After my first diagnosis, I did everything to fight my cancer – chemo, double mastectomy, veganism. I was bombarded with information by well-meaning people constantly telling me to try this therapy or cut out this food because ‘it causes cancer’. I felt completely overwhelmed. Everyone had an opinion on what I ‘should’ be doing but the expectation on how I should now live my life was what scared me most.

Reflect on the positive

So I’ve learned to say b*llocks to that. And in doing so I feel like I’ve learned a pretty valuable lesson. I have no control over my future but the one thing I can control is how I live my life now, and I really want to live it, not restrict it with self-imposed rules. I used to love running, horse-riding – generally being outdoors, but my bones aren’t strong enough now. Instead of feeling miserable, I’ve decided to enjoy life’s simple pleasures, like walking my border terrier Pearl. Enjoying every single day has become my main goal.

So if you are intent on making a New Year’s Resolution, make it this: live your life, don’t restrict it. Stop writing down unattainable goals in your diary and think instead about what you’ve already achieved, because it’s very easy to lose sight of that. And when you stop and think about it, life is brilliant. Yes, I’ve missed out on loads of things because of cancer – my friend recently got me tickets to see Grayson Perry as a surprise as I love him, but I missed it because my chemo date moved. I was gutted. But I’ve done some amazing things too, like sailing on the Greenpeace boat and climbing the O2. I can say I’ve lived my life to the full and when I weigh it up, I’m much happier about the things I’ve achieved than worried about the things I haven’t.

Annie Slater, a woman living with terminal cancer, explains why we need to seize the day