Needing support

Hah2801 5 years ago

3 replies

Currently going through end of life phase with my grandmother and struggling so much today emotionally

Ross 5 years ago

Hello Hah2801,

We’re sorry to read about your Grandmother’s situation and to hear that you were struggling yesterday with all that you’re experiencing.

Supporting a loved one through a terminal illness can be especially challenging and there’s no right or wrong to way feel. You may find that your emotions fluctuate regularly and rapidly and that there will be days that you find more difficult than others. We feature information on our website around coping with feelings that you may be experiencing. If you feel this would be beneficial, you can view our page here: https://www.mariecurie.org.uk/help/support/being-there/helping-someone-cope/dealing-with-feelings

Having the space to talk openly and honestly about how you feel can be a helpful experience and our Support Line is here to listen if you ever need to talk. You can reach us on Freephone 0800 090 2309 or by responding to this message through here.

We hope that others will feel comfortable to share with you their experience of supporting a loved one, and offer their support to you through this community too.

Take care,

Ross – Support Line Team

Hah2801 5 years ago

Thank you. It feels like there's a rapid deterioration daily so the emotions are all over the place. Trying to carry on with work and family life at the same time to keep the mind busy and not all doom and gloom. Also found out that my best friend has a tumor in her ear canal yesterday which thankfully isn't a cancerous tumor but serious and dangerous nontheless. So a mixed bag and double whammy of feelings going on.

Ross 5 years ago

Hello Han2801,

Thank you for replying and sharing how you are feeling. I’m also sorry to read that you have, in your words, a double whammy of situations happening simultaneously. People often tell us that it can feel overwhelming when things appear to all be happening at once.

It can be normal to feel that your feelings are all over the place when things are changing so quickly. Finding out about your friend is understandably difficult when you are already dealing with a complex set of emotions.  

It can be important at a time like this to look after yourself. Some people will look at creating a self-care plan to try and help them cope with what they are feeling. This can start small with still doing things that you may enjoy such as going for a small walk every day, through to bigger things such as speaking to the GP about support they can offer. Reaching out to us and others through our community is also a positive start to looking after yourself.

You may already know that we feature lots of information on our website for anyone affected by a terminal illness. If you would like to see if there is anything that you feel may be beneficial for you to read, you can view the links to this information here: https://www.mariecurie.org.uk/help/support .

Take care,

Ross – Support Line Officer