Michelle Thompson Case Study Published 19/11/2009: The Award recognises the learning that individuals have undertaken in order to make a difference and the inspiration and support they offer to fellow learners. We’ve produced Michelle’s Case Study as she told it to us without any editing – we’re certain that once you read it you’ll appreciate exactly why we were unable to make any changes and why she won SkillShare’s top award.
“Fourteen years ago I would never have believed that between the ages of 36 and 41 I’d be climbing mountains in Peru, running the Great North Run four times, cycling 500 miles across North Vietnam, sipping tea at Downing Street and winning awards for my charity work.After all I was an ordinary young married mother trying to make ends meet. I’d only ever been on a plane once – and that was when I was 13 and only went as far as Germany!
But fourteen years ago I would never have believed that in the space of 18 months I would lose my beautiful little sister to cancer, miscarry twins and have an ectopic pregnancy due to the stress of my sister’s illness, and be informed that I it would be unlikely I would ever have children again. I certainly wouldn’t have ever believed that my husband and I would almost lose our home because of the strain that cancer can bring and just when I would come to terms with all of this who could have ever imagined that I would be diagnosed with thyroid cancer just a month after losing my dad to a heart attack.
But that’s what did happen.
My beautiful little sister Jeanette (Jinny) was diagnosed with an aggressive form of teenage bone cancer at the tender age of 18, Jinny was incredibly positive because that was her nature but she must have been so terrified and it broke my heart that I couldn’t protect her. The chemo was so strong that her hair fell out and she had to endure a 15-hour operation to remove all the bone in her leg and replace it with a steel one. Perhaps most devastating was the way the cancer affected her mind and she had to be sectioned on an adult secure ward.
Once the chemo stopped, Jinny came back to us in mind and body and was allowed home again. Life began to look good as her hair grew back and she learned to walk again. She had to have check up’s every now and again but friends and neighbours were so pleased to see her on the mend that they held a fundraising auction so she could go and swim with the dolphins in Florida. On the day of the auction, the village was buzzing, everyone was so excited. Jinny had to go up to the RVI in Newcastle for the results of some routine tests where she was told the devastating news that the cancer had spread to her lungs and there was absolutely nothing they could do for her. Jeanette was obviously shocked and distressed but she didn’t want to let the village down, so she put her glad rags on and went to the auction without breathing a word to anyone. That’s just how amazing she was. They raised over £3000 for her.
Jinny never did get to swim with the dolphins because she died three months later on the 18th July 1995 at the tender age of 18, exactly a year to the day that she had been diagnosed.
The grief was immense and that’s when, after an eptopic pregnancy I was told I probably would never have more children. To add to this the financial strain led to us almost losing our house. We went to Court and thankfully the Judge understood what we had been through and allowed us to keep our home.
After losing Jinny I emerged from those dark years a stronger and more determined lady with a renewed zest for life. Our son Billy was born so miracles do happen and the sun started to shine in our lives! I also set up a standing order for Macmillan Cancer Support to thank them for supporting my sister and our family. £2 a month just never seemed enough. I wanted to do more, but I didn’t know how and I didn’t know what!
A few years later I was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. It was the last thing I expected to hear on bounding into my consultant’s office after having a lump removed from my neck. Not wanting to put my family through all that hurt again, I went home and carried on as if nothing had happened. I screamed silently to myself when I was alone but then I thought of my little sister and how brave she had been I knew that I was lucky right from the start because although thyroid cancer is very rare it is very easy to treat. It didn’t stop me being scared ‘tho and after two major operations I knew I would need further treatment so I needed something to focus on because I was determined I would beat this terrible disease.
I decided to take on the Peru Hiking Challenge 2004 for Macmillan Cancer Support. This way I would be able to raise money to thank them for the support they had given my sister and now me, I could do it in memory of Jinny and I also had a goal to aim for. I had never done anything like this before, it was totally out of my comfort zone but I was sooooo excited!!
I knew the training was going to be tough because when you don’t have a thyroid gland you realise why you need one. Sometimes I had to stop taking my tablets for various scans and your body literally starts shutting down. All your energy goes and you have no metabolism. I also suffered from hallucinations and palpitations, memory loss and utter exhaustion so it was tough. At first I could only manage to walk slowly on a treadmill for 5 minutes but thoughts of my little sister struggling to learn to walk again and gasping for breath when she was really ill made me so determined to go that extra mile. I was doing it for her.
As for the fundraising, I still well up with tears thinking about how generous people were. Neighbours who I’d never even spoken to were knocking on my door giving me hundreds of pounds that they had collected at work. I was stopped in the street by strangers pushing a pound into my hand and wishing me luck. Other parents at school hadn’t even realised I’d had cancer because I had covered it up so well because of my kids. They were amazed at what I was doing and donated whatever they could. But by far my biggest rock throughout all of this was my husband Mick who managed to raise thousands in a short space of time which took the pressure off so I could concentrate on getting fit.
To stand at the top of Dead Women’s Pass out across the Andes was the most exhilarating, amazing experience of my life and will stay with me forever. You see, before Peru my idea of a hike was down to the shops at sale time so to climb a mountain made me feel like some sort of Superwoman!I started to look at other things I couldn’t do. I’d never been able to run I was always a sprinter who used to run like mad at the start of cross country and collapse in a heap before ever making the finish line so I decided to do the Great North Run and I did and I’ve done it three times since. I’m in training at the moment for the fourth time!
Then I thought, you know what I haven’t ridden a bike since I was 12 so I think I’ll cycle 500 miles across the mountainous regions of North Vietnam in 40 degree heat over 8 days and I did and it was the toughest challenge yet, I even ran over a snake!!! Next year I’m climbing Kilimanjaro!!
With my new found confidence, I started getting more involved with volunteer groups. I became a member of the local cancer network patient and carer group where I actually sat in meetings with top doctors and consultants and gave my views on the services they provided. They were actually interested in what I was saying which boosted my self-esteem even more.
I helped set up a Friends group at my local school and we managed to raise £10,000 for extra treats and equipment to benefit all the pupils. The school received a poor OFSTED report so I set up a successful Parent’s Council to give the parents and the school a better relationship so they could work together to improve their children’s education. It was looked on very favourably in the next OFSTED report.
I am now the Secretary of the North Road Community Partnership which strives to improve the area we live in. The community development workers have been instrumental in supporting me and helping me find the confidence to enrol on free courses, all of which have been so enjoyable with the added bonus of meeting new friends.
One of my proudest moments in May this year was receiving the Doreen Stonehouse Award for Outstanding Learning 2009, SkillShare’s top award for learning. I’d never been awarded anything in my life so I burst into tears!
I must have been on a roll because I was nominated by my daughter for The Sun Wondermum 2009 competition and was one of only six mum’s in the country to go on an all expenses two day trip to London with my family for the Awards Ceremony. We were treated to tea with Sarah Brown at No 10 Downing Street and the following day we went to Claridges where we ate lunch with a whole host of celebrities before being presented with our Awards.It was all very surreal! I was so proud that my kids were proud enough to nominate me in the first place.
They say things come in three’s and they certainly have this year as I was awarded the Douglas Macmillan Award for being an advocate for Macmillan Cancer Support. It’s one of their top awards! I burst into tears again!
I’m incredibly proud of my charity work and have raised in excess of £30,000 all in memory of my little sister and the thousands of people who are affected by cancer. I now have my own fundraising group and I regularly speak at conferences up and down the country as well as helping them win corporate partnerships which is something I never dreamed I would be capable of doing.
I happened to get cancer which happened to change my life beyond belief. It actually changed my life for the better. I began to achieve more than I ever imagined possible because I used my emotions to change something so negative into something positive. I am doing things now that I would never ever have dreamt of years ago. I do feel incredibly lucky. I’ve learned that no matter what life throws at you, you can survive and live your life. It’s just the way you choose to live it that makes the difference.”