Check Yourself Before You Wreck Yourself

The last few weeks I have been blown away by the number of messages of love and support I have received since my surgery.

Just before Christmas, I was advised that my regular mammogram check showed an anomaly. Further tests showed that it was pre-cancerous cells that needed to be removed.

I Should Be So Lucky

When I saw the surgeon on a Tuesday afternoon to get the results, I was expecting a little keyhole surgery procedure. I was wrong... very wrong.

Three days later I was undergoing double breast surgery. I guess the timing is never great when it comes to this type of thing, but I was meant to be attending the Kylie Minogue concert that night. Not surprisingly I had to miss it. Anyway, Kylie is a breast cancer survivor so she would understand. To help ease my disappointment, my friend Kelly surprised me with a Kylie T-shirt... I should be so lucky. ??

Check Yourself Before You Wreck Yourself

Afterwards, I shared some information about my health scare on social media, emphasising the importance of regular health checks. It was surprising how many people informed me that they had been putting the checks off but had since booked an appointment. This included my younger sister.

So, if you are due for a mammogram check, a prostate check, a colon check or anything else check, stop putting it off. Don’t let ‘being busy’ take priority.

Check yourself before you wreck yourself.

My Path to Recovery

Three weeks in, I am recovering well. While I won’t be back at the gym doing chest presses anytime soon or hitting the pickleball court, I am back at work delivering workshops, recording podcasts and continuing to write the new book. I must admit I am not good at doing nothing and working on the book has kept me sane.

Submit Your Story

And while I’m on the topic of my new book, I am looking for people to submit stories.

If you have shared a story in either your personal or professional life to good effect, I’d love to hear about it. What’s more, every submission will receive a free copy of my new book to be released in October this year.

I am looking for stories that have been shared in a variety of scenarios both in people's personal and professional lives. This includes presentations, job interviews, teaching moments with kids, newsletters or emails, social media, wedding speeches, and the list goes on. Nothing is off limits, so you can surprise me!

Click this link to access the form where you can submit your story. Please note they will need to be submitted by 20th March - ironically, World Storytelling Day.

If you have heard someone else tell a great story, please also encourage them to submit it via the link.

If you want to get better at telling stories then check out my free 7-Day Storytelling Starter Kit. You can also find out more about the work I do at gabrielledolan.com or send me an email to set up a time to chat.

Tune in to my new podcast, Keeping it real with Jac & Ral on Spotify, Apple, Amazon Music and YouTube.