Lived Experience Forum

[tisme]

my anxiety is through the roof, my depression is through the floor.  diagnosed with 3 forms of arthritis,  having trouble with the new hearing aids ( both ears ) having just been diagnosed with moderate to severe hearling loss.  and i find out I have a lump.  will find out what it is on Wednesday. to get there I have to catch a cab to the station a bus to Nambour, and back again , so apart from the cost that I cant afford, the trip will result in agony for me ( arthriits and spine issues.  cant get transport help  What then ?? I cant get to treatment if its cancer. what happens to my autistic daughter?? we have no family , friends I thought we had we dont.  the neighbours are not firendly I worry about leaving daughter alone  I cant take any more. Do i have to do something drastic ?? is that my only choice?/  Im really at my wits end 

[Alone]

Hey Tisme, 

I had breast cancer a few years ago.  I had the same worry about transport for treatment and a social worker at the hospital said that if we need treatment, they will make sure that we can get there.  Talk to your doctor or a social worker and they'll help you work out whats best for you.

Remember, not all lumps are automatically cancer.  It could be a cyst or non malignant lump.  Even if it is cancer, treatment has come a long long way in the past 20 years and isnt always done completely in a hospital setting.

Hang in there and try not to get ahead of yourself.  Its all very worrying until you get some answers. 

[tisme]

how do I get a social worker ?? ,im so tired of things going wrong it seems like one disaster after another,

[Alone]

I'd ask your doctor. I had a nurse put me onto one when I was diagnosed with cancer. She found all sorts of help for me, that I couldn't get previously. 

Sadly, I found that being diagnosed with cancer opened doors to get help for me, where previously I had been asking for years and with "only" a mental illness they didnt want to help.  The difference was incredible!