Rosy’s Special Day story

Rosy was seven months pregnant when she was diagnosed with bowel cancer. She booked a Willow Special Day at Center Parcs for her and her family to mark the end of her chemotherapy. She tells us what her Special Day meant to her…  

We have lovely memories to look back on. My Special Day felt like a positive end to an otherwise truly awful year.

Rosy

I had been with my boyfriend for five years and we decided to have our first baby. When I was seven months pregnant I began to have intense stomach cramps. After many trips to the maternity ward, I was finally taken to A&E and admitted to hospital. A few days later after some tests I was diagnosed with bowel cancer. I then had to have an emergency caesarean and my baby was born at thirty three weeks and went straight onto life support. We were separated in hospital on different floors and I didn’t see him for the first twenty four hours as I was too unwell to make it up to the baby ward.

I was in hospital for a month with my baby over Christmas and New Year. I have since had two further operations, to remove the tumour and then to remove 60 per cent of my liver as it has spread and is now stage 4. 2019 was the worst year of my life and I am still shellshocked about everything that has happened to us as a new family.

Our first year together has been really tough. Due to my surgery I haven’t been able to lift my baby for a lot of the time, so have needed constant help and have been stuck indoors in bed a lot. I have had long stretches in hospital and feel sick and weak after treatment.

We scheduled my Willow Special Day to be after my final chemotherapy treatment. It got me through the last weeks, knowing that I had that to look forward to once that was over.

We had a great time at Center Parcs. We did a few activities but mostly it was just nice to be together in the fresh air with a change of scene from our little flat in London. It was a lovely distraction to be away from home for a few days and forget all our worries and just enjoy being together and having fun.

We have lovely memories to look back on. My Special Day felt like a positive end to an otherwise truly awful year.