[music]

My name is Tracey Heath, I am 49 next week and I live in a little town in Kent called West Malling.

Three months ago, when I had blood test results

and I was informed that the liver had gone into failure mode.

I was sort of sent away with the prognosis

that because of my age lots of different things had been factored into

and because of the amount of time that I’ve had the tumours on the liver

the prognosis at that point was three months.

Coming to the drop-ins has given me a real life-line

because to come and speak to like-minded people at the hospice

who have a real understanding, they know you feel rubbish when you’re having your treatment

and you can empathise with them and they can empathise with you.

It’s not always about talking about your illness

it’s about a wider concept and for me

well it’s definitely cleared any preconceived ideas I had about a hospice.

I would say a hospice is more for living than for dying.

Coming to the hospice you feel cocooned

in this lovely little world that’s just positive.

The minute you walk through the door it is positive, you’re greeted with a smile.

The ratio of volunteers to patients in the groups I come to is high.

you're very well looked after, and all in all it’s an incredible, positive learning curve

and it has dispelled all of my fears regarding a hospice

and I have, in my own little way, been able to filter that to my children

and my brother, sisters, friends.

So hopefully word gets out because they will tell other people

and if we’re all doing it the world will know that it’s certainly not a place to be feared

and shouldn’t be thought of as one of these little places

that’s tucked up in the woods and ‘don’t go there’.

It has made a massive difference to my life. Massive.

For information, help, or if you just want to chat

call the Macmillan Support Line on 0808 808 00 00

or visit macmillan.org.uk