Nicky's Story

“The Bristol Approach gave me some control back after the rollercoaster ride through treatments, now I feel so much more positive and in control of my future.”

I had just started a dream new teaching job in Rome age 37 when I found a lump in my left breast. I was diagnosed with cancer while living alone, away from friends and family, and having to make treatment choices communicated to me in a language I was not fluent in. 

My husband Ash gave me wonderful support and visited as much as he could, but when my treatment was finished and I returned to England I felt in a pretty bad state. After chemotherapy I had lost my hair, eyebrows and eyelashes. My self-esteem had plummeted and I felt very low-spirited so I refused to have more treatments. Ash found out about Penny Brohn Cancer Care and I contacted the Helpline and booked onto the Bristol Approach 2-day course. I already knew I needed another approach to work alongside any medical treatments, to get some control back, and the course I attended did just that. It was reassuring, informative and gave me a focus, a plan to work on for my recovery. 

On my course they said that if a plant isn’t well, you repot it, prune it, feed it and put in the sun, and you need to nurture yourself in the same way. I think that’s true. I try to remain aware of my needs, to get less stressed by work, and I now work part-time as an Education Advisor. I found it easy to put Penny Brohn Cancer Care’s nutritional approach into action because I enjoy cooking and experimenting with different cuisines and ingredients. And having enjoyed art therapy at the Centre, I have discovered a love of art and taken up woodcarving and sculpture, which is my way of meditating.

NICKY GUPTA, 43
Education Adviser, former Teacher; London.
Breast cancer diagnosed in 2001. No recurrences.