A mother diagnosed with cancer just hours after the death of her eldest son turned to writing – and the creation of a unique board game – to help herself and others overcome enormous challenges in their lives.

Australian-born Nhys Glover, of Addingham, lost her epileptic 20-year-old son, Chris, to a massive seizure in 2002.

And in a devastating twist of fate, Nhys discovered on the same day that she had breast cancer.

“I was faced with two of the most horrific pieces of news a woman can hear and both came within a few hours of each other,” she said.

Now 55 and working in Yorkshire as a business development coach and author, she says she turned to writing as a lifeline.

“Up until that point, I’d helped hundreds of people in their life and career choices. Suddenly my own path was blurred and I needed help myself.

“Writing proved to be that lifeline. It brought me back from the depths of depression and helped focus my energies on something constructive and tangible.”

Nhys, who underwent a successful bi-lateral mastectomy in 2002, went on to publish critically-acclaimed fantasy novel Labyrinth of Light a year later.

Following the success of her novel, she also came up with what she hopes will be the key to helping others through their own ordeal – a board game-cum-self awareness programme, Psyche’s Key.

Hailed as a “Monopoly for the spiritually minded”, the non-competitive game takes the player on a journey of self-discovery. It can be played for fun or as a means of identifying, understanding and dealing with setbacks and tragedies. Nhys says she designed the game as a way of dealing with her own grief.

She said: “The loss of my son and the onset of breast cancer led to an unimaginably difficult period of my life. I was left in tatters and it required all my strength just to carry on.

“The idea behind Psyche’s Key was born at this time. It helped me come to terms with what had happened and went a long way in healing the hurt, pain and confusion.

“Since then, the game has helped dozens of other people to overcome life’s challenges, become stronger individuals and go forward with confidence.”

More information can be found on her website at thejourneywoman.info.