Cheryl has a lust for life that hasn\u2019t been diminished by serious illness. In fact, according to her husband, Alston, the 67-year-old \u201cgets involved\u201d in activities wherever she can, with the help of her carers from Sunrise2Sunrise.<\/p>\n
The grandmother of two has a special kind of relationship with her carers who provide supports that improve her quality of life. Alston says Cheryl often calls them \u201cher daughters\u201d and is excited to sit down with them for a cup of tea and piece of cake.<\/p>\n
When Cheryl joined Sunrise2Sunrise in 2019, she was still haunted by the emotional scars of overcoming breast cancer, which had brought her long career in aged care to an abrupt end. Added to that was a fresh diagnosis of Parkinson\u2019s disease and bipolar disorder \u2013 meaning her care needs where quite complex.<\/p>\n
Cheryl and Alston have been happily married for 46 years. They met in their native Sri Lanka under the watchful eye of a chaperone, before migrating to Australia in their 20s. Alston fondly remembers the young woman who loved music and parties, while also having a fierce reputation for facing-off with her classmates on the hockey field.<\/p>\n
These days Cheryl moves at a slower pace. She has trouble with tremors and shaking, and uses a four-wheel walker to assist with her mobility. She also has bouts of depression which makes everything that much harder. This means Cheryl requires someone to help her with daily living skills, like showering and grooming. A dedicated carer is also required to accompany her to all her medical appointments, including regular trips to the physiotherapist.<\/p>\n
While Cheryl\u2019s life is not as active as it used to be, Alston says her carers ensure that she remains connected to her youthful spirit. Her \u201cdaughters\u201d are always planning activities that tap into the things she once enjoyed doing independently.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s regular time spent in her beloved garden tending to the vegetable plot. And she even gets to roll up her sleeves in the kitchen \u2013 whether it\u2019s helping to bake cakes or peel onions.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt makes a big difference because she’s getting what she likes to eat. They\u2019re preparing what she likes to eat,\u201d explains Alston.<\/p>\n
Prior to the pandemic, Cheryl was also able to soak up the uplifting atmosphere delivered through music with regular trips with her carer to the CBD, to partake in Morning Melodies. Plus, she was taken to sing-alongs with fellow Sri Lankans at a community run association \u2013 a way to maintain her cultural connections.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe met friends from the same age group, and they had a Sri Lankan dance sing song. Yeah, that’s lovely,\u201d recalls Alston.<\/p>\n
The Sri Lankan supermarket is also a regular staple on Cheryl\u2019s itinerary. Her carer\u2019s will take her to pick up supplies for some of her favourite dishes, like Hoppers, a Sri Lankan rice-flour pancake that\u2019s coconut-laced and topped with a sweet-spicy sambal and fruity chutney.<\/p>\n
At a recent birthday dinner to mark another trip around the sun for Cheryl, Alston remembers that the celebration didn\u2019t quite go to plan. By the end of the dinner, Cheryl was carted off in an ambulance and headed to the hospital. Throughout this stressful event, Alston says her carer remained by her side \u2013 from the restaurant to the hospital, and back home.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe was there with her till she went to sleep. That’s how they cared. It was getting late, and they were not worried about that. They were more worried about Cheryl,\u201d Alston remembers with gratitude.<\/p>\n
While Alston heads up a timber company as CEO, which is a job with big responsibilities, he\u2019s comforted by the fact that his wife Cheryl is receiving the best care.<\/p>\n
\u201cI’m doing my work without worrying what’s happening at home,\u201d states Alston.<\/p>\n
According to Alston the carers have been instrumental in lifting Cheryl\u2019s overall mood and happiness.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe actually looks forward to them coming \u2013that is a good sign,\u201d he declares with a smile in his voice.<\/p>\n
\u201cI recommend Sunrise2Sunrise from top to bottom, from the CEO Ravi to all of the carers.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Cheryl has a lust for life that hasn\u2019t been diminished by serious illness. In fact, according to her husband, Alston, the 67-year-old \u201cgets involved\u201d in activities wherever she can, with the help of her carers from Sunrise2Sunrise. The grandmother of two has a special kind of relationship with her carers who provide supports that improve […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":9397,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[63,64],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9396","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blogs","category-participants-stories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/conduceconsultants.com\/s2s\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9396","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/conduceconsultants.com\/s2s\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/conduceconsultants.com\/s2s\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/conduceconsultants.com\/s2s\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/conduceconsultants.com\/s2s\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9396"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/conduceconsultants.com\/s2s\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9396\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9398,"href":"https:\/\/conduceconsultants.com\/s2s\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9396\/revisions\/9398"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/conduceconsultants.com\/s2s\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9397"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/conduceconsultants.com\/s2s\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9396"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/conduceconsultants.com\/s2s\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9396"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/conduceconsultants.com\/s2s\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9396"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}