Julia Bradbury, 53, takes a 'healing' dip in the ocean as she discusses the importance of finding purpose while battling cancer in emotional post
Julia Bradbury has opened up on how healing emotionally can be crucial during a battle against cancer.
The Countryfile presenter, 53, was diagnosed with breast cancer in September 2021 before undergoing a mastectomy to have her 6cm tumour removed.
Julia has been candid about how cancer changed her as a person, saying that the disease actually 'saved her life' after she became 'stressed all the time' due to work.
On Saturday, the mother-of-three has now taken to her Instagram to detail how emotions can affect your health as she discussed the toll of the disease.
Sharing a video of herself enjoying a wetsuit-clad cold dip in the ocean, Julia spoke about the importance of having a purpose while fighting the disease.
She wrote: 'What if one of the most powerful parts of your healing… isn't 'medical', it's emotional. And it's inside you.
'In the journey through cancer I've met some incredible people & learnt a lot about a whole person approach to recovery and healing.
'Yesterday at @ipmcongress (a conference all about a personalised approach to health and treatments) I interviewed @joembracingnutrition about her approach to cancer patients.
'She calls it a 360 approach and it includes monitoring bloods, testing, targeted treatment of the cancer itself (working alongside an oncologist) but very importantly it addresses emotional issues too.
'We all have them. And most of us lead stressful lives (phones/emails/work pressures/family commitments/travel to work/shift work/lack of sleep!).'
She went on to discuss the characteristics of cancer patients who manage to survive the disease 'against all the odds'.
Julia continued: 'A strong reason for living — maybe it's your children, a dream not yet lived, or the simple joy of a sunrise.
'Releasing old, suppressed emotions — letting go of pain you've held for too long.
'Promoting positive emotions — finding joy, laughter, even in dark places.
Sharing a video of herself enjoying a wetsuit-clad cold dip in the ocean, Julia spoke about the importance of having a purpose while fighting the disease
'I try not to forget the importance of emotions when it comes to health. It takes work and it can be uncomfortable to explore.. but healing isn't just what's done to you… it's what awakens inside you too.'
Julia has been open about her experience with cancer since her 2021 diagnosis.
Just a matter of weeks ago, she proudly shared her surgery scars which remain following her mastectomy.
Coupled with a close up shot of her lower breast, the journalist called the scars a sign of 'resilience'.
'Just like those vessels, our scars - emotional or physical - are not flaws to be concealed,' she shared.
They are stories of resilience, growth and transformation. Each mark is a testament to our journey and strength,' she wrote.
Julia also candidly spoke about the moment she told her husband, Gerard Cunningham, that she had cancer around four years ago.
Appearing on Davina McCall's Begin Again podcast, she said: 'I told him, and we cried. And I said, 'I'll do whatever I have to do to get through this. I will do whatever it is'.'
Determined to fight, she expressed her readiness to face any challenge that may pop up ahead.
'If I have to lose a breast, I'll have to lose my hair. If I have to go, whatever it is I need to do,' she said.
'I'm going to do what I need to do to get through this.'
Julia said fighting cancer is not the same for everyone.
She explained: 'Every type of cancer is different. Every type of breast cancer is different.
'You'll have a friend who's gone through breast cancer, and she and I will sit down and have a story, and we'll have had a different tumour in a different place, and it will behave differently.
'It's very complicated. And that's the reason why the war on cancer hasn't been won yet.'
Julia shares her son Zephyr, 13, and her twin girls, Xanthe and Zena, eight, with her property developer husband, Gerard.
In 2023, she spoke about her determination to 'stay alive' two years on from her breast cancer diagnosis.
The journalist and TV presenter had the tumour, two lymph glands and her left breast removed before having reconstruction surgery.
Julia has since revealed how her diagnosis changed her life, leading her to adopt a much healthier diet and go teetotal as she declared she will do everything possible to see her children grow up.
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