The healing power of exercise during breast cancer - Rhian's Story

As part of #BreastCancerAwarenessMonth we invited Rhian, a breast cancer survivor, team rower and Healthhaus member, to share her story about the positive role of exercise during her cancer journey. 

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I was diagnosed with cancer in March 2023 and I was very, very lucky. It was discovered in the early stages and I was seen swiftly by the breast clinic and had surgery at the end of April.

Throughout the whole experience, exercise was something I was really keen to get back into. As soon as I'd had my operation it was suggested that you should get up, get outside and do things like easy walking and gentle exercise, so I took that on board - much against my mother's wishes! She thought I was crazy! It was really good for my mental health to be outside and feeling like I was doing something good for my body. 

Using Milon at Healthhaus as post-surgery rehabilitation

As a Healthhaus member, I slowly integrated myself back into the Milon circuit following advice from some of the Milon experts. They suggested reducing the weights, especially the ones that used the upper body and chest muscles. They are an amazing team and it's such good equipment as well. They were really supportive and kept track of my visits so I could see and feel that I was making progress. 

This was so important not just from a physical point of view but from a mental well-being point of view. It was nice to know there was somewhere I could go where I had the support of people that knew what they were talking about. 

I knew that Healthhaus held cancer rehabilitation classes but I didn't really want to go down that path. From a mental perspective, it would have made it feel a bit more real. Attending Healthhaus was a really good way for me to get back into feeling more like myself again. It was the best way to get back into daily routines and rhythms and be in an environment where people were really friendly and supportive.

Finally getting back into the boat

Unluckily for me, during that year of recovery, I tore my ACL (anterior cruciate ligament in the knee)! Just as I was feeling ready to get back to rowing - my favourite sport - I couldn’t because of the injury. Again, the team at Healthhaus were great and gave me such good guidance and helped me to rehabilitate in the quickest and most effective way possible.

As a result of that, I got back into rowing at the back end of 2024 and this year (2026), I’ve been to Scotland with a team of four other people to row 30km across Loch Ness for the ABC Jersey Cancer Charity. The group has been absolutely amazing and are just a brilliant team. We raised about £3000 which was incredible and a lot more than we initially hoped to raise. People have been so generous because so many have been touched by cancer.

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Rowing before and after breast cancer

Before I was diagnosed with breast cancer, I rowed Sark to Jersey in 2022 and felt like I was at the peak of my fitness! Rowing was important to me and something that I really wanted to get back to. Since the diagnosis, surgery and treatment, I have coxed the Sark to Jersey for a team. We did a really long race to Corbiere and back this year and then over the summer, I went to the South of France where we rowed the Canal du Midi which is about 167 kilometres over five days. 

During the Canal du Midi rowing experience, so many people shared their stories of challenges with and experiences of cancer. It means a lot to me and so many others that there are communities of people like this who support each other by opening up conversations. Exercise was really important to me to keep my sanity and to have something to work towards.  It meant that I was getting better and back to being myself again. 

My cancer experience has touched a lot of people in ways I never expected. I've always wanted to be very positive about my journey because I feel I've been very fortunate. I'm lucky to have my health but I don't take it for granted and am aware that having the opportunity to be fit and to exercise and to eat well and to do all of those things is a really important part of recovery. 

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The hidden part of the cancer story

Often, people think that because you look okay and you're back to mentally being your normal self that you're totally fine. In reality, no two days are the same. Sometimes it hits you and other days you wonder “did that ever actually happen to me or did I dream it? Was it just a horrible nightmare?”

Exercise has really grounded me at times and having an exercise routine or doing yoga helps me to find mindfulness and peacefulness.  Sharing my story and how exercise has helped me with others on this path is an important part of my recovery. 

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Exercise during Radiotherapy treatment

I had surgery in April, then went to Southampton at the end of August to have radiotherapy. I got into the gym as much as possible as soon as I got the all clear from the doctor. And then all through the radiotherapy treatment, I was doing mindfulness, yoga and walking. I think I know Southampton really well now! 

I don't know why I didn’t get back into rowing as quickly as I wanted to. I think I was a little bit afraid of using certain muscles or being weak. And then I tore my ACL so 2023 was just a bit of a disastrous year to be honest!

But in that interim time, strength training in Milon really helped because I had nerve damage and a limited range of movement in my arm. I was worried I’d never get full movement back, but with regular training, I’m so happy to be rowing again without feeling any difference in my arm movement or strength.

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Rowing for charity

I’m really hoping to take part in the Canal du Midi event again in 2027 because that was such an amazing experience. We rowed about 22 kilometres a day with lunch and snack stops along the way. There were seven of us, so we could swap in and out of the boat to do a bit of cycling, or to take turns to cox so we weren’t rowing the whole time. It’s a very well organised event and a wonderful experience for anyone who enjoys rowing. 

I'm hoping to row to Jersey - Sark again, post-cancer. And because the Loch Ness event paused play because of the wind and rain, we are hoping to go back in September next year to finish what we started! And anything endurance wise that comes up, I'm a bit of a ‘yes’ girl. So I'm sure I'll get roped into all sorts!

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Charity support in Jersey

‍ABC Jersey is brilliant in providing women with post-surgical bras. They're very generous and make sure that you are as comfortable as possible at a difficult time post-surgery where you're feeling very unfeminine. They can also provide you with a cushion for your underarm if you've got pain while you're walking so that you can heal properly. 

There was one day when I had an absolute meltdown. I wasn't sure what was going on and everything hit me at once. I’d been going through each stage of the process and following the path that was going to help me to get better. All of a sudden I found myself thinking “what next, what next, what next? What do I need to do?” My treatment had stopped and I’d taken a month off work for surgery and a month off after the radiotherapy - which was something I’d never done before. 

Generally I'm a well person, so being away from my job as a teacher and away from all of the things that I love, I felt like I was letting my colleagues and pupils down. So I phoned the ABC Jersey helpline and spoke to somebody there who was really sympathetic. She talked me through all the feelings I was having and how they were actually quite normal. It gave me permission to feel; to sit with those feelings and to consider all the things I could do to make myself feel a little brighter. At that critical moment, they were really there for me. 

A friend's sister has gone through her own breast cancer journey and they were able to offer her some respite for her child. I think it was a surfing lesson - just so that they could feel like there was some normality in life. They organised for cleaners to go and clean the house when she was going through her recovery phase. The team at ABC Jersey are amazing at providing not only emotional support, but also practical support when you need it. To know there's somewhere you can go and ask for that kind of help is really, really valuable. 

I also want to mention the team at the Breast Clinic, especially the Macmillan nurses, who were fantastic and so emotionally supportive. They treated me with such care and were always available to talk through worries and concerns. Macmillan provided excellent support when I was preparing to go to Southampton for radiotherapy and talked me through every step so I knew what to expect. After treatment, they provided more support through complimentary therapies such as acupuncture and Reflexology.

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Spotting Breast Cancer symptoms

I didn't realise anything was wrong at first and thought I'd just pulled a muscle rowing. But then the lump didn’t shift and my partner suggested I get it checked out. A nurse saw me and flagged it with a GP who didn't seem too bothered about it at the time, and just told me to monitor it for a month. 

After a month, nothing changed so I returned and was referred directly to the breast clinic, who were very swift at seeing me and organising a mammogram. From there, they found that I needed a biopsy. But it was all very, very quick. I think that it all happened at a time where the service wasn't overloaded, which was very lucky for me. It's a service that's very well used. 

At the time, I’d also lost some weight, but I put that down to the fact that I was exercising a lot and trying to eat well, but in hindsight, that possibly was a symptom of the cancer. I was really lucky they found it early, at an early grade and stage and completely treatable. 

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Side effects of long-term medication

Post-operation and radiotherapy, you are prescribed different drugs depending on the stage you are in your life. And the one I take has been quite brutal. It gives you very similar symptoms to menopause. It’s horrible because you have all of this weight gain that you don't understand or recognise or feels really unnatural. And no matter what you do, it's there all the time.

You have to keep reminding yourself that you've got another 18 months on this drug so acceptance becomes a big part of the picture. You have to put it to one side and go on living your regular normal life so that when you no longer have to take it, you can go back to the normality of all the things you were doing before - like keeping up an exercise regimen.

There’s a whole supportive and uplifting network to tap into when you're feeling a little bit rubbish about yourself. The conversations you have with people who can help you to normalise your feelings and your journey are really powerful. Being able to exercise and be active, and having the opportunity to talk to other people that have been through it - especially when you think you're the only one that's going through it - are the things that really helped me most. 

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Useful links:

ABC Jersey

Macmillan Jersey

Interested in joining Jersey Rowing Club? Find out more

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