Thursday, November 4, 2010

After Cancer

I will write about this later,
Bahia

Posted by Bahia at 4:44 PM

1 comment:

Bahia said...

Dear friends: Here is a very informative article by David Haas.
"Anyone who has cancer, who is in remission or is going through cancer treatments,
understands how traumatic and stressful this can be. Many people in these situations are
afraid and confused about what to expect. While their friends and family are empathetic and
loving, these people do not necessarily provide the information that the cancer survivor is
seeking. The devastating effects of cancer often leave the people it strikes, at a loss about
how to deal with the tremendous stress that these conditions cause. To make matters even
worse, studies have shown that stress has a pronounced effect on how cancerous tumors grow
and spread.

The American Institute of Stress indicates that people who get the emotional support they
need have far less stress and are able to heal more rapidly. Less stress means a better
ability to deal with the cancer. Emotional support can be from compassionates friends, family
members, a doctor or from a patient advocacy or cancer support group. However, no one truly
understands the devastating effects of cancer better than other people who are experiencing
or have experienced the disease themselves. This is why cancer support groups are so highly
recommended.

There are all kinds of cancer survivor networks on the Internet. These groups can be
especially helpful if someone is experiencing a particular effect of a treatment that prevents
him or her from leaving home. One need not be incapacitated to participate and enjoy online
groups, however. Some people find it less stressful to use this modality to communicate.

Support groups that exist outside the Internet can help any cancer survivor gain knowledge
about how to fight his or her disease, whether it manifests itself as mesothelioma, breast
cancer, leukemia, or any other type of cancer. They can teach members about the negative
(or positive) effects of the various treatments, and advocate for high quality health care.

Some support groups are peer moderated. This means that they are not run by members of
the medical community, but rather are run by other cancer survivors who gather together
to talk about their personal experiences and any new information they might have learned
about.

There are also professionally moderated cancer support groups that are commonly found
through hospitals. These are often run by doctors or psychologists. Both types of groups
offer encouragement and psychological support, valuable information and opinions and direct
accounts of personal experience, but most importantly, the opportunity for cancer survivors to
experience a human connection and camaraderie.

By: David Haas

December 7, 2011 at 10:14 PM

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