Liz - 14 years old

My dad has his own little house in the next town away so I go and stay at his house for two days a week. When he's alone I worry about him a lot.

My life was never normal, I was always in trouble or sad or
something along those lines, well I'm still quite like that now, always in
trouble, mouthy but I knew when to be happy and how to be happy.

In the living room, he explained everything to me and my sister. I was
heartbroken when he told me he had cancer. We were a couple of days away from going on holiday, so at least I had something to look forward to.

So he was planned to have an operation the day after we came back on holiday, that's when I knew it was going to be horrible. He told me and my sister that it was only an operation he was having, but he also need radiotherapy. I thought the radiotherapy would get rid of it all. But it didn't. He was due to go back into work in September, but he never did. It is September now and he isn't allowed to go back to work until February next year. It turned out the cancer had grown and he is now having chemotherapy and radiotherapy. He has had to have an operation to have a tube through his stomach, so when he has his chemotherapy and his radiotherapy he cant eat because it hurts his through because that's where the cancer is.

He's had a collection of hats before he knew he had cancer, he's still
collecting them, he says he getting ready for no hair.

It hurts me to see my dad in constant pain all the time. I worry about him a lot because he lives by himself, and I live with my mum and my brother and sister, the rest of my brothers and sisters are way older than me so I don't live with them anymore. But my dad has his own little house in the next town away so I go and stay at his house for two days a week. When he's alone I worry about him a lot.

When 'm in school I get into a lot of trouble most of the time, I cant
deny that, its all because I'm cocky and I get very angry a lot of the
time, but I also get upset as well.

I spoke to my teacher about it and she helped me by ringing McMillan
Cancer support, and they gave me this website. Telling someone can really make a difference because it’s an extra person to talk to about it.

I like to help others too so take my advise be happy, easier said than done but surround yourself with people who make you happy and smile, yes you have down times but who doesn't so don't be ashamed of being upset, no one can be happy 24/7.

Stay strong sweets, it gets better Xx

Page updated 9 October 2017