This document describes a bead program called "Just Bead It" for children with cancer. The program allows children to create beads representing important people, events, strengths, and their medical journey. Feedback from participants found that beading created a relaxed environment to discuss worries and look back on their experiences. It also helped children feel understood and focus on their future goals and ambitions after treatment. The number of children participating in the program has increased each year due to its therapeutic benefits.

1. Sara Portnoy
Consultant Clinical Psychologist
UCLH

2. Creating Meaning:
A Bead Program for
Children with Cancer.
Stutzer and Gove
(2000) Journal of
Paediatric Oncology
Nursing. 17, 100

4. Kitty’s beads
Good day bead when her
Dad took her shopping and
made her laugh
Reflecting on what I have been through
has helped me realise that I can keep
going
It is really moving
looking back at these
beads- it makes me
realise how much we
have been through
Kitty mainly spoke about
her non-medical beads

5. ASMA JOHN

6. Ncazelo Ncube (2006)
The Tree of Life Project.
The International
Journal of Therapy and
Community work.1 pg 3-
16
www.dulwichcentre.com.au

7. A thin
description

8. Multi Stranded story

9. Daily
Life
Computer games
Watch TV
School
Go outside
Read a book
Picnic in the park
Visit cousin
Do Homework
Tottenham football
Summer Sport
Dad & brother
Sport
School & GCSEs
Playing football
Ice cream
- Chocolate honeycomb
Playing video games

10. Skills
&
Abilities
Endurance
Good Coordination
Stamina
Competitive
Fun
Well behaved
Goalie
Maths
Good at keeping secrets
Creative Interpersonal
skills
Compassionate
Thoughtful Good dancer

11. Important
People
Little sisterDadLittle sisterBig SisterCousin
Mum
- Very patient
Little sister
- Lovely hugs
Dad
- Very caring
Best Friend
- Great listener
Brother
- Makes me laugh
Grandparents
-Share interests
Brother and Sister
-Supportive network
Mum
-Here the whole time
Dad
-Doing things together

12. Roots
Mums cooking
Family get together
My home town
Musical interest
New Year
Eed
Birthday
Turkey
Thorpe Park
Home Town
Chinese
Food
Angel
My Nan

13. Hopes,
Wishes
& Dreams
To be successful
and make my mum proud
Wish to overcome
cancer!
Hope for the best for
all of my family
End of treatment.
Back to normal.
Going to Singapore.
Dad’s there.
Movie editing.
What granddad did.

14. Medical Story
• Where does your story with Cancer start?
• What happened next?
• What are some of the effects you have
noticed cancer create?
• What are some of the hazards you have
noticed Cancer can create?
• How have you responded to these
challenges?
•

15. Medical Story
(Weaving the strands)
• How have you used your skills to help you
during this journey?
• Who has helped you along the way?
• How have you used some of the values that
you spoke about?

16. Who has taken part in
‘Just Bead It’?
• 11 in 2011
• 20 in 2012
• 31 in 2013 (Jan – July)
– Male N=11, Female N=20
2011-2013 Total 62
Why The Increase?
Thanks to
The Bead Team:
Josie Lennox
Sam Fern
Annika Davidson
June Vevers
Haroon Mota
Daphne Paradisopolis
Donna Oxley
Daniel Glazer
Emma Franks
Izzy Girling
Anna Picton
Steph Murphy

17. Beads make session very
relaxed. Able to talk about
any worries/issues much
more easily and naturally
I liked talking about the
important people in my life and
why they are important.
Enjoyed the
calm
environment
I clearly
understood that
the people
around me have
helped me
A) Opportunity to
acknowledge and
recognise support
B) Beading’s
therapeutic
environment
The beads make the
sessions relaxed so I
was able to talk
about my worries
I would recommend
it to my mum as it
would show her how
much she has done
for me

18. C) The future as the
focus
D) Sharing experiences,
thoughts and feelings through
beading
Also helped me to look forward
to what was coming when
I was better
I think that all sick children of all ages should
‘bead’ and for parents to help them
understand how they feel
Talk through what I will be
doing in the future such
as goals and ambitions
after the cancer
A bead with many parts to it - to
represent some of the mile
stones that you have reached
and the others that you still
have to come
It was nice to
share things

19. It helps you
understand
yourself and
who you really
are
A) Creating a sense
of order in the
‘chaos’ of cancer
Liked important people – good to remember
when ‘chaos’ around from treatment
Made me look back and put
things in order. It made me
remember things that I had
done in the past
When you look at all the beads connected
and you look at what each of them means,
you know where you started off and what
you’ve been through
B) Remembering who I am –
‘What are you made of’?
Enjoyed exploring
who I am and thinking
about my strengths
and abilities
It allowed us to express
our skills and interests
through beads

20. C) Growing and developing
because you are blossoming
Thought more about what drives
me
Like it makes me
want ambition, it
drives my ambition
more
Beading gave
me
determination
for the future
It helped me a lot,
it made me
stronger
A flower - because you are
blossoming
It has given me ambition

21. THANK YOU
ANY QUESTIONS ?
sara.portnoy@uclh.nhs.uk
?
?
?
?

22. Jerome Bruner (1991) ACTS OF
MEANING. Cambridge: Harvard
University Press
Davies B and Harre R (1990)POSITIONING:
THE DISCURSIVE PRODUCTION OF SELVES.
Journal of the Theory of Social Behaviour,20,
43-64
Kitty’s Feedback