I’m 37 and just figured out what I want to be when I grow up!

We ask kids all the time what do they want to be when they grow up, they may answer astronaut or doctor or teacher and some of they may mean it! We ask again when they’re about to choose their GCSE options, the lucky ones will have an aim and know which road they’re heading down.

But for so many of us, we have no clue! Or we have a million ideas but struggle to know which one is right.

When I was younger I wanted to be a midwife though my dream was to be a writer but I didn’t think someone like me could ever do that. I didn’t feel very suppported in making decisions and certainly university was never suggested as an option for me.

I worked for a telesales company, in a bingo hall, in a restaurant and a clothes shop but I was living in and out of the family home, on friends sofas, with my sisters, my aunty, in a shared house and a brief stint in a terrifying flat alone and so life was tough. I started a-levels twice but honestly, it was tough to concentrate on studies when I was working and had zero money and often was just fucking hungry!

I met Timm and then two years later we had our first baby together, for the first time I felt settled and like I had achieved something (even though I was judged for being a mum at 19). I stopped working to be a stay at home mum and then we had Eli two years later and Thom two years after that.

baby hendersons hendos sheffield

I absolutely adored being a stay at home mum and though sometimes it was tough, I revelled in it and I was damn good at it! When Thom was 2 I decided to train as a masseuse, odd choice maybe but I went with it and really enjoyed it. I worked in a salon and also at festivals providing massage for the bands and singers backstage. I had an absolute blast doing this but I knew it wasn’t my forever job.

I then trained as a doula which was amazing and also worked as a breast feeding support worker. This was such a brilliant and special time and I really loved it. Unfortunately I started with a flare up of Ulcerative Colitis and couldn’t get it under control. I found it very tough to carry on working whilst basically shitting myself a few times a day. Work wasn’t supportive and told me I needed to manage my time better…

In 2010 Timm decided to stop touring, he was a tour manager for arctic monkeys but was away for 9-10 months a year and life was pretty tough. He wanted to go back to his former love of photography and so we set up Timm Cleasby Photography and I worked with him on the marketing side of the business. I took my love of working with babies and even did a few baby photo shoots of my own.

Then everything went tits up in 2013 when I started with the worst flare up of Colitis I’d ever had. After 9 months of medication and being in and out of hospital I had surgery to remove my large intestine and got my first stoma.

stoma ostomy ileostomy colostomy ibd ulcerative colitis photo shoot

I started this blog because there were no uk based bloggers talking about it and after going on a marketing course by KeepYourFork I got the invaluable advice from Faye to write what I knew. It was never meant to be a business and I was totally shocked at how it took off. This filled my time whilst I was too ill to work and obviously I still adore it! I was approached by an agent who asked if I wanted to write a book and I felt like my dream to be a writer was coming true! Unfortunately it didn’t come off ( though I still want to make it happen!) but I did start writing for the Metro and magazines.

In 2015 I started working for Scope and I’m still there, I love my job, I feel like I get to make a difference every day and they are an amazing charity to work for. It’s perfect for me as I work from home and they not only accept my impairment and the effects of multiple surgeries but they embrace it.

Then earlier this year completely out of the blue I got a phone call that changed my life. BBC Radio Sheffield asked if I’d be interested in auditioning as a presenter and I leapt at the opportunity.

Nowt so strange as folk BBC Sheffield

I started my show with my cohost Leesh earlier this year called NowtSoStrangeAsFolk. It was terrifying at first! Not so much the talking but the technical side, I really doubted my abilities and wondered if I’d made a big mistake. But as I settled into it, it dawned on me. This is what I’m meant to do.

I cant even explain how amazing it feels, I adore it!!! I feel completely at home on the air and I’ve never felt so right, so comfortable, so me. I’m always doubting myself, I always think someone is going to tap me on the shoulder and tell me I’m a fraud, that I’m not good enough. But presenting makes me so happy, comfortable and just right!

And at the grand age of 37, I finally feel like I know what I want to be when I grow up. Presenting is where I feel I should be, it suits me, it feels right and good and I’m starting to believe that I’m worthy.

I would still love to write a book and my blog will always be my baby and something that has my heart. But presenting for the BBC has given me the confidence to actually believe in myself and to dare to think that I can be successful in this.

Whatever your age, whatever your background, know you can make it happen. Believe in yourself and keep pushing, keep trying, keep moving forward. And if you don’t know what you want to do then try different things, you never know where every opportunity will take you.

I hope you’re enjoying the show, I’d love to know what you think so do let me know.

✌? & ❤️

Sam xxx

It’s International Men’s Day

In celebration of International Men’s Day I wanted to big up some of the most amazing men!

Of course I have to start with my lovely Timm. Not only has he been my rock in the past few years and supported me through so much, he is also a brilliantly talented man. From photography, to Tramlines to his art collective Responsible Fishing, he is so hard working and creative. He is my favourite boy in the world.

timm cleasby

 

Speaking of Responsible Fishing, my number two is Timm’s partner and best mate James Brunt. Together they run the arts collective coming up with the most amazing ideas and going round the country building huge dens out of cardboard boxes, but he is also an artist in his own right, creating beautiful natural world of art. He is bloody brilliant!

James brunt artist

 

CK Goldiing is a presenter and film maker and his debut short film 61 hugs is a wonderful look at society and the people of Sheffield. Go check him out now, you can find him on Twitter.

CK Goldiing

 

Sheffield’s Lord Mayor Magid Magid is a breath of fresh air and in my opinion, an absolute hero! A British-Somali activist and politician who has served as the Lord Mayor of Sheffield since May 2018. He is the first Somali, the youngest-ever, and the first Green Party councillor to hold the role.

 

Thomas Hough has Crohn’s disease and is an amazing advocate, he works for Crohns and Colitis UK and his adventures around the world inspire so many including me. You can find him on Twitter.

Thoms Hough

 

Ive been a fan of Sheffield’s finest, Jon McClure for many years but seeing him on stage in conversation with Magid this year talking about mental health blew me away. Suicide is the biggest killer of men under 45 and anyone using their platform to lessen the stigma of mental health challenges is a hero in my book. He writes a decent tune too… find him on Twitter.

Jon mcclure

 

I could name so many more awesome men but that’s my lot for today.

Tell me about which men you think are making a difference.

✌?& ❤️

Sam x

 

Two years ago…

Two years ago I started working for Scope as the senior community officer. I saw the job advertised on Twitter and retweeted it saying how I wished I lived in London so I could apply. I got a reply saying that for the right applicant they would consider remote working and so I decided to apply.

At the time I was blogging here and working as a freelance writer for magazines and for the metro and though I enjoyed it, it was hard work always hunting for the next job and pay was low and sporadic. Timm has always been self employed and I had been for the past few years and so the thought of working for someone else was also scary but the idea of a regular monthly wage was a definite plus.

I applied and was thrilled to get an interview but then just after I ended up in hospital having yet another emergency surgery and so the thought kind of went out of my head. We also had a big trip to India planned and I was trying to figure out if I’d be well enough to make it there.

So when I got the phone call offering me the job I was shell shocked. Years of illness had really knocked my confidence and I didn’t think I’d actually get the role. I stuttered a yes, put the phone down and burst into tears, the knowledge that I was still valid as a chronically ill person really hit me. Feeling wanted and needed in the workforce boosted my confidence and I couldn’t wait to take it on.

I started work and the change in working set hours every day was tough at first! But my manager Alex was so kind and supportive that I soon fell in love with my job. I look after Scopes online community and so every day I get to work with disabled people, supporting them, problem solving and I learnt so much about so many impairments, benefits, social and economic issues around disability. It was pretty overwhelming at first but I couldn’t believe my luck and adored my role.

Over past two years with Scope I’ve had 2 big surgeries and had to take quite a bit of time off to recover. I was frightened that they would be annoyed by this, that my health issues would be seen as an inconvenience and would I even possibly lose my job?

But my concerns were unfounded and the support has been phenomenal, mainly due to Alex’s management. He has always been concerned but supportive, sad for me that I was having a tough time but firm in his belief in me and in his support in getting me back to work at the right time for me in a way that I could manage and this helped so much. I felt guilty a lot of the time, feeling like I was letting them down and just sad in myself that I wasn’t fit or well enough to do my job.

Finding a supportive company who understand the value of a disabled worker is difficult, I have worked for other companies who have been awful. When I spoke to one about my need for toilet breaks due to Ulcerative Colitis I was told I needed to manage my time better. I’ve had bosses who phoned me every day I was off sick checking up on me, making me feel like they thought I was faking.

But Scope have been amazing and I can’t sing their praises enough. This year I made the very difficult decision to cut my hours from full time to three days a week and they made it all easy and non-judgmental. They know I work hard, I put my all into work and they appreciate that though my illness has an effect on my life, that it benefits them to have someone who actually understands what their customers are going through.

Two years had gone so quickly and I hope I’ll be there for many years to come! There’s not many people who love their job and I feel so lucky to be in a role I adore, with an amazing team and a company who are fully supportive!

Happy Scope Birthday to me!

✌?& ❤️

Sam xx

What I wish people understand

I wish people understood that I live my life in pretty much constant pain, that I survive by popping painkillers, high strength codiene every day.

I wish people understood that each day feels like an uphill struggle, that having a jangling, aching pain drags you down and that there are times when it’s just all too much.

I wish people understood the sheer amount of effort it takes to do normal tasks and the frustration that I can’t do what I want.

That when I do the things others do, it takes planning and supreme gumption and the knowledge that it will wipe me out and take away my ability to do other things.

That when you ask how I’m doing, it’s hard to know how to answer. The answer is generally “pretty shit” but I don’t want to bring everyone else down.

I wish people understood just how tough it is to work, that I push myself daily to get through the day when the pain, fatigue and brain fog make me want to crawl into a duvet and cry.

That to work means cutting back on pain meds and weighing up the benefits of pain relief with the foggy head, inability to drive and sleepiness and I have to make that decision every day.

I wish people understood fatigue. I’m not just “a bit tired”, it feels like a mix of the worst hangover and feeling like I’ve run a marathon. Every cell in my body is screaming at me to stop and lie down and rest but life still has to carry on.

I wish people knew I’m not lazy.

I wish people knew the guilt I carry every day, that my illness makes me not a good enough mum, not a good enough wife, friend, employee, human.

That I worry constantly that it will all get too much for those around me, that I won’t be able to do my job, that friends will get fed up of me cancelling on them, that Timm will get sick of looking after me.

I wish people understood that no matter how many surgeries I have, it never gets easier, it gets worse. It’s scarier every time, knowledge isn’t always a good thing.

I wish people understood just how fed up I am of being ill, being in pain, being tired.

I wish people understood.

✌?& ❤️

Sam xx

Cineworld Sheffield VIP experience

Timm and I have Cineworld unlimited cards, they allow you unlimited access to Cineworld screenings and costs £17.90 a month (it’s more for London West End) and you have to sign up for a 12 month contract.

Its a total luxury but we love films and since I got ill we don’t go out out much but even when I’m really poorly I can usually manage a cinema trip.

On top of the unlimited film viewing you get 10% off drinks and snacks and that goes up to 25% off if you have the card for more than one year. You also get discounts at a range of restaurants.

If you’re interested in signing up follow this link and when you register, use the recommend a friend code RAF-99GK-64PW-79JR-31PZ, you’ll get one free month and so will I! Then you can get your own link and anyone signing up with that will get the same deal with you getting more free months.   This code will only work 12 times so if you’re interested, then click the link and use the code above sooner rather than later!

The other good thing is you get money off for 3D, 4D and the VIP tickets, so we thought we’d try the VIP experience out.

Its usually £29 per person, but with the unlimited card it is £19. For this you get to go to the VIP lounge 45 minutes before the film starts and you get unlimited food (pasta, pizzas, salads) cinema snacks (hot dogs, nachos, popcorn) desserts (cakes, frozen yoghurt) and soft and hot drinks!

Cineworld vip Sheffield Desserts

The seats are lazy boys and fully recline and are so comfortable and you can get as many drinks and snacks throughout the film.

Its not cheap I know but for a special treat it was fab! Timm and I went to see Bohemian Rhapsody tonight in the VIP cinema and we loved it. The film was AMAZING and I’d highly recommend it.

The food was really nice, we wondered whether it would be a bit lunchroom but it  fresh and was very tasty. There was the options of soup, potatoes, pasta, sweet and sour chicken, pizza, garlic bread and salads and it was unlimited so you could fill your boots!

Soft drinks including all the normal pop, squash, bottled water and hot drinks were also unlimited. There is a full bar too but that isn’t included, we didn’t have any alcohol so I can’t comment on bar prices.

There is a dessert bar with a variety of cakes and a frozen yoghurt machine with lots of toppings, also you could get hot dogs, nachos and popcorn.

We would have definitely spent more than £19 each if we’d have gone for dinner and the cinema and even at £29, you can still get your money’s worth.

Cineworld vip Sheffield

The cinema had 40 seats, all were individual lazy boys that reclined and had leg rests that raised so you could get really comfortable. When I’m in pain, I’m often seen in the pictures with a neck pillow, blanket and sometimes my hot water bottle! But none of these were needed here, they were super comfy and I could have fallen asleep on them! You have tons of leg room and a little tray to keep drinks and snacks on.

It was a really enjoyable experience and though I wouldn’t do it all the time, for a special treat or date night it was great fun and really made it quite special so I’d recommend it.

This isn’t a sponsored post in any way, I just thought I’d share our experiences. If cinemas can be tough for you with chronic illness or pain, this was definitely a lovely treat, the chairs alone made it for me. I was in quite a bit of pain tonight but being able to move the chair to suit me and curl up was a huge bonus.

Let me know what you think! Have you tried it? Would you give it a go? What do you think of the price?

✌? & ❤️

Sam xx

Cleaning your house when you have a chronic illness

When you’re in a time of flaring, when your illness is overwhelming you, when fatigue and brain fog is kicking your arse, cleaning your house is probably the last thing on your mind. And as much as house cleaning is not something to prioritise over your health, things still need doing and sometimes having a messy house actually becomes an additional stress to your life and so I got thinking about my top tips.

1. Get help

Last year we took on a cleaner, now I know this is a luxury that many people can’t afford but for some it is something that could be considered. We have a cleaner once a week for two hours and it costs £20 a week, when I started working, it was my first decision as I knew I couldn’t do it all. Look through your finances and see if it could be a possibility as it is worth it’s weight in gold to me. A friend of mine uses part of her disability benefits to fund a cleaner as it is an important part of her health and well-being.

If you can’t afford a cleaner, then is there anyone you can fall back on when times are tough? A partner, friend, parent, child? It’s not easy to ask for help, but you can’t do it all all of the time and it’s ok to need support.

Even young kids can be taught to help out and it’s good for them to learn new skills and independence, whether it’s balling socks or filling the dishwasher, every little helps!

Child at sink washing pots chronic illness and housekeeping

2 Plan for your bad days

If you know that on your bad days you can’t do anything then think of your plan for those days.

If on your bad days you know you can barely get out of bed then what could you put in place for those days? I keep a stack of paper plates so if I can’t manage, we can eat off those and throw them in the bin. Is it a perfect answer? No! But it takes off a little pressure and I’m good with that.

3 Make it easy

What’s the easiest way to do a chore? Baby wipes have saved my skin more times than I can remember, they wipe down sides, clean a bathroom sink, wipe scuffs off walls and clean up spills. It doesn’t have to be perfect, it just needs to be easy!

4 Keep it organised

Life is easier if you know where stuff is, and it also then makes it easier to delagate to other people if it’s clear where things are kept and where your cleaning supplies are.

Hoover on a blue carpet cleaning the house with a disability chronic illness

5 Declutter – get rid of the stuff you don’t need!

Do you use it or love it? If not, consider whether you need to keep it! Our lives become more and more filled with stuff and that can be overwhelming.

In Marie Kondo’s book The Magic art of tidying she says “The question of what you want to own is actually the question of how you want to live your life. Keep only those things that speak to your heart. Then take the plunge and discard all the rest. By doing this, you can reset your life and embark on a new lifestyle.“

6 Accept it

Your health and well-being is more important than an immaculate home. Sometimes we have to accept their are limitations to what we can do and we need to prioritise ourself over whether your kitchen floor gets mopped.

If fatigue or pain means you have limited energy then in my opinion, use that energy on something that makes you feel good! If you have kids, playing a game with them wins over ironing any day! We need joy in our lives so if you only have enough spoons to do one thing, make it something that makes you happy!

I hope this helps, let us know your top tips in the comments

✌? & ❤️

Sam x

Electric hot water bottle review

Last week I saw that Chloe from CPstudentblog was talking about an electric hot water bottle on Twitter and it made me curious and so I went onto amazon and ordered the Bauer electric hot water bottle and thought I would share my thoughts.

Bauer electric hot water bottle

It was £17.42 and because I have Amazon Prime I got free delivery. So it was much more expensive than my usual trusty hot water bottle that was about £5 but I thought it worth a try.

I use a hot water bottle every day, since my last surgery I am in pain every day and heat on my stomach is really helpful with pain relief. I even have one at work so I can have one wherever I am!

Patientinfo says “Heat and ice have been used for many years to treat pain and to reduce swelling, and many people have found them effective. More recently, studies have been done to investigate whether heat and ice really make a difference to healing and the results have been inconclusive. In general, when used sensibly, they are safe treatments which make people feel better and have some effect on pain levels and there are few harms associated with their use.”

I have no contact with the Bauer company and this isn’t sponsored in any way it’s just sharing my experience so it might help others.

This is a plug in device into the mains, it has a charger that sits flat on the floor and is easy to attach to the water bottle. It is a soft touch fabric pillow filled with liquid and has the charging port in the middle. You put it on charge for around 10 minutes and a light on the charger goes off once it is heated up.

The first charge I found the bottle was only warm and felt really disappointed, I put it on to charge again and then it felt really nice and hot. Since then I have only had to charge it the once, I then give it a jiggle and it feels as hot as a normal hot water bottle and lasts for hours.

It has really changed my life and is so great for pain relief and also just to warm your toes if you’re a bit chilly!

The best part for me is that I feel it’s given me back my independence, before I was constantly asking my husband or teenagers to go and fill my bottle for me and I found that upsetting and a bit embarrassing. The guilt of asking your family to care for you is enormous when you have an impairment or chronic illness, even though they say they don’t mind helping, I always feel bad asking.

And so to have this plugged in right next to my bed just gives me a sense of independence that means so much! Knowing that I can plug it in whenever I want, I don’t have to go up and down the stairs, I don’t have to ask others is wonderful. There have been times when I was so sore that I couldn’t manage to go and fill it myself but it was the middle of the night and I didn’t want to wake anyone so I just suffered till morning.

I am a huge fan of anything that gives comfort and independence to people and the electric hot water bottle is certainly doing that for me. I love the easy plug in that most people would be able to manage alone even if you have poor mobility.

So there we go! I would recommend this product if you’re a hot water bottle fan and would go as far as to say that it would be a great present for someone with chronic pain this Christmas!

Its one of the best things I’ve ever bought!

✌?& ❤️

Sam x