After a 6 week stay in hospital in December 2015, Mary Davies became disconnected with friends and relatives and stopped attending many of the things she would of before such as social club and her local Women’s Institute. She also stopped attending church every Sunday which she had done for many years. It became difficult for Mary to reconnect and adjust back to life and she suddenly began to feel very lonely in day to day life. However, thanks to good friends from her many years attending church, she was soon helped to ease back into a social life.

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Mary explained how she reconnected with the outside world thanks to just one phone call:

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"Once I came out of hospital, I spent about 3 weeks at home on my own. The only person who I saw during that time was my carer who would come in to check on me for an hour in the morning and an hour in the evening but we didn't get chance to properly chat. One evening, a lady named Julie who I knew from church rang to ask how I was after my operation and to see whether I needed anything from the shops.

 

She visited me the next day with her son and stayed for a few hours. It felt good to have someone to speak to and tell my stories to again. She also said that if I wanted to begin going to church again, she would pick me up so it was easier for me to get there due to me not being as mobile as before.

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That Sunday I went to church and it felt lovely to be back after so long. There was many old and new faces and I had a wonderful time, it just felt good to be out of the house and surrounded by people. Everyone was very kind and many of my old friends who I had attended church with for many years suggested we should begin to meet for coffee once a week to make sure we kept in touch as there were several other ladies in a similar situation to me who didn’t have chance to get out of the house much anymore.

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 Julie also suggested that she would begin to visit me once a week to bring me anything I needed from the shop or pick up my prescriptions if needed.

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It felt wonderful that one phone call has led to so many people and I now have chance to see my friends again and go to the events I’ve always enjoyed. As a child I was always encouraged to get involved in things and I’ve always carried on that way so I was upset to think I may be cut off but now I feel as though I have more people to turn to than ever before.

 

I encourage anyone who knows someone in a situation like mine to help in any way you possibly can, it means more than you could imagine to somebody who may not be as able to do things alone anymore.”