Day One: Rest of Life

At 4.15pm today, this epic chapter will be over. The relief at having got through it is enormous. Dean and I will be celebrating with an understated takeaway and looking back on the last few weeks with a combination of gratitude and muted optimism.

https://youtu.be/JaFVr_cJJIY?t=1h26m3s

There have been some real lows and lots of bad news. But I am still here and the brain tumour (and cancer) isn't. I didn't understand quite how aggressive the treatment would be and how much it would erode my physical and emotional strength, but aggressive cancers require aggressive treatment regimes. It's as simple as that.

Now we embark on a new chapter. It's going to be a different one for me. There are some fundamental differences to face up to:

I am not allowed to drive for a year. This will mean that I am reliant on friends and family in a way that I haven't been before. With a combination of Dean coming to work with me, public transport and lifts from friends, I'm sure we can make it work.

Travel insurance is ludicrous - it's over £3,000 as I am such a high risk. Again, this is surmountable although it means no long haul holidays for the foreseeable future.

I am planning on living a simpler life going forward. I will continue to look after my body and stay fit and healthy. I think my lifestyle and general fitness has helped me to fight the rigours of treatment. Many of my contemporaries have a much poorer prognosis than me as a result.

That said, it's been a tough wake-up call. I am not going to drive myself too hard and will be stripping away anything that is negative with a view to a brighter future. I need to be kinder to myself as this will be a long road to recovery with many bumps along the way.

I am going to enjoy the simple things in life - and take each day as it comes. I plan to listen to my body and do what it says. This is a massive culture shift for me but life is short and I need to focus my energies in the right place.

I would urge everyone to do the same. Life is wonderful and precious so don't let it pass you by. Be what you want to be right now. Share your life with the people who mean the most to you. None of us know how long we have left in this life, so make every second of it count.

Amanda