Forum Discussion
Maree72
2 years agoMember
Last nights webinar - Let’s cut through all the hype! Why exercise?
Last night I jumped onto the webinar about exercise,
Did any one else on here also watch?
I found it to be very insightful, but due to the fact I was trying to mullite task as most of us do (haha), listen and read the comments as well as add in my bit, I missed a bit about strength exercise twice weekly,
I found the presenter to be very helpful and of course very knowledgeable.
But I do have to add in I totally agree about barriers in this area,
Especially the costs that we don't see coming to help us on our way with looking after ourselves, well at least I didn't.
I too lost everything once diagnosed, and surgery took place, as in earning my wages, so now my husband takes care of us all with his wage, So budgeting is a absolute must to make it through every week.
So having extra add on thrown at us, like I would think many, can completely snow ball ones weekly budget to keeping everything on an even keel.
I fully agree with the some of the comments,
You have to enjoy your chosen method of exercise, or you wont stick with it, (that's me) and I personally hate walking, and I'm not a runner at all. I'm a swimmer and yoga lover, I would love to be back involved with dragon boating, but I live no where near the water here in Brisbane and with the cost of fuel these days, here's my 1st barrier, how can I afford to get there? the hours drive to the river doesn't bother me, it the cost of fuel. maybe one day
My wish would be for these people who are trained in this field of exercise and rehab to be apart of our medical team, as I said in the comments last night,
We get given a surgeon, a breast care nurse, a team of oncologists, we get told about the Lymphoedema physio (that I personally only saw twice), once prior to surgery to give me the talk of what I could be expecting once they took off my lymph nodes, and then once afterwards as a check up, now I'm left to my own devices to manage this with no really check up at all. It would be good if this was also part of our care, with follow ups over the course, to let us know how our movements are going and provided us some sort of feedback on how are healing is going or possibly not going.
But where is the team that help us with getting the correct ways of managing exercise?
Again I feel we are left to source this ourselves, again at our own personal cost.
Wouldn't this be great if this was also part of our recovery medical treatment plan?
I asked my team once I ended up with grade 3 Peripheral neuropathy to please send me off to physio so I can start to sort out my loss of strength in my hands and arms, it was so bad with pins and needles,
I couldn't hold onto a pen, unscrew a bottle cap, or even pour a glass of water from the water jug, with out spilling it all over the bench and nearly dropping the jug on the floor, my feet had also started not to work as well. I had to keep telling myself to pick up my feet, or I caught myself tripping over them.
To this day I still have not recovered from this side effect from chemo.
I'm now still waiting to be contacted by the people I have been refereed out to start any form of rehab for this, its been 2 months now and still nothing. I understand there is a wait list, but also frustrating as this could also be classed as strength exercise, that was being talked about last night.
So I chose to use up my own personal physio Medicare referral for another issue I have, that's not related to my breast cancer, just so I could try and get some form of quality of life back, but it wont be long now till I have to pay his full fee, I only have one more session to use, and then I have to wait till Oct this year before my GP can do up another referral for physio.
I've now found a pod cast I can listen to on Spotify for yoga, so I can try and get more of that in my daily or weekly routine here at home,
Thankfully the community pool is $6.00 entry fee,
I have found a local cancer care yoga class provided by our council where I live here in Brisbane. that is free to attend.
Afterpay can come in handy if required, may not suit everyone, but I can use that with another local yoga studio as they offer this payment method.
One day I would love to pay for things straight up with out needing a buy now pay later platform.
Please don't think I'm just having a sook and poor me , that's not what my thoughts are about here,
its more about how can we voice that we need to add these very important people into our medical care team, so we can all recover fully to the best of our own ability with minimal cost to the cancer patient, as we all know so many of us have different barriers that prevent us taking part in things that are unachievable for us to get to,
I feel Cost plays a huge part in this for many.
This truly needs some sort of funding to provide this service to all.
Well that's my ramblings for the morning, that I wanted to share.
Thanks you to the team who provided this webinar. It was worth my time to sit and listen and watch.
And I'm that person who use to have wasted gym memberships cause exercise was never my thing, but now it has to be as it was said last night "its a form of medicine" and I for one, like everyone else, have no desire to ever repeat this breast cancer nightmare ever again, if I can help it, so exercise I will.
Did any one else on here also watch?
I found it to be very insightful, but due to the fact I was trying to mullite task as most of us do (haha), listen and read the comments as well as add in my bit, I missed a bit about strength exercise twice weekly,
I found the presenter to be very helpful and of course very knowledgeable.
But I do have to add in I totally agree about barriers in this area,
Especially the costs that we don't see coming to help us on our way with looking after ourselves, well at least I didn't.
I too lost everything once diagnosed, and surgery took place, as in earning my wages, so now my husband takes care of us all with his wage, So budgeting is a absolute must to make it through every week.
So having extra add on thrown at us, like I would think many, can completely snow ball ones weekly budget to keeping everything on an even keel.
I fully agree with the some of the comments,
You have to enjoy your chosen method of exercise, or you wont stick with it, (that's me) and I personally hate walking, and I'm not a runner at all. I'm a swimmer and yoga lover, I would love to be back involved with dragon boating, but I live no where near the water here in Brisbane and with the cost of fuel these days, here's my 1st barrier, how can I afford to get there? the hours drive to the river doesn't bother me, it the cost of fuel. maybe one day
My wish would be for these people who are trained in this field of exercise and rehab to be apart of our medical team, as I said in the comments last night,
We get given a surgeon, a breast care nurse, a team of oncologists, we get told about the Lymphoedema physio (that I personally only saw twice), once prior to surgery to give me the talk of what I could be expecting once they took off my lymph nodes, and then once afterwards as a check up, now I'm left to my own devices to manage this with no really check up at all. It would be good if this was also part of our care, with follow ups over the course, to let us know how our movements are going and provided us some sort of feedback on how are healing is going or possibly not going.
But where is the team that help us with getting the correct ways of managing exercise?
Again I feel we are left to source this ourselves, again at our own personal cost.
Wouldn't this be great if this was also part of our recovery medical treatment plan?
I asked my team once I ended up with grade 3 Peripheral neuropathy to please send me off to physio so I can start to sort out my loss of strength in my hands and arms, it was so bad with pins and needles,
I couldn't hold onto a pen, unscrew a bottle cap, or even pour a glass of water from the water jug, with out spilling it all over the bench and nearly dropping the jug on the floor, my feet had also started not to work as well. I had to keep telling myself to pick up my feet, or I caught myself tripping over them.
To this day I still have not recovered from this side effect from chemo.
I'm now still waiting to be contacted by the people I have been refereed out to start any form of rehab for this, its been 2 months now and still nothing. I understand there is a wait list, but also frustrating as this could also be classed as strength exercise, that was being talked about last night.
So I chose to use up my own personal physio Medicare referral for another issue I have, that's not related to my breast cancer, just so I could try and get some form of quality of life back, but it wont be long now till I have to pay his full fee, I only have one more session to use, and then I have to wait till Oct this year before my GP can do up another referral for physio.
I've now found a pod cast I can listen to on Spotify for yoga, so I can try and get more of that in my daily or weekly routine here at home,
Thankfully the community pool is $6.00 entry fee,
I have found a local cancer care yoga class provided by our council where I live here in Brisbane. that is free to attend.
Afterpay can come in handy if required, may not suit everyone, but I can use that with another local yoga studio as they offer this payment method.
One day I would love to pay for things straight up with out needing a buy now pay later platform.
Please don't think I'm just having a sook and poor me , that's not what my thoughts are about here,
its more about how can we voice that we need to add these very important people into our medical care team, so we can all recover fully to the best of our own ability with minimal cost to the cancer patient, as we all know so many of us have different barriers that prevent us taking part in things that are unachievable for us to get to,
I feel Cost plays a huge part in this for many.
This truly needs some sort of funding to provide this service to all.
Well that's my ramblings for the morning, that I wanted to share.
Thanks you to the team who provided this webinar. It was worth my time to sit and listen and watch.
And I'm that person who use to have wasted gym memberships cause exercise was never my thing, but now it has to be as it was said last night "its a form of medicine" and I for one, like everyone else, have no desire to ever repeat this breast cancer nightmare ever again, if I can help it, so exercise I will.
12 Replies
- iserbrownMemberhttps://www.bcna.org.au/resource-hub/articles/fatigue/
Tiredness, fatigue......it's so wearing! The link above gives confidence of it being normal - GorgySMemberAfter all the incidental exercise such as cooking, hanging the washing on the line, going up and down the stairs, and other house tasks, combined with working from home four days a week, I am exhausted. Additionally, chemo makes it harder for me to be active. I also have an elliptical in my garage, love swimming in ocean pools, and completed a government-funded online program called Healthy and Active Life, which included a free exercise program. I use many YouTube exercise programs, like Zumba for seniors. Everything is free, but I just get tired from cancer, incidental exercises, and work. I cannot wait to just lay down and rest. What I really enjoy is walking in circles in my backyard every night for 10 minutes. I am really a homebody and always have been, especially since I work in the community and engage with many people.
- AskaMemberSorry I missed this webinar. In my area we can access the Cancer Wellness program through the Public Hospital. You have a 1:1 session with an Exercise Physiologist who does a few physical strength tests on you and lists your goals. They then develop your individual strength and resistance program. You then have 8 weekly sessions in a small group with the EP, using the Hospital gym. Each session also has an educational component from 8 different specialists eg Dietician, Exercise physio etc. This is free.
Ironically this program was started by my little sister when she moved back to the area. - Maree72Memberjust got back from the pools, making the most of the pools before I have to stop for radiation for 6 weeks then possible 4 weeks post for skin to recover,
Thanks to @Cath62 for your message, I made contact with the amazing team at the Wesley here in Brisbane, and am going to attend a few things there starting as early as next week. so big thank you for sharing, because I had no idea they existed at all.
I'm pleased my thoughts have opened up such a topic.
While exercise was never my go to, and it was like I was on and off that band wagon for many years with many different types of gyms and exercise activities such as boxing, pole dancing for fitness, now I have a solid reason to stick to it as much as I possibly can handle.
Its just a shame that every hospital etc from each different state can either be really well prepared and well funded or not as much as others, leaving those people to search out their own resources. But I guess that's just the way things go.
And the barriers we all face can be very challenging as we all have our pride, and finding a way around how to achieve what we want to do is very tricky. While still managing to survive and live at the same time. - iserbrownMemberAgree wholeheartedly with @Julez1958 important for both physical and mental well-being!
Nothing like fresh air in your face, to blow out the cobwebs...... - iserbrownMemberHere in Victoria there's a programme called Exmed Cancer. I was, along with some others from BCNA, part of the pilot program.
Like everything they are struggling for funding
https://www.exmedcancer.org.au/
BCNA have a resource that may help
https://www.bcna.org.au/resource-hub/articles/strengthen-your-recovery-pilates-program/
Here's another
Pinc and steel
https://au.pincandsteel.com/
Hope that helps! - Julez1958MemberHi @Maree72
And anyone else interested in this topic.
Exercise is
so important for both mental as well as physical health.
I saw an exercise physiologist after my diagnosis and she gave he a programme to follow and I’m not always that good at following it but one thing I do every day is at least a 30 minute brisk walk.
If it’s raining I go up and down stairs - previously I lived in a 3 storey house , now I’m in an apartment block and I do the fire stairs.
I also love swimming in the ocean which I can do for almost 9 months of the year.
I have been doing Pilates once a for
years and although I wouldn’t say I enjoy it I know it’s good for me . - Blossom1961MemberHi @Maree72 I hear where you are coming from. I lack motivation to do my own thing too. My hospital offers an eight week cancer rehab programme but then they push for you to do other exercises once you have finished. I don't have that money either. My new garden is giving me a heap (read I am overdoing it) of exercise at the moment but the exercise physios tell me that is incidental and not important. Pffft. Tell my muscles that. If I can achieve something and give my muscles a workout then that is a win win.
- Maree72MemberHi @Cath62
Thank you so much for sharing, Ill definitely look at that as the Wesley is on the train line for me, so I should be able to easily get there from where I am. - Cath62MemberHi @Maree72, check out the choices program at the Wesley hospital. It's free and they do offer some things like yoga online. They have pilates, gym, art for healing and other things for those who have/had cancer. You don't need to be a patient of the hospital. Best wishes to you.