This week Patsy and I were both invited to speak at a conference. It is of course World Continence Week and we were doing our bit to highlight that.

As my new friend Paul MayhewArcher,  of Vicar of Dibley fame, says, does that mean the rest of the year is incontinence? Who knows.

Patsy gave an epic speech. The big C….yes she has cancer, yes she can talk about that. About chemo. about hospice care. About hair loss. In fact anything. But actually she has less chance to talk about the big C that is Continence…no one wants to know. Or are too embarrassed to listen. You will recall we went to Stockholm last year to ‘do’ health and hygiene and continence.

I met some of those delegates, today, at a meeting at NHS HQ…they were all utterly blown away by awesome Patsy. HOW old is she? HOW ill is she? What???!!! They said she made them laugh, she made them cry and most of all she made them listen. The Liverpudlians there present were totally without inhibition. Patsy they said, was simply gobsmackingly fabulous. ‘Absolutely’ I replied.

They said they could have listened to her all day.  She is awesome. I’ve known that for years, we go back a long way.

As for me. the #Edina to her Patsy. I was in a different room. Telling my story…making them laugh about the benefits of a freezing cold swim with the wet suit and a dodgy  bladder.

I also had to do a role play with a psychotherapist. That was unnerving..he had sussed the surgeons otherwise known as G.O.D.  and Dipstick , to a tee..

Not sure what the delegates made of it. But one at least in the audience would have been able to attest to my story…she looked after me herself a while ago!