone like Jill fighting my corner. Not only did she refer me to other services at Myton which helped me massively, but she also gave me advice to take with me to my hospital appointments.

I suffered with quite a bit of nausea and fatigue following on from my treatments, and I’m no doctor so am none-the-wiser on how to deal with it or what to ask for. But Jill told me what to expect, what I could ask for to ease those symptoms and how to cope with them when they inevitably came.

It’s this level of care that makes me so happy I came to Myton in the first place. They’re helping me enjoy life and not just live it.

Sim is now taking on a big challenge to help raise vital funds for Myton. Along with her best friends, Sim is taking part in this year’s Glow for Myton. Sim commented:

I’ve done some fundraising for other charities since my diagnosis, but now I am looking forward to fundraising for Myton and start to give back.

My friends are so supportive and have all been affected by illnesses in one way or another. It should be a great night of fun and laughter, dressing up in our best 80s get up and completing the 5K together!

Sim wholeheartedly believes that everyone who needs the support should come to Myton. She said:

I wouldn’t have thought to recommend Myton before experiencing it myself. I know a few people who don’t want to attend the services I’ve had access to because they are scared of the hospice, but we all need to know the services on offer before we need them so it’s not too late. It’s not just a place to die, but it’s a place that lets you live. I couldn’t recommend it enough and encourage anyone going through a life-limiting diagnosis to come to Myton.

If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with a life-limiting illness, we are here to help and support you.

 

Find out how The Myton Hospices can support you HERE!