Rachael Bland’s last You, Me and the Big C podcast reveals BBC reporter’s wishes for final days before cancer death
Rachael discussed how she felt about dying on her final episode of You, Me and the Big C
RACHAEL Bland’s devastating last ‘You, Me and the Big C’ podcast reveals her wishes for her final days.
The 40-year-old died earlier this month, with her “crushed” close family by her side.
She was diagnosed with triple-negative breast cancer in November 2016 and shared her experiences as a co-host on You, Me and the Big C.
Speaking on her last episode, the journalist said she wanted to spend as much “valuable time” with her three-year-old son Freddie as possible and that she wanted moments they shared to be a “good time”.
Rachael also discussed emotional moments with her husband Steve and how she felt about dying.
She told listeners:“The way I deal with it is by not thinking about it too deeply, because I think if you go down the rabbit hole too often, you’re going to get stuck there at the bottom – and it’s not a nice place to be, to be thinking those things.
“I know the situation that I’m in, and I know that I’m probably not going to be living for very much longer, but I don’t think about that too deeply every day.”
Rachael, a mum-of-one from Cheshire, also told listeners how she was coping with the illness.
She said: “I wouldn’t be able to look at Freddie without weeping all over him, and I want to spend valuable time with him – whatever time I have got left – I want it to be good time.
“The same with Steve, if I was crying all over him every day, it would be making it much harder for him, and we wouldn’t be having nice times together.”
She added: “That’s not to say that there aren’t nights where we kind of look each other in the eye, and have a good old cry about it.”
Rachael’s husband Steve told followers his wife had passed away on Twitter and Instagram.
Sharing the heartbreaking news he said: “Our brave, beautiful, wonderful, courageous Rachael died peacefully this morning surrounded by her close family.
“We are all heartbroken and the hole she leaves in our perfect little family will never be filled.
“We’ll miss her so very much but we couldn’t be prouder of what she achieved in her 40 years, and we are genuinely comforted by the impact we know she had on so many lives.
“Thank you. Steve and Freddie xxx.”
In April, doctors dealt the family the crushing blow that Rachael’s breast cancer was incurable.
Her only hope rested with a clinical trial, which she stared in May. But within two months, scans showed her cancer had spread.
On Monday, Rachael posted her final message to fans on social media, revealing she had “just days to live”, signing off with a heartbreaking “au revoir”.
Yesterday, in a piece Rachael wrote before discovering her time was so cruelly limited, she shared her plans to prepare Steve and their three-year-old son Freddie, for the day when she would no longer be here.
She said she planned to wrap 18 years’ worth of presents, to make sure her son has a gift from her, every year until he turns 21.
Rachael had been penning a memoir to her son, For Fred, leaving him with snippets of advice, memories and his mum’s words – to guide him as he grows up.
Sh hosted You, Me And The Big C, with two of her best pals who are also living with cancer – The Sun’s Deborah James, 36, and Lauren Mahon, 32.
Heartbroken, Deborah told The Sun: “While totally heartbroken, I am immensely proud of everything that Rachael has achieved and I am so blessed to have been part of that.
“She has been the most incredible support in my darkest times, she was who I went to at 3am in the morning.
“And she’s the person I want to call now to cry down the phone to. It doesn’t feel real.
“We pledged to turn the crap of cancer into a positive, it became our coping strategy. Now, it’s Rach’s legacy.
“Today I hate cancer more than ever, but I want to shout louder than ever to make sure the incredible conversation she started carries on.
“I’m so proud to call Rach one of my besties, and I’m so grateful for the strength, support and love she gave me. For letting me be a part of her life, and showing me and the world, one person really can change it.”
And Lauren tweeted: “Heartbroken doesn’t cut it. Steve, Freddie and family, I love you. I’s so sorry xx.”
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