Anthony & Rosemary O’Mullan's Story

Rosemary

My name is Rosemary O’Mullan. I’m now retired. I’ve been married now 38 years.

Anthony

People would tell you everything is laid out for you. But it’s not.. It’s your luck of the draw at the time. And also how it turns out.

Rosemary

I met Tony in 1979 and I was married in 1981. Well I must say we have had a good family life. We were married six years before we had any kids. So it was a big bonus then whenever we heard there was a baby on the way and Tony was thoroughly delighted.

It was a Sunday and we were to go out for a meal, that evening Tony says, ‘no, I feel full, I don’t think I’ll go out for the meal’. But anyway, during the night he actually wasn’t feeling too well and was sitting on the side of the bed and I was so worried it was a heart attack. Made an appointment, sent him to the doctor the next day and the doctor took bloods and that evening he rang me here and said that he was sending through a red alert to the hospital because he felt there was something more wrong.

Anthony

Aye, it was a very mixed up sort of a diagnosis. There were two different complaints. There was myeloma, a treatable type of cancer. So when I heard I had cancer well not the greatest thing in the world. But then when I heard that it was treatable, ah well, we’ll have a go. And here I am, living when I should be somewhere else.

Rosemary

They treated him with his chemo while he was in there. The treatment was very, very severe on him and then he got home and he wasn’t able to climb stairs or anything. So he got the hospital bed and Marie Curie girls stepped in immediately. I mean, they were just amazing.

Anthony

I wouldn’t like to be without them. And as you can see we live in a fairly northerly part of the country and the weather is not always in our favour but they always turn up. They wash you, clean you up, they even shave me if I would let them.

Rosemary

This time last year, which was June/July, he certainly wasn’t well. Then he took a wee turn then. Again Marie Curie girls were here the night it happened or I would have been… I was just at the end of my tether because it was one of these vasovagals where you just thought the person was dead. And they were here and they told me to be calm. Like I was not calm.

Anthony

If I wasn’t getting the care I’m getting I’m not so sure where I would be. I don’t think I’d be lying here. The family are important too. I can stay at home. Rosemary can stay at home. The whole family is all a unit.