Help Annabel Schofield beat cancer

Dear friends,

So it’s almost exactly a year since I had the original surgery. Yet here I am, stuck in some kind of sickness limbo. I’d hoped it would be over by now and that I’d be back to a normal life. Well, cancer had other plans for me.

If you have been following my progress on social media, you will know that in spite of clear PET and CT scans in the summer, it returned, mutated and upped the ante, becoming even more life-threatening than before, something I was not prepared for. Thus I had to undergo chemo, which I was adamantly against. But when a handsome oncologist tells you your chances of survival without it are slim to none, you have to listen.

The treatments have been very successful so far. In August I was having vice like headaches, was losing hearing in my left ear and had a worrying thumping and shadow behind my left eye. The first treatment eradicated all of these symptoms and now, after 3, I have no pain of any kind. Even two weeks ago, I still had the sensation that I was being strangled by “it” but now it’s just an annoying tightness in my neck, and I don’t need pain killers to cope with that.

The chemo is not without its side effects. I’m 103 pounds which is the smallest I’ve ever been and the fatigue comes in tsunami like waves, which render me pretty useless. But I’ve had no hair loss, nor nausea and I’m eating all the time. It’s just that same old dichotomy - how does one gain weight while eating clean and healthy? Aye, there’s the rub.

The hardest part for me is the loneliness and sameness of every day. All my friends have busy lives, families and careers and I’m not much fun at the moment. So it’s me and the dog (bless him) day in day out. I will admit I’ve had some very bad days and my meditation practice has fallen by the wayside for some reason. This I regret, but I just can’t seem to get back on track.

And here I am having to ask for help yet again, I hate it. But I have no choice. My family is not wealthy and try as I might, it’s very had to get any kind of loan if one can’t show verifiable income. I feel very strongly that I’m near the end of this now, and the doctor has requested extensive scans so that we can know for sure what’s going on. I just need to get through the next couple of months, then hopefully I can fulfill all my (very large) dreams in 2025 and put this tiring episode behind me at last. Thank you to each of you that has helped me so far. I am eternally grateful and constantly amazed by your kindness and generosity. Xxxx