Living Well patient story

Living Well

“It was my GP and my Macmillan nurse at the hospital who first suggested I contact Rennie Grove about accessing support. When I went along to my first Living Well session, I was apprehensive as I didn’t know what it would involve or how I would find it. I now know I had absolutely nothing to worry about. The whole experience has been fantastic – one of the best experiences I’ve had for a while!

“One of the things I love most about the Living Well sessions is meeting other people who are in a similar situation. We can all be so open and talk to each other about what’s going on and how we feel about it. If there’s something that you wouldn’t feel you could talk to your family of friends about – for fear of upsetting them or them not knowing what to say – you can definitely talk to the group at Grove House about it. This peer support has been a huge help to me and I look forward to the sessions each week. We all have a real laugh and a good time together – it isn’t sad or depressing.

“Each time I attend a Living Well session I have a one-to-one consultation with one of Rennie Grove’s nurses. We have a good chat about how I’m doing and anything that has changed since last time, or anything they can support me with.

“One week when I was there I asked about getting a roll along walker. They gave me one to try out and I thought it would really help me so after a few phone calls, they managed to get me one to take home. It has made such a difference. I have COPD and in recent times had been managing to walk about 50 – 70 metres per day. With the help of the walker, I recently walked 500 metres in a day. That was a huge improvement and really helped me to be able to get out and do some jobs in town that I wouldn’t otherwise have been able to do.

“As well as peer support and the nurse consultations, there are often specific activities to try your hand at during Living Well sessions. Volunteers regularly come along to give talks on interesting local topics. In recent weeks I’ve also joined in with sing-a-longs, gentle exercise and baking. I’ve never been a baker but it was great to try something new and come away with a batch of cookies that I had baked myself!

“During each session there’s also the opportunity to stay for a 3-course lunch for a very nominal donation. It’s worth every penny! Not only is it a great lunch, it’s a nice opportunity to sit down together and socialise over a meal.

“I can’t stress enough what a wonderful service this is. I get so much out of attending the sessions and the staff and volunteers are all absolutely fantastic. As well as helping with things like my mobility, going to the sessions has really lifted my mood. I’d say to anybody who is unsure about accessing day services at Grove House: just do it, you’ll definitely get so much out of it.”