Here are some effective strategies to cope with stress and anxiety during cancer treatment.
Getting diagnosed with Cancer can be one of the most painful experiences anybody could have. It brings with it a lot of physical and emotional challenges in the whole process of treatment. However, effective strategies to cope with stress and anxiety during the treatment can go a long way in the process of healing.
Seeking Professional Help
One of the most important steps in dealing with anxiety during cancer treatment is seeking professional help from a Clinical Psychologist. Since the whole process of diagnosis and treatment is so overwhelming, it is impossible to deal with anxiety all by yourself in the beginning. Speaking to a Mental Health professional will allow you to speak about your fears without any judgement. This will help you to become aware of the situations and thoughts that bring in anxiety. For example, experiencing anxiety before going in for investigations, or fearful negative thoughts related to death or relapse of Cancer. Gradually, a psychologist will help you develop healthy coping mechanisms to deal with the stress and anxiety that comes very naturally during the treatment of cancer.
Mindfulness and Meditation
Incorporating the practice of mindfulness or meditation (watching your breath) as an everyday practice which will allow you to be in the present moment. This helps with the mind being calm as you are no longer thinking about the past or future. As a result, there is a significant reduction of stress hormones in the body.
Visualization or Mental Imagery
As the name suggests, visualization is a practice of imagining what you want to achieve in the future. Instead of thinking about the current reality, you can try to think of a desired reality which will help in the production of feel-good hormones like dopamine or oxytocin in the brain. For example: thinking of living a cancer free life (desired reality) instead of thinking about the current reality (ongoing cancer treatment). A psychologist can help you with visualization as it is not easy to practice this technique in isolation.
Engaging in Activities or Hobbies
Taking out time to engage in activities that bring in joy and happiness for ex: painting, listening to music, gardening, writing etc. which can bring in a feeling of catharsis. This will help you express repressed emotions or distract yourself from the painful negative thoughts that come in when the mind is idle.
Maintain a Healthy Lifestyle
Trying to still maintain a healthy lifestyle goes a long way in reducing anxiety and bringing back normalcy. Going for a walk every day in the morning will make you feel fresh and energetic. Doing some form of physical activity like Yoga or mild exercises will help to deal with fatigue and weakness that comes as a side effect of cancer treatments. Having fresh fruits, vegetables and whole grains and even engaging in cooking your own food (if possible) will help provide the essential nutrients required for the body to deal with the side effects of the treatment.
Avoiding triggers or stressors
It is crucial to understand and reduce your exposure to stressors or tense environments as it will hamper the process of treatment. Delegating tasks, dividing the workload with friends and family will go a long way in keeping yourself stress free.
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Prioritizing yourself
It is very important at this point of time when the cancer treatment is going on, that you prioritize yourself now. Do what makes you happy or comfortable and avoid things and people that bring in stress and anxiety. It is ok if others don’t understand. But taking care of your emotional well-being and mental health is of utmost importance at this point of time when the treatment is going on or even post treatment.
Undergoing treatment for cancer can be quite debilitating. However, it is important to know that Cancer is not just a Physical disorder, but it brings with it a lot of mental health issues, which if not addressed, can hamper the process of treatment. Hence, it is of utmost importance to take care of your emotional well-being so that the recovery and healing can happen in a smooth manner.
The article is contributed by Vaishali Ganwir, Clinical Psychologist, CARER.
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