It was 1979 – when Annie at 3 months pregnant with her second child was suffering excruciating pain in her left leg – she couldn’t walk, she couldn’t stand, she couldn’t sleep.  The pain had started a year earlier and was getting progressively worse.  In just a year, Annie had gone from being an active young woman to being almost entirely incapacitated.  The journey to find the crux of this pain was going to be almost as diabolical as discovering the diagnosis. 

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Another three months passed and Annie went for her six-month check-up to her obstetrician at the local hospital. He told her everything was fine… but it definitely was not!! Annie weighed 42 kilos and her left leg was abnormally swollen. She’d been dealing with chronic pain every day for almost 18 months. 

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On the 1st April 1980 - Annie underwent a biopsy - the lump, the size of a tennis ball on the inside of her knee, was identified as a tumour - Ewing’s Sarcoma - a rare form of bone cancer. It was such a relief for her, to finally discover the cause of the pain Annie could now tackle and overcome this obstacle and move on with her life or could she?  The surgeon advised it was operable, fortunately… but at the cost of her leg and almost in the same breath said the baby may not survive due to the trauma of the surgery.  She was 26 years old and 26 weeks pregnant.  

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This was her first confrontation with cancer - two more to follow.   

This book was Annie’s dream since 2007 and is finally here. It demonstrates Annie’s inner strength as she overcame adversity and obstacles, knocking them over one by one with a lot of hope and determination she didn’t know she had. Her story is incredibly inspirational and a great example of the power of positive thinking.  Annie believes the strength is within us all. There is light at the end of the tunnel, even when you think everything is hopeless. 

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This is Annie’s first book and sure to keep you captivated with every page turn.  

 

Annie lives in Garfield, Victoria with her husband David as does her son Luke.  Her daughter, Jessica, now lives on the Central Coast, NSW with her husband Sean and two boys, Annie’s grandchildren – Isaac and Asher.  

 

Annie is also available as a guest speaker at your event.