Today I’m welcoming the charity Bloodwise, to share their message with you and let us know a little on the work they are doing to beat Leukaemia
As a young child, our experiences define us in more ways than we know. Learning and living is all about taking the good with the bad, and even the mistakes we make form a vital component of who we are. In this regard, illness is a unique learning experience for a child, especially when it is a loved one such as a sibling or parent afflicted. At Bloodwise, we come into contact with many children who are either growing up with leukaemia, have a parent or sibling with leukaemia, or have even already lost someone. Whilst we are primarily a research fundraising organisation working to beat blood cancers, our support network is just as important and we work hard to reach people of all different backgrounds to share what we believe is important.
Dealing with illness, whether mental or physical, is a hard but very important part of parenting. Even though we may be suffering, we do our best both to take care of our children and help them understand what we, or they, are going through. Our support system is now more important than ever, and it’s people like Anna and her three amazing children who we sometimes count on to spread our message of hope to those who may need it, as well as gain the support we need to continue the fight against blood cancers.
Many people are fortunate enough not to have their lives disrupted by Leukaemia, but for others, every day is a struggle. As a parent, it is unfathomably hard to accept that you cannot look after those who depend on you in the ways you once did. In many cases, we’ve seen Children as young as 5 forced to grow up faster than they should and take care of their parents due to debilitating illnesses. We want to spread the word that this is nothing to be ashamed of. Family, if anything, is the most important support system in the world and without it, many people like myself would be completely lost.
Many people may turn to faith, hatred or even longing in their desperation, but in our many years helping people, we’ve found nothing can compare with the support of your children or parents. This is the message we at Bloodwise want to share with you, and for which Anna has been kind enough to lend us her platform and support our cause today.
We’ve changed the world for people living with leukaemia, lymphoma, myeloma and many other types of cancer, and as our mission dictates, we will not stop until every single person with blood cancer can assuredly survive and live their life to the fullest. Our mission, started by a normal family who lost their 6 year old daughter to leukaemia, hasn’t changed over the years even if our name has. Just as the Eastwood’s believed there should be hope for everyone afflicted with blood cancer, we work hard to make their vision a reality.
The first branch was founded in 1960 as the Leukaemia Research Fund. At the time, blood cancer research was a significant grey area and little was known about what kind of results would be yielded, but with the help of supporters and volunteers, the organisation grew into a nationwide presence with over 150 local fundraising groups, six offices across the UK, and over half a billion pounds raised for the continued research of blood cancers.
The most important thing, for people both living with Leukaemia and those seeking to beat it, is to never give up. This is why we’re doing everything we can to improve treatment processes for patients and help even more people with blood cancer by funding new life-saving research. This is also why people like Anna are important, because continuing to live your life and never giving up is the greatest fight you can put up against cancer; take some of her suggestions to heart and take your children on one of her many recommended days out, play, laugh, draw, create and cherish every moment with your family.
If you can promise to do this, we at Bloodwise can promise never to stop until every form of blood cancer is eradicated. We want to ensure a long and happy life for all families afflicted, so if you can help us please head over to bloodwise.org and learn more about our work.
Anna Marikar, mum of four and seasoned blogger, has spent over a decade sharing her parenting journey and passion for kid-friendly crafts and free printables.
Her easy-to-follow craft ideas and practical parenting advice have transformed In The Playroom into a cherished resource for parents.
Vital work you do well done