As a patient going through cancer treatment I was invited to attend a workshop run by www.lookgoodfeelbetter.co.uk (LGFB)

Taken straight from their website: ‘Look Good Feel Better is dedicated to improving the quality of life and self-esteem of people undergoing cancer treatment. The program offers complimentary group and virtual sessions that teach beauty techniques to help people with cancer to face their diagnosis with greater confidence’. It is a charity supported by the beauty industry.

With my hair already gone and a strong likelihood that my eyebrows and lashes would follow, I thought I’d better get myself booked on – make up has never been my strong point and whilst I’m totally comfortable with my baldness, I do need a little make up to look feminine and not just like Duncan Goodhew (I’m showing my age here).

So, I attended one of these workshops a couple of Mondays ago and I have to say it was fantastic. It was held in Coventry at an industrial unit where they run training courses for the beauty industry and they were lending LGFB a free room to run the workshop.

There were about 12 ladies on this course (they do run them for men and teenagers with cancer too) and what struck me immediately was the diversity in the room – cancer really is indiscriminate. There were ladies of different ages, culture, and we were all at different stages of our treatment. Some still had their hair; some were wearing wigs (I’m pretty good at spotting them now) and I went totally bald. A lady older than me also revealed a bald head when she took off her hat and looked so relieved to see me in the same situation that she came to sit next to me.

We were sat at treatment desks each with a mirror on them, one side normal and one side with massive magnification so that we could see what we were doing with the make-up.

The two ladies running the course introduced themselves and told us all about LGFB and then said they would be taking us through a 12-step programme. Every part of me wanted to say, ‘My name is Karen and I have cancer’ (just like the AA) but thought it may not be appreciated so I managed to keep schtum.

Immediately as we sat down, we were handed a lovely goody bag with amazing products donated by the beauty industry from companies such as Estee Lauder, Chanel, No 7, Bobbi Brown to name a few. Inside the bag was everything we needed to follow the 12 steps of the programme so we could start using our own products.

The first thing we did was to remove ay make up we had arrived in with the products from the bag. As we did this the lady next to me (with the bald head) broke down in tears as she looked at herself in the mirror and removed her make up. I don’t think she had ever reconciled her new image and it struck me at that moment, just how much an individual’s self esteem can be affected by their appearance.

The course leaders then took us, step by step, through a skin care routine, then gave us tips on foundations, powder, blushers, eye shadows, eyeliner, and probably most importantly eyebrows. These days it’s all about the eyebrows so if they disappear it’s crucial to know how to recreate them, it’s not as easy as you’d think, but they do have some great tips to follow.

The workshop lasted about 2 hours and there was a lovely volunteer who made us cups of tea whilst we were doing it. For me it was just another example of how much support is out there for cancer patients and how lucky we are that we can access these kinds of things for free, making them available for everyone.

Cancer treatment is long and tough. You go through physical and psychological changes that are forced upon you, beyond your control and that you have to adapt to quickly.

Courses like LGFB help with those adaptations and I, for one, was really grateful for that support.

In other news, last Friday was chemotherapy number 4, which means that I am now officially 2/3 of the way through my chemo doses, which feels good – I have less to do than I have already done!

I have moved onto a new drug now – Docetaxel – which is supposed to be one of the nasty ones. Understandably, I was apprehensive last Friday, I had been told that it is possible that your body can react to the drugs as they go in and that the most severe reaction was anaphylaxis. I’m pleased to be able to report that I didn’t suffer a reaction and at the moment 3 days on, I’m feeling fine (although sadly my taste buds are starting to change, which may actually stop me eating chocolate!).

I have no idea what the next few days will bring but fingers crossed it will be more of the same!