Fanatical Richmond supporter, Di Terrill-Wynne is our club’s latest This Girl Can Victoria, participant. A grandmother and retired schoolteacher, Di was suffering from rheumatoid arthritis and always putting everyone’s health ahead of her own. The thought of exercise as a form of treatment and way of life, was both frightening and a long, distant memory.
“When I was a young mum, I definitely had a feeling of being judged, by other women, especially," says Di.
“Unless your whole world revolved around your children and their health and wellbeing, you weren’t being a good mum. Certainly my health and wellbeing came a very, very long second to my children and it’s not until now, that I’ve stood up and said, ‘yeah, it is time for me and I am going to do this’, and I haven’t looked back, since.
“Fatigue was my overwhelming symptom of my rheumatoid arthritis and I was struggling to get out of bed. I was exhausted come three or four o’clock in the afternoon. There was that sort of response from me where I was struggling to do it, and thought that by getting involved in a gym program that it would just exacerbate (the condition). Whereas, in actual fact, it completely reversed it.”
Di noticed on richmondfc.com.au a program the club was helping VicHealth roll out across the State, and received the gift of support and confidence through a family member to give it a try.
“The This Girl Can programme came up and I wanted to do it, but was intimidated and it was my daughter-in-law said, ‘I’ll do it with you’. The instructors, who we were working with, were amazing and so almost within the very first session, I went from dreading it, and I was dreading it, that first session, to looking forward to the next one," she said.
“The first time we rolled out the This Girl can programme, it was evident that there was a lot of interest from ladies that maybe hadn’t been active previously”, says Carly Yeomans, Eltham Leisure Centre Group Fitness captain. “Getting that opportunity to get them through and become familiar and comfortable with improving (their mental and physical health) was really important.
"With the This Girl Can Victoria programme encouraging women, 18 years and over across the State to get moving and get active, Richmond’s Aligned Leisure centres have rolled out a number of programmes specifically designed to assist women new to activity, or those who haven’t been active for many years, to start moving again, by offering a variety of activities they can try and providing expert guidance to make each experience as encouraging and comfortable, as possible.
“Having a programme already set that I could just join and do and not have to think too much about what’s right, what’s wrong, was the thing for me.
“But I have to say the This Girl can programme was the thing that made it that way, because it was the holistic approach.
“After a year of the programme, for the first time I’ve got blood tests coming back perfectly normal; for the first time in nine years! Getting here and getting involved has changed that enthusiasm for life and ability to think that I can participate. I am okay to do our traveling and I can do the big hikes around Ularu and I’m not out of breath and completely exhausted at the end of the day. I can still do and I have a lot more life to live.
“I still think that we are our own worst enemies in some respects. I think we need to give ourselves permission and not leave it, like me, until you’re retired. Somehow build it in and make it happen in your world.
“This Girl Can happily play and run and move around with her grandchildren and hike around Australia the way she so desperately wants to.”
Richmond Football Club is a proud partner of VicHealth’s This Girl Can Victoria campaign, celebrating women who are all kinds of active. Women who are giving it their all, or giving it a go, but not giving a damn!
