Sharing my journey through bowel cancer from diagnosis to treatment and beyond.

Seven weeks and back to the full Saturday morning walk with Finley via the fields and town to call in at the butchers and bakers (no candlestick makers). Finley enjoying a spot of sunshine while he waits. Never managed to…

7 weeks down the track in the recovery journey and this week feels like a step change down in the levels of pain. I am still on painkillers but now moving to just cocodemol before bed and just paracetamol during…

Sounds like I was coming out of prison. And in truth, those first steps outside felt like that. A mixture of freedom and worry – am I going to be ok? This is about the broader context of being social…

A joy to join Isaac and Lorna at the Triangle Community Garden coffee afternoon in support of MacMillan. Some amazing cakes to try and also to take home for the family. Isaac’s preference was the Brownie of course! He showed…

Another mini-series of reflections within the recovery journey. I’ll start with getting back in touch with family and friends. Sounds easy but managing renewed contact after major surgery and cancer diagnosis is an interesting one. Post-operation in the hospital the…

First time down to Oughton Head for over 6 weeks with this fine fellow! Longest walk so far – nearly 7,000 steps at a very gentle pace for just over the hour. Managed to miss the rain 🌧️. A tired…

I was in Newcastle as a student when Viz became a thing. I haven’t bought a copy for a long time but it always reminds me of Newcastle in the North East. A reminder of my younger days. The range…

Good initial visit today to meet a physio. Clearly he hasn’t had many colorectal patients with a stoma through the system so he was on a learning curve! We did work out that by placing a pillow under my back…

As I said, movement is improving. Up to 15k in a day for steps. Still slow up the hills ⛰️😮‍💨

Back to a physical recovery topic. This is related to the surgery and my stoma (SpongeBob). As a result of these they had to cut away through the muscles in the stomach. So until the body fixes this my core…