Two books offer advice on how to keep mentally well during and after cancer treatment, writes SYLVIA THOMPSON
HELPFUL ADVICE on how to get through the trauma of cancer treatment is offered in two books on the subject. Not The Year You Had Planned (Ashfield Press) by Cathy McCarthy and 44½ Choices You Can Make if You Have Cancer (Newleaf Press) by Sheila Dainow, Vicki Golding and Jo Wright, include the following tips:
1 Take things day by day
Focus on each appointment rather than the whole treatment. Try to live in the present and accept things as they are rather than worrying about the future. This might sometimes mean not answering people’s questions about your illness, asking medical professionals to help you deal with your current needs rather than always looking ahead regarding prognosis, future treatment plans and so on. It might also mean grieving the loss of your health when you feel like it.
2 Seek help from family and friends
This can include asking for practical help with housework, looking after children, bringing you to a hospital appointment (not having to park a car can be a huge stress reliever). Or seek emotional support when you’re feeling fragile, companionship during a bad day or someone that you can have a good laugh with.
3 Learn to understand which situations and/or people bring negativity into your life
If that means not watching the news every night on television, not seeing certain friends for a while or choosing a feel-good movie over a stimulating but disturbing drama/thriller, then do it. It might also include asking people not to share their stories of tragic cancer deaths with you.
4 Continue to do physical exercise when you can
Cancer specialists are putting more emphasis on the importance of keeping fit during treatment – both for the body and the mind. Walking, yoga and cycling are forms of exercise that are particularly recommended during chemotherapy. However, gyms, exercise classes and swimming pools can bring a risk of infection. Check with your medical team before embarking on a new exercise programme.
5 Manage your chemo brain
While researchers say that the effects of cancer on the brain depend more on the type of treatment than the type of cancer, many people with the disease become more forgetful, more easily distracted and lose the ability to calculate in their heads. Following all of the tips in this piece is probably the best way to cope with these often undiagnosed side-effects. Focus on one thing at a time and don’t be too hard on yourself when you feel like this.
6 Learn to cope with fatigue
Unlike tiredness which can be usually solved with a good night’s sleep, fatigue is a daily lack of energy which is often not relieved by sleep. Fatigue is common during cancer treatment and its symptoms include irritability, nervousness, anxiety, sleepiness and feeling weak. If you experience any of these, accept that you are tired, pace yourself and only do what is important and has to be done.
7 Keep a diary if you think it will be interesting to read how you felt at a particular time
If not, do something creative: paint, play music (learn an instrument if you feel well enough), join a choir, cook (learn to make new healthy dishes) or simply appreciate the beauty of nature.
8 Be grateful for what you have
This tip can often make people with cancer feel angry, but learning to appreciate what you have – your family and friends and their gifts and talents – can help you untangle yourself from your illness. It can also help you live your life more outside of your illness.
9 Explore your spirituality
This can be done through a church or through other spiritual practises such as meditation or yoga.
10 Find a cancer support centre
This can include those that offer complementary therapies, support groups or simply cups of tea after treatment sessions. Find your place and space within such a context for as long as you need to.
Do you have one tip that helped you get through treatment for cancer? Send it to us at healthsupplement @irishtimes.com and we’ll publish a selection.
POSITIVE: THE RIGHT ATTITUDE IS CRUCIAL
Cathy McCarthy was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2007 and went on to have surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy.
While she was ill, she discovered that a lot of information about dealing with cancer was fragmented and difficult to find. This led her to write Not The Year You Had Planned.
In her book, one of the most striking things McCarthy says is: “From the first moment that I got my cancer diagnosis, I decided I was in charge of my attitude.”
Quoting American preacher Charles R Swindoll, she writes, “the longer I live, the more I realise the impact of attitude on life. Attitude to me is more important than facts.
“It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what other people think or say or do . . .”
Speaking just after the launch of her book, McCarthy reiterated this point: “Attitude is everything, I believe. If you’ve the wrong attitude, you won’t get through it very well.”
