Update from Donna
From desperate sufferer to NAPS activist, Donna is following in the footsteps of the early NAPS pioneers
From desperate sufferer to NAPS activist
Donna, like many women who have suffered from severe PMS/PMDD, is so grateful for the support she has received from NAPS, that she has committed herself to help prevent other women from experiencing unnecessary suffering.This is in the tradition begun by those who founded NAPS in the 1980s and followed by many others since. If you too can offer your help in any way to ensure the future of the Association, NAPS would like to hear from you contact@pms.org.uk
"Well, I am now 5 months post-op after my complete hysterectomy and removal of ovaries. For me this has been truly life-changing. Although my solution was extreme, it does show that when we receive the right treatment from the right people we can recover. Your solution may be simpler than mine - and you deserve access to the appropriate treatment."Well it's a good job I have new found energy as I have been very busy. I am working with health professionals in my area to raise awareness of our condition. So far I have had 2 national newspaper articles, a magazine article and an appearance on ITV’s This Morning. In the pipeline this week is another TV appearance and an article for The Sunday Times. I hope that by speaking out and raising awareness women will no longer be made to feel embarrassed about their suffering. I am also working with my wonderful gynaecologist, Dr. Heather Currie to roll out an awareness session to Mental Health organisations in Scotland. This will be offered free of charge to any interested organisation and will explain how to identify severe pms/pmdd and how and where to get help.
"NAPS will of course be the first recommended point of contact. On that note can I please ask everyone to think about the benefits of becoming a full member of NAPS. I have heard on occasion that people feel they cannot afford the payment, this may be the case, however I would ask that you really ask yourself what price can you put on accessing real appropriate help. Again I will state that NAPS have no paid members of staff, we are all volunteers who want to help others as we have been helped. The one off yearly fee goes straight back into putting support out to you. I am still fundraising for NAPS, my way of saying thank you for giving me hope when I was hopeless. So, if you can, please make a small donation here:
http://www.justgiving.com/Donna-Barrowman
"I am now recovered. Was my treatment successful? Without a doubt, yes. My mission is now to help other women who, like me when I was in the midst of it, just need someone to listen, understand, and treat us with the dignity and respect we deserve. Then I will class myself as a success. I found this lovely poem which for me sums up what success means to me.
"So, please take care, stay strong, and hold on to hope. Love Donna (Tazzywoof)"
"To laugh often and much/
To win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children,
To earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends,
To appreciate beauty,
To find the best in others,
To leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition,
To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. THIS IS TO HAVE SUCCEEDED"
Ralpho Waldo Emerson
