'Have faith that you're not on your own'

As a personal trainer and owner of my own company, Adrenalize, I was feeling super proud of myself by the end of 2021 that my business had survived the small matter of the global pandemic!  I'd seen so many other personal trainers quit during the COVID crisis and was looking forward to returning to some kind of normality with my clients and studio.

And then boom! I was suddenly having to deal with an even bigger personal curve ball…breast cancer. In my usual style during pre-op and treatment I threw myself into my business and worked my socks off to get as many workouts as possible recorded so my business could still function to some extent whilst I was recovering. For my mindset this was a total lifesaver – having the focus of exercise helped so much with the anxiety around the operation and treatment.

The surgeon and the nurses were very strict with me once they knew I was super keen on exercise, making me promise that I wouldn’t do any weight training for at least eight weeks post operation. This was a huge challenge for me – exercise had always been my go-to stress reliever and my biggest anxiety release.

During the early days post operation, I walked every single day and found it so beneficial for my mindset to get out in the fresh air with my amazing husband and my naughty little dog, a Chug called Jovi. No weights, running or HIIT, but walking I could still do!

I also journaled regularly and found this a really good way to download my thoughts, anxieties, and fears. There is something very comforting about the process of writing and I also wanted to log everything so that I could help other people going through similar experiences in the future too. I often struggled with the same recurring nightmare – I would wake up in the middle of the night, sitting bolt upright in bed and gasping for air, convinced that the oxygen in the room was disappearing and I was taking my last breath – and journaling straight after that helped to calm me down.

Music was another huge factor in my recovery as well and I found myself drawn to certain bands to get me through particular stages of treatment. Depeche Mode, Pink, and Shinedown helped me more than I can ever explain and walking from my car to the clinic on every day of my radiotherapy treatment I played the song Daylight by Shinedown. It helped me gain strength and the lyrics resonated so much.

You saved my life, not once but twice
You keep me free from falling
You saved my life, make it all alright
When I don't feel like talking
You make sure I always see the daylight.
It's amazing what the hard times can reveal
(have faith that you're not alone)
Like who shows up, who walks away, and who's for real
(have faith that you're not on your own)

The amazing support network I had around me provided me with the ‘Daylight’ that I needed, and I truly don’t know what I would have done without the key people in my life – my husband, my parents, and my wonderful friends. I also learnt to accept help from local cancer support charities and spoke on a regular basis with a totally brilliant counsellor. She helped me to navigate through the very difficult post treatment emotions and I was able to offload so many of my fears.

And, of course, exercise played the biggest part in my recovery. There are still some things I can’t do to the level that I did pre-cancer but I’m much kinder to myself these days. Cancer has made me realise that movement is key – it doesn’t matter what type of movement, what speed or level you do it at, but it is so important for your mental health as much as your physical to move your body. Exercise can improve so many things – fatigue, mental wellbeing, physical function – and can also help to reduce the risk of cancer recurrence too.

I am now so proud to be working on the Mission Fitness project alongside Mission Remission and hope to help as many of you as possible to get moving again post cancer treatment. It’s such a positive outcome from one of the most challenging times and experiences of my life.

Chelle has been a personal trainer for almost ten years. She was diagnosed with Oestrogen positive breast cancer on New Year’s Eve, 2021, and had a lumpectomy and radiotherapy. She is happily married, loves rock and metal music and going to as many gigs and festivals as possible.

Our Chelle appearing on ITV News launching her online workshops:

https://www.itv.com/news/anglia/2023-11-22/personal-trainer-launches-online-workouts-to-help-people-fighting-cancer?

You can participate in these brilliant workshops by joining her Facebook page, Mission Fitness, here:

https://www.facebook.com/missioningremission/posts/pfbid02emNJy5GuS1tuDjh6Kmpm1NEaTD854WTTseR2hCcyAevwN5jh1TVWvbJy6G5GrMBgl

or view the calendar of events in the activities section of our website.