Erin has always been a trailblazer.
A qualified motorcycle technician, she became the first woman in Australia to complete the Harley-Davidson specialist training, and later, the first female field mechanic for Crown Forklifts. She’s no stranger to a challenge and beating people’s expectations.
But nothing could have prepared Erin for the challenge she had to face as a young mum with brain cancera disease where abnormal cells split without control and spread to other nearby body tissue and/or organs.
In November 2022, Erin’s daughter, Layla, was just a few months old, when she found herself feeling unwell and incredibly tired.
She asked her mum to come over and help with the kids so she could have a shower and a rest – a scenario many new mums know well.
But after taking the kids for a walk, Erin’s mum popped in to check on her.
“As she entered the room, I began seizing,” Erin recalls.
“I still can’t believe how incredibly lucky I was to have asked for help that day – and that my mum was actually there to see my seizure and get help.”
Erin’s mum rolled her to her side and waited with her for the ambulance, while she had further seizures. For Erin’s young family, the days that followed were chaotic and frightening.
“My daughter was still breastfeeding, and my son was so little when I disappeared to the hospital,” she recalls.
“Everyone was scrambling to get my daughter to take a bottle and trying different formulas, my mum was caught up caring for my son, my husband and dad were running back and forth to the shops, and my sister-in-law was cuddling my little baby girl tirelessly trying to get her fed.
“It was truly a family effort that week and I can only imagine how traumatic it was for everyone.”
CT and MRI scans followed, and within two weeks, Erin was having brain surgerytreatment involving removal of cancerous tissue and/or tumours and a margin of healthy tissue around it to reduce recurrence.
In January 2023, Erin was diagnosed with a gradea description of how abnormal cancer cells and tissue look under a microscope when compared to healthy cells 2 astrocytoma.
Surgery hadn’t been able to remove the tumoura tissue mass that forms from groups of unhealthy cells and was so invasive, it temporarily affected her vision. For three long days, she was terrified she would never see her children’s faces again. Thank fully, her vision returned, however Erin is no longer able to drive.
“Not being able to drive with two small children in car seats is challenging to say the least,” Erin says.
“I can’t take them to activities or parties, even to friends’ houses, while my husband is at work, which makes me feel like I’m letting them down.”
In early 2023, Erin began six weeks of radiation, followed by six rounds of chemotherapya cancer treatment that uses drugs to kill or slow the growth of cancer cells, while minimising damage to healthy cells – both oral and IV.
Her children weren’t allowed to join her in the clinic, but her husband made sure they were never far.
“I would pack them snacks and my husband would host carpark picnics through my radiation and take them for walks or drives through my chemo,” Erin said.
“That way, they were close enough to give me with moral support in and out of the clinic.”
Treatment, work and motherhood proved impossible to juggle, and Erin had to step away from her career – something she’d worked hard to build.
“I’m still unable to drive, I get anxious with taking the bus too far and a little scatterbrained, so I’ve not been able to find suitable paid work, but I can’t claim any Centrelink assistance,” Erin explains.
Through it all, Erin found comfort and support in Mummy’s Wish.
“They gave me two beautiful bears so I could record messages to my children, a gorgeous book which I read to them often, and financial vouchers, which have been extremely helpful,” she said.
“My navigator Jane was just such a lovely person to talk with – I truly feel heard.”
Erin’s advice for other mums with cancer
Ask for help: We teach our kids to speak up for what they need, but mums often forget, or perhaps feel too proud to do the same.
Rest without guilt: Rest, TV time or anything else you need to help get you through the day won’t harm your children’s development. There are ways to turn these moments into learning opportunities while you recuperate.
Use your library: Libraries and librarians are golden and extremely underrated. These spaces are calm, free and welcoming. Most have a great children’s area, sometimes with activities or playgroups. Kids love having their own library card and bag too!
Find joy in your everyday: Cancer is a marathon, not a sprint, so find joy in even the most ordinary moments with your kids. Most treasured memories are usually in the interactions with one another, not the event or destination.