Aged 47, Louise received a home visit from her Macmillan Nurse when she was presented with two options – end of life treatment at home, or end of life treatment at Wakefield Hospice.

“Looking back now, I didn’t really know what hospice care was, but I’m so glad I accepted their help.

“I remember thinking to myself it was a place where my grandparents might have gone, a place where once you go in you never come back out, and yet still, I knew I needed help and being at home was not the right option for me.”

Louise came to Wakefield Hospice in March 2022, in her own words “unable to walk, and unable to see any future.”

“I was just so tired of being ill, I felt defeated and, in complete honesty, those first 48 hours I remember just lying there waiting, almost accepting that my time was up.

“And yet after those first two days, with thanks to the care and support of the hospice staff, I realised that maybe I can push on and try to take back the life which, until now, I had accepted was silently slipping away.

“The care I received at Wakefield Hospice was incredible. They understood me and saw me for the person that I am – through exercise and physio they helped me to walk again, but through emotional support, care and empathy they made me believe that I still had a life to live.

“What the hospice did for me, their desire to help me and be able to get me back home is something I will forever be thankful for.”

Louise had previously worked in the banking industry for 23 years, starting out in a call centre before working her way through the ranks to a senior role within the organisation, managing teams in countries around the world. Indeed her work, colleagues and travelling are passions which she now misses the most, but through all her challenges, Louise continues to push through.

“The life I live now is a drastic change from the life I lived back then. I keep fit by going to the gym and swimming, but I struggle with my walking due to muscle wastage in my legs, I never thought in a million years I would be where I am now at my age.

“I remember visiting my GP in 2020 as I hadn’t been feeling well for a while but I had put it down to the menopause – that very day I was transferred to hospital and remained there for five and a half weeks and was given 18 months to live.”

Louise ended up in and out of hospital a number of times over the next twelve months before being referred to Wakefield Hospice.

“I couldn’t believe the personalised care which was on offer at the hospice, from the amazing meals to the outdoor space available for patients to enjoy, it was like nothing I could ever have imagined.

“I remember one sunny summers day, one of the nurses found me a pink umbrella and I sat outside my room with my family enjoying the sun; it was so relaxing, homely, safe… it’s a memory we will all cherish forever.”
Louise is currently receiving support through the hospice’s Day Therapy Services, meeting other individuals living with life-limiting illnesses and their carers.

“It’s great to catch up with other people, a lot of my friends live abroad so to have a place where I can have face-to-face conversations with people who understand my journey is so beneficial.

“That first day when I arrived at Wakefield Hospice back in 2021 was a major moment in my life. I still have my days where I ask “why me”, but the hospice have given me the hunger to push on, for which I am eternally grateful.

“To anyone offered hospice care, whatever age you are or whatever preconceptions you may have, my advice would be don’t be afraid, there is no better place you could be to receive the care you need.

“I always thought a hospice was somewhere people went to die, but Wakefield Hospice is the place which showed me I can live.”

For further information on our Day Therapy Services please click here.