‘Channeling my energy took my mind off cancer’
Dani Binnington, 39, lives in Thames Ditton with her husband and three children. I was married with three beautiful daughters and running my own jewellery business, when in February 2013, I was diagnosed with a highly aggressive tumour in my left breast. What followed was an operation to remove the tumour and my lymph nodes, a course of chemotherapy that robbed me of my hair and radiotherapy that left my body sore.
My husband Tim, then 43, and I knew we had to stay strong for the girls – Rosa, four, and two-year-old twins Eliza and Layla – but we were devastated. Even when I was in remission, I struggled to trust my own body. I felt sure that somehow, one day, the cancer would come back.
I was desperate to stay as healthy as I could so I cut out caffeine, alcohol,
refined sugar, gluten, wheat, meat and dairy. It was extreme, yes, but I felt like I was clawing back some control. Then, that October, my mother-in-law, Dee, 70, announced she was taking me to her yoga class. I was terrified my wig would fall off but knew yoga might relax me, so I went along.
I loved it. For once I was not ruminating on future fears. I felt calm and strong.
Breathing easy
That one simple decision to go along that day was life changing. As time passed, I learnt about mindfulness and, in 2016, I took a year-long yoga teaching training programme and a Nutrition in Culinary Practice course at Leiths School of Food and Wine.
Although I always ate healthily, I was a hopeless cook and my meals were often bland and tasteless. But through my course, I was able to develop a deeper understanding of flavours and learn new cooking techniques, too. I even started
a blog full of family recipes, wellbeing tips and inspiration for a healthy lifestyle. It changed the way I see my body and the importance of looking after yourself.
I now teach yoga at a local studio, run my blog and even organise supper clubs. I feel much more positive about the future. Challenging myself and learning something new has given me the hope I desperately needed.
Dani is now the creator of healthywholeme.com – a website full of family recipes, wellbeing tips and inspiration for a healthy lifestyle.
‘That one simple decision was life changing’