Where do I find support for myself (DP cancer diagnosis)

[BG2015]

Can anyone point me in the right direction please.

McMillan might have some counselling, also some hospitals offer counselling after definite diagnosis - Telford and Wrekin did and they are fairly small and rubbish so hopefully it is common.

The worst bit for me was the time between "there's a mass that looks cancerous" and having a diagnosis with a name (because getting diagnostic samples was difficult) and there was zero support without a "proper" cancer diagnosis!

Macmillan.
Is it a serious cancer? Many are treatable and curable. Some are now managed as chronic illness and a ‘watch and wait’ approach.
Macmillan can help you understand but get the details from your partner. He may not want or need much support.

Chemo can be fucking miserable and stressful even for "curable" cancers,and it is really tough as a partner, you are trying your best to be strong and reliable for your partner, but scared for you and your own plans for the future.

Plus you feel like you want to make everything around chemo as easy as possible - make the right food, make sure you don't bring any infections home, so lots of cleaning - but you don't want to make it about you so it's very easy to internalise stuff and get really stressed.

We eventually got some counselling for both of us which could be together or separately.

So sorry to hear about your husband, what an awful thing to both be going through right now. What type of cancer us it OP? Most cancers have their own charity that can offer support to family. Hospices also run support programmes, but I'm unsure if this is just for those (and family) accessing the hospice so may not be appropriate in your case.

He’s got a tumour on his kidney. He’s waiting to find out if it’s spread after a CT scan yesterday. Best case scenario is that his kidney can be removed and it’s contained. I’m trying not to think about anything else.

He’s sat next to me on the sofa and looks totally normal. It’s surreal.

I’ve just been on the Macmillan forums and had to stop reading. It’s too soon. I don’t think I can read any of it yet.

have a look for any local charities? or local support groups. There was a fabulous little charity where I live that kept me afloat when my mum was diagnosed with terminal cancer.

It was a place to go for a cup of tea if I needed it. they also arranged counselling for me both before and after she died. it was a complete lifeline.

Not knowing is the hardest bit and I still think its harder for those around the person than the person them self. Hopefully all will be well and it will be surgery and a swift return to normality.

He’s very pragmatic. I’m much more emotional about it and trying to be positive.
The NHS is amazing but the wheels run very slowly sometimes. Once we know more I’ll feel better