Moving Forward After Cancer Treatment
Moving Forward After Cancer Treatment
Our tips for the best techniques and practices to help you move forward and let go after cancer treatment
For a variety of complex reasons many cancer survivors find that they don’t seem to feel as relieved as they would have liked to imagine they would after successfully completing cancer treatment. A cancer diagnosis and it’s invasive treatment tends to cause physical, mental and emotional trauma that takes time to digest and heal from. The whole medical experience is so jarring and serious that it’s hard to let go of and transition back into normal life from, especially if side effects from cancer treatment remain. Many cancer survivors will have to adapt to new lifestyles and learn how to pursue different hobbies and areas of interest. Life is a constantly changing phenomenon and peace here on earth comes from learning how to embrace this change. Below we outline the process and resources to help you accept and move forward from your cancer treatment in the most healthy ways possible.
Typical Feelings After Cancer Treatment
Since cancer can feel like it crept into a cancer patient’s life undetected it’s common to feel like it could return at any time. Paranoia, worrying about unexplained aches and pains that normally wouldn’t have been a concern before is a common experience in the first few years after cancer treatment. Cancer survivors may experience contradictory feelings of weakness and exhaustion while friends and family talk about how strong they are for their battle which can cause a social disconnect and frustration. Frustration may also arise from limited mobility and a continued sense of fatigue that’s not always alleviated by rest or sleep. Financial concerns may come creeping in from medical bills as well as stress about returning to work and the expectations that may be required of you there. As a cancer survivor you have to remember to take things one day at a time and allow yourself an adjustment period.
Give Yourself Time to Adjust Back to Life After Cancer
Everyone’s experience with cancer and it’s treatment is different but what most cancer patients share in common through their survival journey is the fact that cancer treatment becomes the main area of focus in their lives at that point in time. Because cancer patient’s become so fixated on treatment and hospitals and procedures it can be difficult to pick back up where they left off, especially with lingering side effects such as “chemobrain” and fatigue. After depending on others to help with simple tasks it may take some time to rebuild confidence, cancer survivors need to remember to give themselves that time and to be patient. Adapting back to normal life is part of the cancer healing process.
Develop a Wellness Plan
Feelings of being less actively in the fight against cancer by not having to go to the hospital or appointments for extended periods of time can make a cancer survivor feel vulnerable or anxious. While a cancer survivor is still fresh in “fight mode” it can be a good idea to develop a plan or routine to help adapt to a new healthy lifestyle. Life after cancer treatment can be a reflective time on the way a cancer survivor has been treating their body, especially now that their awareness has increased on the sensitivity that their body has towards the things and chemicals they have been exposing themselves to. Talk with a doctor, nutritionist, or physician and develop some new healthy goals to work towards.
Techniques and Practices to Help Move Forward and Let Go
It’s important to focus on the present moment after cancer treatment and accepting where you’re at in life as well as your cancer treatment journey. Tension can build from holding on to unfulfilled dreams so it’s important to find ways to express yourself and let go of any trauma or lost expectations of the future. There are many activities that can help with letting go and bringing your mind back to the moment such as meditation, breathing exercises, art, photography, spending time in nature, crafts, yoga, physical exercise, music, running, jogging, journaling and many more. Journaling can be especially important in the process of acceptance and letting go as well as joining cancer survivor groups where people come together to tell their stories and offer support for one another.
Post Treatment Support and Community Is Available
During cancer treatment a patient is forced to interact with many new people, as well as friends and family they may not regularly see. After treatment, however, a cancer patient may begin to feel isolated or alone as people become less engaged in their well being. It will now take effort to seek out this type of engagement which is where support groups come in. Try seeking out cancer specialist nurses, cancer support charities, and local cancer support groups. Talking about what you are going through is essential to working it through, which could be beneficial to others and bring about a rewarding feeling. Religion, faith and spirituality can also become cornerstones to a life of purpose and satisfaction post-cancer treatment.
Don’t Worry
Worry is a wasteful misuse of energy and the imagination. Accepting that you don’t have very much control, if any, over the recurrence of you cancer is critical in letting go of the need to entertain worrisome thoughts. Some people turn to meditation or mindfulness, others turn to spirituality or religion, whatever the case it’s important to connect to the present moment and to nurture gratitude for life and survival. Give yourself time and pamper yourself with natural products along the way, the products at Hope & Beauty can help guide you along the healthy road to a comfortable happy life after cancer treatment.