A cancer diagnosis is never easy. It’s scary to think about how much your life will change as you deal with such a harsh disease. It’s overwhelming to consider that you may not make it through. As long as you’re here, however, you have a chance to fight – a chance to live.
Finding ways to cope with your cancer can help you get through it
Search for alternative treatments
Never give up. Just because one treatment won’t work for you doesn’t mean none of them will. You can search for alternative treatment options that might be a possibility. Say your cancer is in your pancreas.
You can look at an alternative treatment for pancreatic cancer that may not have as many of the side effects of chemotherapy or surgery. More natural options may exist that you can discuss at an Immunity Therapy Center.
As you get further along in your cancer journey, stop to share what you know with others. There may be people just starting out who are scared and unsure of what to expect. Sharing your experience with others can help them with overcoming the pain.
It can also help with your own mental health. You get to pass on your knowledge to those who can benefit. It can provide you with the purpose that you may have been seeking through this.
Seek support
It’s important for you to have the support of others if you hope to make it through your diagnosis, the treatment process, and even managing life after. There is a lot of support for patients and caregivers alike. An entire cancer support community is available.
You can contact someone on a live chat or call the cancer support helpline number, 888-793-9355, if you’re in dire need of someone to talk to. You can even use the Affiliate Location Finder to find support groups in your area. Just enter your address or zip code.
Improve your mind and body
Cancer eats away at you quickly if you continue to operate with an unhealthy mind and body. When you’re constantly thinking negatively about your diagnosis, you’re more likely to feel down and ill. If you’re not following through with a healthy eating plan and eating junk, you’re feeding the cancer what it wants. Improve your mind and body to help yourself beat it.
There may be days you don’t feel up to exercising – and that’s OK. Just do what you can, when you can. Try your best to get a little movement each day and eat foods that are good for you so you can give yourself the best chance at beating this disease.
Keeping a journal and writing down positive thoughts, such as the fact you made it through your exercises or you spoke with your support person and had a good conversation can also help with your mental health.
Look good, feel better
Sometimes looking good can help you feel good. When you’re constantly looking in the mirror and seeing someone who looks sick, unkempt, and unclean, it can be easy to fall into depression. The Look Good Feel Better Foundation strives to help individuals with cancer feel better about themselves. They offer free public service programs that teach people about proper skincare, beauty regimes, nail care, and more.
The goal is to inform cancer patients about the best ways to care for themselves now that their bodies are working against them and they may be experiencing side effects from medications or chemotherapy.
Final thoughts
No disease is easy to handle, especially one as deadly and debilitating as cancer. Find any way you can to cope so you can make it through. There are lots of options that can help. You just have to be ready to give them a try.
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Image credit: Freepik
Peter Wallace has been an advocate for mental health awareness for years. He holds a master’s degree in counselling from the University of Edinburgh.
