My Sweet Release

Written in 2014

A couple of weeks ago,  I shared my story on Twitter and was surprised to hear that even our regular customers didn't know the story behind the name of the company. So after many, many months of contemplating writing a blog, I decided that sharing this story was probably a good place to start.

First blog post, here we go...

About three years ago, I was finally allowed back out into the world after being stuck in isolation for weeks following my thyroid radiation treatment. I was so happy to be back out that even when someone bumped my shoulder on the street, I stopped and thanked them.

The outing was a special day and I wasn't about to let my illness stop me from getting on with life so I went to an IT job interview that day, must have nailed it because I was offered the job on the spot!  Little did I know, my illness had changed me forever and going back to what was familiar was just transitional.

This wasn't the first time my illness had taken over my life...I spent nearly 8 months in bed a year before that, and that was when I first learned the enjoyment of baking. I was bored and needed to eat some treats so I made myself cookies. I had a year of freedom after the first round of meds but it came back with a vengeance and my life was at stake so I accepted the specialists suggestion of radiation treatment. There were dark times...even with the great technology available and all the great friends keeping me company online, they all had to go to sleep and work while I literally had nothing to do but to make sure I looked after myself. 

I tried to prepare as much as I could for being isolated for weeks. I knew that baking pulled me through the boredom, pain and loneliness last time so I made sure I was well stocked with baking ingredients. I spent hours on YouTube, learning as much as I could about baking...even how to measure properly! I didn't know much, and I knew it. I remember feeling exhilarated being able to understand recipes!! Before then, they confused me...a lot! "Cream butter and sugar", what the hell is that?! There's no cream in this recipe. Hahaha. I have come a long way huh guys? Check out my first ever cake compared to my favourite creation from last year:

I tried every recipe I could get my hands on to keep myself entertained. All the food experiments had to go in the bin as no one would be allowed to eat them because i was still mildly radioactive from my treatment. Now that I think about it, this is probably one of the main reasons I make sure none of our treats go to waste. Before I even got my first order, I contacted the Soup Kitchen to see if they would be interested in any leftovers.

Three years later, here we are. I have my very own shop with a few team members. Baking has helped me in so many ways...and that is why the company is called Sweet Release. Baking became my Sweet Release from the pains of treatment.

Thanks for reading,  I promise my baking is better than my writing. 

xx
Kris