My partner and I moved to rural Wales in 2015 to fulfil our dream of living in the countryside. It was a brave, risky move leaving family, friends and jobs. We took on a new mortgage to buy our cottage and looked for new jobs, prepared to turn our hand to anything, but we did not know things were about to become very challenging indeed.
Just two months after arriving I discovered a suspicious lump and breast cancer was confirmed after a battle with lack of diagnosis. This meant I needed the whole works: mastectomy, removal of some lymph nodes, chemotherapy and then radiotherapy. Fear kicked in big time and I needed to find a way to combat it. Every time I had to attend one of the dozens and dozens of hospital appointments I would offset this with time outdoors. Surgery was in the Autumn, chemo went through the winter. I would don two hats and get out there. In the early summer I camped in my tent near the hospital to attend daily morning radiotherapy sessions. After these I spent all day gently rambling about meadows, woods, river banks, exploring villages and delighting in everything. I came to understand, experience and value the connection between our natural environment and our health and wellbeing on a deep, personal level. During Covid I was not surprised that many people also gained this insight. Each day I put aside time to be outside. I don’t mind if it’s cold or raining, the point is to engage the senses and enjoy the most ancient relationship that exists for us.
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This page tells of people who have found Bryn Walking and want to share their story, in their own words, of how walking and the outdoors has made a difference to their lives.
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November 2023
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