Getting ready for Younger Women with Secondaries Together in-person

Our in-person events explore topics including medical information on secondary breast cancer in younger women, clinical trials and mindfulness. See our drop down list below for the range of topics covered. 

Many people find that a secondary breast cancer diagnosis results in them taking time to think about their life and the things that are important to them. This session aims to provide you with a safe environment to discuss the impact a diagnosis has had on your plans and ambitions for the future  In the session we’ll talk about the difference between adjusting and adapting to your diagnosis with the aim of to empowering you to explore how you might begin to set new goals. 

Explore some of the difficulties you may be facing when navigating various relationships alongside having a secondary breast cancer diagnosis. The session will aim to offer some useful communication strategies with partners and family members, and further sources of support for you and your loved ones. Along with coping strategies on how to manage feelings around different relationships, there will be plenty of time for questions and discussion. 

It can be daunting to know when or how to start talking about a secondary breast cancer diagnosis to children. This session will provide a safe space to talk about and share concerns on how to start and take forward open and honest conversations with children. There will be plenty of time for questions in a safe and supportive environment, at a pace that suits the group. 

Being diagnosed with secondary breast cancer and having treatment can affect how you feel about sex and intimate relationships. We also know it can be challenging to talk about sex and intimacy concerns with partners or health care professionals. So, for this group you’ll be joined by an experienced sex and relationship therapist. They’ll talk about how your intimate relationships may have changed and cover ways to approach those changes and share practical tips and advice. It will be relaxed and informal, and there will be time for questions and discussion.  

You may want to know more about supportive and palliative care but don’t know where to start. Or find it overwhelming to think about. This session aims to provide you with information about what supportive and palliative care services are and how they can support people to live well and improve quality of life, as well as providing end of life care.

We’ll explore some of the myths and fears around the words ‘hospice’ and ‘palliative care’. And we’ll discuss some of the concerns you may have around accessing this support and explore the benefits it can provide for your physical and psychological health. For example, relieving symptoms and helping to manage side effects of treatment, and how it can support you spiritually and socially.

There will be plenty of time for questions in a safe and supportive environment, at a pace that suits you.  

This session aims to help you feel more confident and comfortable about physical activity, movement and exercise after a diagnosis of secondary breast cancer.

You may have been active before and are unsure how to get back to physical activity, or you may be new to exercise and are unsure where to start. We’ll discuss the benefits of exercising with cancer, go through some different types of physical activity and explore any safety considerations when exercising with secondary breast cancer.

We will also look at how you might overcome different barriers to exercise. There will be a demonstration of some different exercises which you can join in with if you wish and plenty of time for questions and discussion. 

Laughter yoga is based on the concept of laughing for no reason except that it is good for us. It is not based on jokes. Instead, it involves gentle exercises and games that generate spontaneous laughter as a way dealing with life’s challenges, to explore and express emotions.

This session aims to give you an opportunity to relax and unwind at the end day one of Younger Women with Secondaries Together. It will be a relaxed and encouraging environment.