2020 Vision

So, we will soon be starting a new decade and as usual at this time of year we look back before we look forward, right? Well, I'm looking back to the end of the previous decade, back to 2009.

23rd December to be exact. That was the day I found out that I had womb cancer. 

Great Christmas present eh?

I had no idea that 10 years on I would still be living with the consequences of that and that my quality of life would be virtually zero.

Cancer unfortunately has a habit of seriously screwing up some peoples lives. What is the saying about "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger" Well, thats a load of crap for a start.

Cancer, or rather the treatment that you have, in my case surgery, chemotherapy & radiotherapy, can leave behind a series of life long side effects which often means that your health is worse post cancer than it was when you were diagnosed.

Now before anyone jumps down my throat, I know I am generalising here and I am only speaking from my own experience but I really think that the medical profession need to change the way they deal with cancer patients. 

Many are not told about the possible long term side effects of treatment, I know I certainly wasn't. I totally understand that some people don't want to know and thats fine but to subject peope to barbaric treatments without giving them full information is wrong.

It's not called the "cut, poison & burn approach" for nothing. 

How can patients be expected to give their consent for treatment if they are not given all the information they need to be able to make an informed decision? 

Call me naive but I didn't realise that I would go into immediate surgical menopause right after my hysterectomy. I was not given any help or support and have still not had any 10 years on. 

I was told no HRT but not offered any alternatives and so many other women are in the same position.

Since I set up Womb Cancer Support UK back in April 2011 I have discovered so much information that is relevant to my diagnosis, treatment and side effects that I was never told about.

It is wrong that patients have to resort to googling for information that should be provided by their medical team; their GP, Consultant, Oncologist etc.

If I could turn the clock back a decade I would do so. I would refuse the treatment and would take my chances. At least I would probably have had some decent quality of life for a couple of years, maybe even linger who knows.

What I do know is that the chemo & radiotherapy destroyed my quality of life. You may think I'm being over dramatic or exagerating things a bit but you are not living my life.

It is time that quality of life was a factor in assessing treatment outcome. It is true that I no longer have cancer (well, I've never actually been told that as I never had any follow ups at all after my treatment ended, but that a whole nother story!!) but at what cost?

I have spent the past near 9 years with WCSUK trying to empower women to speak up, ask questions and not accept the status quo. We deserve better; I deserved better.

So as a new decade dawns,  I think it's time to move on from cancer if I can. Not sure how I can best achieve that but I'm sure we'll figure it out somehow.

Here's to 2020.

We Remember Orlando

Two years ago a guy walked into the Pulse nightclub in Orlando in US and began shooting. There were around 300 people in the club at the time.

The gunman, who was carrying an AR-15-type assault rifle and a handgun, killed 49 people. Most of those who died were young and they were gay.

Attacks on LGBTQ+ people are happening all the time, both here in UK and in US. 
In 2018 there were 26 deaths of transgender people in US, most of them black transgender women and so far in 2019 there have been at least 8 transgender deaths as a result of shooting or other violent means. https://www.hrc.org/resources/violence-against-the-transgender-community-in-2019

Only recently 2 lesbian women were subjected to a homophobic assault on a London bus by several youths and 2 other women were hit by stones thrown from a passing car.

June is #LGBTQ+ #Pride month which marks the 1969 Stonewall uprising in Greenwich Village in US. Pride parades are held in town and cities around the world in support of #LGBTQ+ people.

Yet day in and day out gay people are subjected to attacks, assaults, abuse, imprisonment and more. Whilst many of the  anti-gay laws have been abolished here in UK, there are still many LGBTQ+ people who face homophobic attacks and bullying and many are still afraid to be open about their sexuality for fear of the repercussions.

I have always been an LGBTQ+ ally – I have several friends who are gay.

Last year something happened that I never thought would – Bute held its first #Pride event. The island is quite small and relatively close minded but a recent newcomer to the island who runs a local pub/diner decided it was time to drag this island into 21^st century.

Check out the blog post I did last year about #ButePride https://thehippyhen.blogspot.com/2018/06/bits-of-bute-part-2.html

It angers me so much that people are attacked, assaulted and even in some cases killed because of who they love.

I will continue to wave my rainbow flag for everyone regardless of where they are on the LGBTQ+ rainbow spectrum because it is no ones business but yours who you choose to love. 

Kaz 😉

Climate change affects us all

Over recent weeks and months there has been a lot of talk in the media about climate change and other environmental issues. It seems that people are finally sitting up and taking notice about what is happening to our planet, or rather, the damage we as a species are doing to this earth.

I could say, “what took you so long?” – some of us have been concerned about these issues for 30 years or so and have been talking about it and trying to raise awareness about the destruction of our rainforests, the polluting of our rivers and waterways,  the use of fossil fuels, the extinction of so many other species who share this world with us, the over fishing of our oceans, consumerism and so much more.

But I’m not going to, because those of us that have been campaigning for change all these years are so glad that you have finally woken up and are able to see that this earth is a fragile place and we all need to protect it and stop abusing it.

As a species, our individual time on this earth is limited to 70 or 80 years or so if we are lucky. A blink of the eye in the evolutionary terms of this planet but the consequences of our actions whilst we are here are immense.

As a child, the disposable nappies that we wear can out live us for decades – some estimates say a nappy takes around 500 years to decompose in landfill. By the way, do you know that a baby uses around 5000 disposable nappies in its first 2 years?

As we grow older the plastic toys we play with get broken and discarded and they too can take years to break down.

Then we learn to drive and travel around using petroleum products that pollute our air and cause us health problems. We try to be good and eat healthy but end up buying fruit and vegetables wrapped in plastic that has flown half way around the world to satisfy our desire for strawberries at Christmas.

We take short haul flights to foreign destinations to soak up the sun and “see the world” – not realising that vast areas of land have been taken over to build luxury resorts and water tables in many parts of the world are running low meaning that local people are going without fresh water so rich tourists can have their swimming pools filled and their hot showers.

You would be surprised at the number of people who think global warming means warmer summers and more sunshine!!  

Yes, human-induced climate change does mean higher temperatures, but it also means heavy rainfall in some areas,  and drought and storms in other areas. Melting polar ice sheets at the North & South poles means rising sea levels which means that many low lying coastal areas around the world are at threat of disappearing.

The full impact of climate change will vary around the world but it is an issue that we can no longer ignore.

So if you have finally realised just how serious the issue is then I won’t say “what took you so long” but I will say “Thank you” because it is an issue that affects us all and only we can change things.

-           

The time is now.

April 2019 will be remembered, hopefully, as the time that environmental issues and climate change really started to be taken seriously by many ordinary people.

Extinction Rebellion started in 2018 but really hit the headlines in April 2019 when thousands of people occupied parts of London in peaceful protest about climate change, loss of biodiversity, the risk of human extinction and the collapse of our fragile ecosystem.

Protests also happened around the world in places like Melbourne, Adelaide & Sydney in Australia and across Europe in places like Berlin, Brussels, Madrid & Lausanne.

The events in London lasted 11 days and by the end of the protests 1,130 people from all walks of life and all ages had been arrested. The police presence was large and heavy handed but the protests were non-violent and relatively peaceful.

The scale of protests shows the depth of feeling that is circulating amongst ordinary people about the issues that are facing us as a species. Many of the people who took part in the protests are not environmental activists but ordinary people – men, women and children of all walks of life who want change.

And change needs to happen soon. For far too long we have ignored the cries from our planet – ice sheets melting at an alarming rate; sea levels rising; global warming; the destruction of our rainforests; the poisoning of our rivers and lakes; and ultimately our own demise.

The youth of the world are having their future decimated by those who are in power and they are finally rising up and saying that enough is enough. They are no longer prepared to stand by and watch our planet be destroyed for profit as global corporate capitalism continues to drive the international economy.

There have always been people who have spoken out about the destruction of our planet; people like David Attenborough, Jane Goodall, Vandana Shiva, Arundhati Roy, George Monbiot and many more and another we can add to the list is a 16 year old Swedish schoolgirl called Greta Thunberg. She has travelled the world over recent months and spoken with politicians here in UK and also at the United Nations. She has also been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.

Why has it taken a 16 year old to wake people up to the fact that climate change is a major problem and we have very little time left to change things? Those who try to discredit her are resorting to vicious personal attacks but in the end they know they are losing the argument.

There will always be climate change deniers but in the end they will be proved to have been wrong. They are finally running scared because they know that the tide is turning against them and people all around the world are finally waking up to the issues that face all of this that live on this planet.

 Climate change can no longer be ignored. It is time to listen to those who have been talking about this issue for many years and it is also time to listen to those who will be most affected by what happens.

 I joined Friends of the Earth and Greenpeace in the 70's as a teeneage and sent letters (this was before the internet) and campaign postcards asking people to change laws and save our planet. The big thing then was "Save the Whales" and trying to get a ban on whale fishing. 

I think David Attenborough and his wonderful programmes have a lot to do with people finally waking up to what we are loosing and have already lost. 

I hope that Greta Thunberg and others from the younger generation finally achieve the changes that need to happen in order for our planet to survive the onslaught of destruction we are causing.

It's good to talk - so please do.

I have always been a spiritual kind of person; someone who hates conflict and aggression. 

I have always been a quiet sort of person and prefer my own company.

I have always sought to see the good in people and to treat people as I would like them to treat me. 

I was bought up to help others if it was within my capability to do so. 

I try to live a good life and do the right thing; I believe that having a conscience means that you instinctivly know what is right.

  

Being aware of what is right and what is wrong means that you make a choice, sometimes unconciously, about everything you do.

Most people have a conscience but many don't use it. They allow their lives and their minds to be filled with insignificant stuff that ultimately controls their lives.

When you are awake to higher things you tend not to mix with people who allow their lives to be controlled by meaningless "stuff".

I am not here to convert others to seeing the greater good in life - if they choose the path they live that is up to them. 

I know others don't feel the same way; they believe that everyone can be led towards the higher conscienceness and have their eyes opened.

I tend to believe that they need to open their eyes first, even if only slightly and then seek guidance.

It might sound like I'm waffling on here and maybe I am a bit because what I am trying to say here is not something that I talk about much to people I know so its difficult to express things in a simple and easy to understand way.

We live in a technological age where ideas and news can go around the globe in minutes - the world has become a much smaller place in the past 30 or 40 years.

People are connected to each other via the internet and mobile phones and we connect to people on the other side of the world who we may never see in real life.

So many of us have our view of the world shaped by social media and our interactions with it and with each other yet are we loosing the ability to interact with each other in the real world?

Stand at a bus stop or sit in a cafe; do you see people talking to each other - face to face? No, usually they are glued to their mobile phone checking their social media.

I was sat in a cafe before Christmas and a Dad came in with his young daughter. They sat at a nearby table chatting away; she seemed to love having the undivided attention of her Dad. Then the drinks arrived and Dad pulled out his mobile and spent the next 20 minutes scrolling through Facebook whilst his daughter sat there in silence, slowly stirring her milkshake with her straw.

Is that what "family time" has been reduced to - A few moments between social media updates??

What I am trying to say is that we have somehow lost the connection to each other and thereby our connection to what makes us human. 

By not talking to each other in a deep and meaningful way, we are severing our connections with our deeper being. 

The suicide rates, especially amongst men are rising steeply. People find it hard to talk openly and honestly to someone else about how they feel. 

I believe that social media can play a positive role in this by letting people know that it's ok to talk but we have to also admit that social media is also creating these problems.

It acts as a mask that some people use to show the world a version of themselves that they think others want to see. It's often not the version they see when they look at themselves.

It is time for you to take off the mask and reveal your authentic true self. 

Start by taking a long hard look at your life. Are you living a life that you are happy with? If not, what would make your life happier and make you more contented?

Once you begin to understand what it is you want in life, beyond the usual lots of money or fame etc, then you can begin to make those changes that you need to make in order to have the life you want.

If you are constantly telling yourself, usually subconciously, that you will make the changes next week, next year, next month - then nothing will ever change. 

We are only alive for an uncertain amount of time so make the most of it. Better to live a life doing something you enjoy and that makes you happy than to spend your life feeling trapped in a dead end job and growing old and being full of regrets.

You only have one life so live the life you truly want.