Becky Trussell was Dr. Rebecca Trussell, a respected Calgary physician specializing in pediatric endocrinology for 25 years. She was also a wife, busy mother of two, avid researcher, budding photographer, and an extraordinary role model to many in the medical world.<\/p>\n
Then one day, cancer rocked her world.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was very committed and devoted to my career and family. But cancer doesn\u2019t ask \u2013 may I come in? It just barges into your world and you are forced to reckon with it,\u201d said Becky, looking back on the day she received the life changing diagnosis of uterine cancer.<\/p>\n
Becky\u2019s treatment included surgery, several rounds of chemo, and years of follow up steroids. It was incredibly challenging, but she summoned optimism and humour to push through the hard days.<\/p>\n
\u201cI dressed<\/em> for chemo treatments!\u00a0 I wore dramatic capes, sequins on two occasions, and yes, even an elf suit on my last treatment day before Christmas!\u201d she said.\u00a0 For Rebecca, this was survival mode, and indeed, survive she did. But though she achieved full physical recovery, some parts of her personality were never quite the same.<\/p>\n \u201cI returned to work \u2013 too early \u2013 just six weeks after treatment, and I wasn\u2019t myself. I was a fraction of myself. I was not the enthusiastic, energetic mentor, teacher and clinician I had been. This \u2018new person\u2019 suffered with terrible fatigue, irritability, depression,\u201d she said. \u201cAfter three years of suffering and blaming myself, I retired, and it was only then that I could begin to seek the help I needed to reclaim myself, or at least find a new version of myself that I and others could love.\u201d<\/p>\n That\u2019s when Becky found her way to Wellspring.<\/p>\n \u201cI knew about Wellspring because one of my colleagues had a brother who was a founder of Wellspring, who also had cancer. I just never envisioned myself needing to go there. I suspect that no one has \u2018cancer support\u2019 highlighted in their bucket list,\u201d she said, laughing.<\/p>\n But for Becky, arriving at Wellspring was finding the path back to herself.<\/p>\n \u201cWellspring was an environment of kindness and caring \u2013 there aren\u2019t many spaces like this in the world. It was almost palpable for me \u2013 I felt totally wrapped in it every time I came through the door. That has been my ongoing sense. I was in a place that was safe and uplifting,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n After a few years of regularly attending the Tuesday Tea program, Becky was invited to lead a similar community program for women that calls Wellspring home, and there she found a tremendous sense of value; a deepening of healing that can only come from the act of giving back.<\/p>\n \u201cIt felt natural to be in a group of women and I was thrilled to be a co-leader with another creative and delightful member, Dorothy Mackintosh,\u201d she said. \u201cWe\u2019d gather in this room \u2013 this safe, loving space, and we were all the same in that we all belonged. People would open up and the sharing would pour out. It felt like a luxury to me to be among these wonderful human beings. We were all finding hope as we rose together out of the suffering.\u201d<\/p>\n When the pandemic shifted programs to an online community, Becky missed the joy of being together in centres terribly, but her love of Wellspring has never waned, and she continues to participate online and by donating to an organization she calls \u2018magic\u2019 and \u2018life changing.\u2019<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s not a question of can I give to Wellspring \u2013 it\u2019s how quickly can I get to the bank! How fast can I donate?\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u201cWhy would I not give to a place that is so full of joy, peace and healing? It\u2019s a community that has given me and so many others \u2013 so much comfort and meaning. Wellspring is life changing and by that I mean, for me, it gave me my life back. You can\u2019t put a price on that \u2013 it\u2019s gold,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n – Becky Trussell<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/section>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Becky Trussell was a respected Calgary physician specializing in pediatric endocrinology for 25 years. She was also a wife, busy mother of two, avid researcher, budding photographer, and an extraordinary role model to many in the medical world. Then one day, cancer rocked her world.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8074,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[106,7,8],"tags":[],"location":[],"class_list":["post-7892","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-donors","category-member-story","category-our-inside-stories"],"yoast_head":"\n