Betty gives her top tips for moving forward after breast cancer, and her 'technophobe guide' to using Becca, the Breast Cancer Care app.
Betty is a product champion for Becca, the new Breast Cancer Care app. She tells us what support she needed most after finishing treatment, and gives her ‘technophobe guide’ to using Becca.
What is your experience of breast cancer?
After 17 months, I finally finished treatment in 2011. They threw everything at me: chemotherapy, radiotherapy, mastectomy and Herceptin. Then in January 2012 I underwent delayed breast reconstruction, with further correction surgery in 2014.
During treatment you’ve almost been confined in a sense, going in every three weeks to have things done. Then they set you off into the big wide world, and you think ‘I’m fine, I can do everything now’. But you can’t because your body has been hit by all this stuff.
I had terrible fatigue… I found it hard even facing some days. My breast care nurse at the hospital recommended I go on a Moving Forward course run by Breast Cancer Care. There were questions I had that I didn’t know how to get answers for, or who to even talk to about, but during the course so many of them were cleared up.
‘I kept blaming myself. I thought I’d done something wrong’
I developed lymphoedema - the last thing I wanted. I couldn’t find answers about how I could have prevented it, or even if I could. The speaker at the course sat down with me, and basically gave me a talking to!
I realised that there was nothing I could have done; I may have got it anyway, possibly even if I hadn’t had breast cancer. I was beating myself up over nothing.
Afterwards, I felt a weight had been lifted - that’s when I really started to move forward.
‘Becca lets you know you’re not alone’
A lot of people think they’re the only one who has fatigue; they don’t realise most people have it. Becca can help you realise you’re not alone, and it takes you to the Breast Cancer Care website which has excellent information on how to cope with fatigue.
Knowing that fatigue can be part and parcel of life just after treatment, and that it’s not just you, helps you understand it better.
I learnt to understand what I could and couldn’t do. I thought I could take on the world and start living my life again as before. But I was pushing myself too much, I wasn’t pacing myself.
You’ve got to learn to reset your body again. You’ve got to look after yourself more.
How does Becca offer support?
Being a technophobe myself, I was worried about using Becca for the first time, but I soon found I could master it quite quickly. You just click on the menu, choose a category, and explore the cards - it’s as simple as that. It is very user-friendly, even for slightly older people like me!
Betty’s technophobe guide to using Becca
1. When I use Becca
Whenever I have a spare minute, if I’ve got the television on or sitting down for a cup of tea, I bring up the link and it invites you in for a few moments. It’s so easy to use: you can read more if you want to, or find a webpage. It’s interesting to see where you’re going to end up!
2. It opens up new channels
It takes me to sites I’d never have found otherwise. There’s a card that lets you explore the wonders of the world without leaving your home, through the Google Arts & Culture page. It’s wonderful to see. My husband’s a bit worried because I keep saying ‘that would be a nice place to see!’
3. Becca reminds you about things you take for granted
Simple things like going for a walk in the park, or looking at the trees and appreciating nature.
In the Mindfulness category there are cards about music and yoga. Over the years they’re things I hadn’t thought about much, but after seeing them again on Becca it made me revisit them.
I always do mindfulness colouring. It’s brilliant at night time if you’re having trouble sleeping - you start colouring and you soon drift off afterwards.
4. My top tip for moving forward
Do something you’ve always thought about doing but never got round to. You always say ‘I’ll get round to doing that,’ but you never end up doing it.
Every year my husband and I talked about going to Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park, but we never did. So, last year we went twice! It was fantastic.
Register to use Becca and see what you might feel inspired to do.