Feedback from our volunteer coaches and peers

“Hello
Well firstly I’d like to say Well Done! It’s not easy to accept that you might need a little help and for you to admit that and then do something about it shows that you are on your way and I have no doubt that working together with your personal Health Connect Coach you will succeed.

I have always been one to just get on with things, not wanting to bother anyone else with my issues, always telling everyone that I’m okay – laughing and smiling whilst struggling to cope. I’m sure you know that feeling. Well let me tell you that with your Health Connect Coach you now have someone you can talk to, someone who understands because they have been in a similar situation.

I am on the wrong side of 70 and was a bit reticent about joining in this programme as I didn’t want to be pouring out my heart to a ‘youngster’ who had little life experience, who I would have little in common with. You can imagine my surprise then when I first spoke with my coach to find she was in her late 30’s/early 40’s, interested in crafting and card making, just like me, an animal lover just like me! We got on really well from the very beginning. She is very easy to talk to but also doesn’t let us stray too far from the task of giving me pointers to what things might help and I have to say that following some of her suggestions I sleep better and longer than I have for quite a while!

So, my advice is – go into this with an open mind, there is no exam, no winning or losing to worry about just a listening ear and a helpful hand and you will find that it helps and you will feel less alone, more in control, and completely supported!”

Best wishes,
A fellow HHC peer

“Hello
If you are thinking about becoming a peer supported by a Health Connect Coach, I really think you should give it a try.

I have been living with my chronic condition for seven years and felt as though I had ‘read it all’ and ‘done it all’ in terms of looking for a stratagem to help me cope with the disease. But there was somethinggoing on which compelled me to keep on looking for support even though I wasn’t greatly enthusiastic about dwelling on my symptoms and talking about just ‘how awful’ my life had become.

But I am so glad I founds the Health Connect Team. My Peer Support lady was struggling with quite different health issues but there was an immediate recognition of shared ‘challenges’ in dealing with everyday life. I could only cope with a three quarter of an hour Zoom session at strategically tapered time intervals, but this was perfect; we didn’t have too long to ‘wallow’. We discussed various coping mechanisms, some of which I had been aware of. But talking about how to actually introduce these into the daily round rather than viewing them as an intellectual tool gave me fresh enthusiasm to keep using them.

The sessions gave a focus and allowed time to deal in depth with the difficulties rather than just keep on pushing through and ignoring the warning signs that it was time to change activity / have a break / change the thought pattern or simply wave a white flag and ask for help. But, for me, the huge benefit was in spending time with someone who understood and where no explanation or apology was needed. I could be myself as I am along with my ‘condition’, rather than pretending to be the person that people (and I, too) wanted me to be. And this new awareness allowed me to reach greater acceptance of myself as I now am not only in the sessions but in my everyday life.

Good Luck & Enjoy!

The first phone call with the coordinator made me, for the first time, see a positive in my conditions.

I haven’t committed to 10 years, and I haven’t missed one single session for the training.

After the session I felt relieved it went well and I am always impressed by the peers determination, turning up with a smile on their face no matter what they go through – that’s what makes it all worthwhile.

I didn’t know what it was going to be like but getting the feedback in real life seeing the recognition in the persons face and body language made it all worthwhile.

I find my peer a true inspiration – everyone’s cancer journey is different but the beauty of being a Volunteer Health Connect Coach is listening to others you can pick up on their positive notes and establish what has been achieved. My peer gives me motivation to do things – if they can do it then so can I!

When I am feeling helpless, HCC helps me to feel helpful!

The training course has helped me grow in confidence and has given me tools to use in my personal life to support me to keep managing my own condition well.

At a time, I felt so alone, it was like having 2 arms pulling me in for a hug and saying it will be ok.

Your programme which was very well followed through by my coach, has greatly assisted me in the ‘management’ of daily life living with my condition.

My coach has been great and really helpful. He has helped me think about certain aspects differently and help set targets for moving forward and keeping on track.

My coach is understanding and helpful she offers guidance and solutions and encourages me to become more resilient and cope better with my condition. I have adopted a much healthier lifestyle since starting my sessions and feel positive about going forward.

You want to talk to someone, but the doctors are too clinical and the nurses although supportive haven’t lived through it to know how you feel with all the physical, mental and emotional changes so talking to someone who has gone through it helps.

My health connect coach is wonderful and extremely helpful in enabling me to look at things in a more positive light always feel more empowered afterwards.

What I found most helpful about HCC was the support, being heard and the goals we worked towards. The help enabled me to see things that I perhaps would have not reflected on if it were not pointed out or brought to the forefront.

Coaching sessions with HCC have empowered me to make positive changes. I now feel more proactive and achieve my goals. I keep a diary and protect my rest days during the week, I am better at pacing and recognising my baseline. I now listen to podcasts, and I am completing a CFS course. I have made positive changes within my family, my diet and nutrition and my wellbeing. I can relax better, use mindfulness, meditation and now get up earlier.

My coach was so patient and understanding of my problems. She helped me find my own way to solutions. We set goals each week which helped tremendously.

Everything was helpful I didn’t feel alone.

You have helped me loads, you have been great and I can’t thank you enough.

Really good to talk. I find it really helps so thank you for giving your time.

I want to thank you all for setting up and running this amazing support service.

Thank you for your time! You always recharge me with so much positive energy and kindness. It means the world to me.

When I started with HCC I felt frustrated, angry and fatigued. I was reliant on my husband and daughter for everything. My long-term conditions affected me and had a massive impact on my life. I had no confidence and was not managing my conditions. When I first started coaching session I could only manage 30minutes before my fatigue would affect me too much to carry on, but by mid-way through the programme I was able to stay alert for 90minutes to talk to my coach and go through some questionnaires and my biggest achievement from my experience with HCC is being able to stay awake and have a conversation with my coach. I even manged to do the hoovering when my husband was unwell!

Prior to HCC I would not really leave the house and kept my mobility scooter in storage because I was too embarrassed to use it but after talking it through with my coach and then trialling one on a family holiday, I have now got my scooter out, and I use it, its brilliant!

HCC has enabled me to discuss changes I would like to make to improve my health and wellbeing and I even took the leap to meet up with ex-colleagues and friends again allowing me to feel back to my old self. This positive experience has encouraged me to think of ways to continue meeting up with friends and connect with support groups and apps for my condition. I can now manage my migraines better and I have signed up and started the HOPE programme.

It can be hard being young and feeling like people are looking and judging you, but I have gained confidence during my HCC sessions and it nice to know that there are other people out there the same as me! Having someone outside the family who understands as we have similar symptoms has been useful. My coach match was really good, and I recommend anyone to sign up.

Before I came into Health Connect Coaching, I was feeling very frustrated about my long-term health condition and had little confidence in being able to manage it. I would always bottle everything up and try just try cope on my own. Having the space with my volunteer coach has given me confidence in talking more and getting things off my chest which makes me feel ‘lighter’. I am now sharing more with my friends about things that I might have going on for me and this is big help.

My coach supported me to create solutions to things that were causing me stress and through setting goals, having accountability and seeing what works I have now made some changes which are now my routine which has made a huge difference to me and my children.

I am now feeling much more confident in being able to manage my condition and through my sessions with my coach I have learnt to accept my limitations better which also helps. Yes I still get frustrated at times, but I now feel like I am living with my condition rather than against it.

Health Connect coaching has helped me feel less alone and that my condition doesn’t have to control my life. By learning to listen to my body and understanding my condition better I can now continue my journey with confidence.

When I first met my peer, they were feeling lonely, overwhelmed and lost, only leaving the house for medical appointments.

The unique matching process worked so well, we had many things in common, not just our symptoms. We hit it off and made a meaningful connection straight away.

My peer decided what was important to them and set small achievable goals along the way, consistently meeting them. They told me that meeting regularly encouraged them to do things they needed to do or enjoyed.

It was so rewarding to see their confidence grow and they started to report not feeling so lonely.

There were naturally some setbacks along the way, which can be quite normal when living with long term health conditions. However, their resilience had improved, and they were far more positive about how they managed their conditions.

Over the months my peer worked hard to move forward, taking time for themselves, setting boundaries, getting out of the house and doing things that were important to them.

Towards the end of our sessions together they were able to reflect over their coaching experience, telling me I’d never know how much it meant to them.

They reported that even when they are alone, they no longer feel lonely, overwhelmed or judged, which is just amazing.

If you’re someone who has a physical long term health condition and would benefit from having some support from someone who gets it, please contact the Health Connect Coaching Team.

If you’re managing your long-term health conditions well and would like to learn some techniques to help support others, please get in touch with the Health Connect Coaching Team.