Hi, I’m Ronnie. I’m 52 years old and live with my wife and our children; our youngest being 4 years old. I was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in February. I’ve been attending Overgate’s Day Hospice for one day each week for the past 6 months, and it has made such a difference. I am able to get out of the house for the day, rather than being sat in with only my illness to think about; and having people to talk to who are going through something similar has really helped me come to terms with what is going to happen.
With Overgate’s support I have also been putting a memory box together to leave for my children. When I first attended Day Hospice the craft activities on offer didn’t really suit my interests but Naomi, who looks after activities, suggested I try restoring old furniture, and this is something I’ve been really enjoying. It’s great to find a new interest and I have added photos of this to the memory box to show my children that life really is worth living, right to the end.
My main worry throughout my illness has been how my wife will cope when I am gone. I find this difficult to talk about at home so being able to speak to the team, particularly Andy, the Chaplain, about these worries has been a huge help. I can’t thank everyone at the Hospice enough for the kindness they have shown me; it has made all the difference at a really difficult time.