Jo

I was on my fifth round of chemotherapy when Christmas came. The treatment had built up and I was struggling to eat or sleep. 

I was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma in 2014 – with two young daughters I prepared for the worst.

Christmas has always been a wonderful time for my beautiful girls and me and it was for them that I needed and wanted to keep going. 

I was so scared when I got my diagnosis. 

Lymphoma Action were kind, warm and made me feel completely and utterly heard. They knew all about lymphoma and supported me with facts, kindness and compassion. It was a great comfort when I was so scared because I did not want to read too much about the cancer, I just needed the facts as I was dealing with it and they helped me very much. 

I am now in remission and while I am still battling the side effects of my cancer, I do believe that having had lymphoma has woken me up to what is important in life. However hard it has been and still is, I have learned to be thankful for everything and honour all those who are not as lucky as me. 

The first Christmas after I finished my treatment was the best Christmas EVER.

My best friend flew with her family from Australia - we had not been together for four years so it was even more special to see her. It was truly wonderful even though I was still not well with back pain and exhaustion, I was unbelievably grateful.  Whatever you are going through, I found it important to try and stay positive and be kind to myself. I held on tight and trusted my medical team. 

Thank you for taking the time to read my story. I wish you and your loved ones a happy Christmas . 

You can donate this Christmas to help other families living with lymphoma.