FERNWOOD FITNESS - PULSE eMagazine - Issue#13 - Flipbook - Page 7
Finding
How Hanan turned heartache into healing—and found her power again.
W
hen life is turned
upside down,
昀椀nding the strength
to stand tall again can
feel impossible. But for
Hanan, a remarkable
Bendigo Fernwood
Fitness member,
resilience, community,
and a little push from
someone she loves
helped her rise from
unimaginable grief and
exhaustion to rediscover
her spark.
After relocating from
Egypt to Australia,
Fernwood Fitness
became Hanan’s
sanctuary - a place to
stay strong in body and
mind while navigating
the challenges of raising
three young children in
a new country, far from
family. But in 2022, her
world shattered. She lost
her father suddenly. Just
weeks later, her motherin-law passed away. And
in 2023, her husband,
Allan, was diagnosed with
stage 4 bowel cancer.
Surgery left him frail and
in need of daily care. Life
became survival mode
for Hanan, self-care
vanished, and the gym
felt like a distant memory.
Then, something
incredible happened.
Allan began to recover,
stronger than doctors
expected. Allan saw that
Hanan had given
everything to everyone
else, and nothing to
herself. One day, during
a drive, he pulled over
in front of her beloved
Fernwood and refused
to leave until she walked
in and renewed her
membership. That small
moment marked the start
of something big.
Hanan joined
Fernwood’s FIIT30
Strong Start
Transformation, a
program designed
to reignite health
and con昀椀dence. The
beginning was tough she was tired, un昀椀t, and
emotionally drained. But
step by step, rep by rep,
something shifted. Her
strength returned. Her
energy lifted. And slowly,
she began to feel like
herself again.
Hanan says “The
8-week FIIT30 Strong
Start Transformation was
exactly what I needed to
reset my body after such
a long period of neglect
and it gave me the
exercise structure and
dietary guidelines that
I needed to overcome
some long-term health
issues as well.”
