Your mental health

cancer survivorship

Cancer care

cancer survivorship

Cancer treatment can have considerable effects on the body, mind and soul and can deeply affect the way you feel, think and live. It is quite normal to have a number of conflicting thoughts and feelings. It’s important to take good care of your emotions and mental health, as well as your body.

Further information

Contact the central customer service centre on

[email protected] or 0860 NETCARE (0860 638 2273)

Please note that the centre operates on weekdays between 08:00 and 16:00.

Your feelings

Each person with cancer will have thoughts, feelings and fears that are unique to them.

The values you grew up with may affect how you think about and deal with cancer. Some people may feel like they have to be strong in order to protect their families and friends, whereas others may be comfortable seeking support from loved ones or from other cancer survivors. However you decide to cope should be the right way for you, and it’s important not to compare yourself with others.

Managing worry

Worrying about your health and about cancer coming back is very normal, especially in the first year or two after your treatment ends; in fact it’s one of the most common fears among survivors. For some, that fear is strong enough to affect their sleep, appetite, enjoyment of life or even ability to attend follow-up visits. If you feel like this, you’re not abnormal at all, and you can find help.

As time passes, many cancer survivors say that they tend to think about their cancer less often. But even years after treatment ends, it’s normal to become worried for any number of reasons; follow-up visits, symptoms like ones you had when previously diagnosed, a friend of family member becoming ill, and more.

Your worry isn’t just normal, it’s very understandable. But worry isn’t something that will help, so why not think about some practical steps you can take:

Coping With Fear of Cancer Returning

Be informed
Learn about your cancer, understand the things you can do to best protect your health, and find out about any services available to help you – these are all practical and actionable steps that will help you feel a sense of control. In addition to that, studies show that people who are well-informed about their cancer and its treatment are more likely to follow a treatment plan and recover their illness more quickly than those who are less-informed.
Express your feelings - even the strong ones
Many people find that when they express their stronger feelings, like anger or sadness, those feelings are easier to feel and then let go. Whether you talk your fears through with a loved one, another cancer survivor, or a counselor, you may find it eases your worry. But even if you prefer not to talk, you can still sort through your feelings by thinking consciously about them or writing them down.
Try to find the positive
That doesn’t mean you should always feel great, or act like you’re fine when you’re not. It might mean looking for the good even in tough times, or trying to be hopeful about situations outside your control rather than worrying about the worst outcome. Your energy is precious, and you can protect it by focusing on wellness, and what you can do now to stay as healthy as possible.
Be kind to yourself
Don’t blame yourself or be hard on yourself. Some people believe that they got cancer through their habits or behaviour or something they did; remember, cancer can happen to anyone.
Be how you are, and how you feel
You don’t have to pretend to be upbeat or ok if you don’t feel it. It’s important to have the freedom to really feel your feelings sometimes. If you need to take a ‘bad cancer day’ and spend it under the covers, do that.
Find ways to help yourself relax
Meditation, yoga, deep breathing, reading or listening to audiobooks. Find what works for you.
Be as active as you can
It’s not always easy, but if you can move your body every day it will help you feel good. Even gentle exercise can help you focus on things besides cancer and the worry that comes with it.
Take a look at what you can control
Some people find that taking control of what they can helps. Be actively involved in your own health care, keep your appointments and ask questions at them, make lifestyle changes... these are the things you can control. You might even feel a reassuring sense of control by setting a gentle daily schedule.

Feeling stress

You may have put certain concerns to the back of your mind when you were diagnosed - maybe to do with family, work, finances, or your personal life. These issues might begin to resurface once your treatment is over, and can be a renewed source of stress.

It’s really common among survivors to worry that their stress levels played a role in their illness. But please remember that the exact cause of many cancers is still really unknown. There is no research that shows stress causes cancer. What we do know is that stress can cause other health problems, and finding a way to reduce the stress in your life may help you feel better. Devote your energy and time to activities that make you feel calm.

Reducing stress

If you’re looking for ways to reduce stress, you can always talk to your doctor or nurse about it. Many survivors find one or some of the below to be really effective in managing stress too:

Exercise
Exercise is a known stress reducer and can help you feel less tense - whether you’ve had cancer or not, but particularly if you want to reduce post-treatment worry. Discuss with your doctor before you make an exercise plan, and take care not to overdo it and over-exert yourself. If you’re unable to walk, ask your healthcare practitioner about other types of exercise and movement that may be effective, like chair exercises or stretching.
Mind-body work
Meditation or deep relaxation techniques may help you lower stress by helping to quiet your mind. Try to focus on your breath, or repeat words or phrases to yourself like a mantra. Other things you can try might include yoga, hypnosis, or imagery work.
Creative outlets
Writing, art, music, or dance gives you the chance to express yourself in different ways. You don’t need any experience or skill to enjoy these and feel the benefit from them.
Sharing stories
Whether telling them or hearing them, stories about living with cancer can help people process their concerns and fears, and find meaning in the journey they’ve travelled.

Reducing stress

If you’re looking for ways to reduce stress, you can always talk to your doctor or nurse about it. Many survivors find one or some of the below to be really effective in managing stress too:

Exercise
Exercise is a known stress reducer and can help you feel less tense - whether you’ve had cancer or not, but particularly if you want to reduce post-treatment worry. Discuss with your doctor before you make an exercise plan, and take care not to overdo it and over-exert yourself. If you’re unable to walk, ask your healthcare practitioner about other types of exercise and movement that may be effective, like chair exercises or stretching.
Mind-body work
Meditation or deep relaxation techniques may help you lower stress by helping to quiet your mind. Try to focus on your breath, or repeat words or phrases to yourself like a mantra. Other things you can try might include yoga, hypnosis, or imagery work.
Creative outlets
Writing, art, music, or dance gives you the chance to express yourself in different ways. You don’t need any experience or skill to enjoy these and feel the benefit from them.
Sharing stories
Whether telling them or hearing them, stories about living with cancer can help people process their concerns and fears, and find meaning in the journey they’ve travelled.

Feelings of depression and anxiety

When you finish treatment, you might still feel angry, sad, anxious or tense. These feelings go away or lessen over time for most people, but for some, the emotions can become more present to the point that they can get in the way of day-to-day life. If it gets to this point, it might be that you’re dealing with depression.

asking for help

It’s important to ask for help when you need it. Talk with your doctor because if there is a suspicion you’re suffering with depression, they can direct you to the appropriate help or prescribe medication you may need. A lot of survivors find that getting help from therapists who have experience with both depression and cancer recovery to be really valuable.

You don’t have to face these feelings on your own.

Do you need help?

If you have any of the below signs and symptoms for more than 2 weeks, it’s a good idea to speak to your doctor about treatment. Some of these may be due to physical problems, this is why it’s important to talk about them with your doctor.

Emotional symptoms:

Worry, anxiety, or feelings of sadness that don’t go away
Emotional ‘numbness’
Feeling overwhelmed or out of control
Having problems with guilt or feeling unworthy
Helplessness or hopelessness
Moodiness, short-temper
Difficulty concentrating, or feeling absent-minded
Crying for a long time, or crying many times each day
Excessive focus on worries or problems
Not being able to get certain thoughts out of your mind
Inability to enjoy everyday things like food, music, or spending time with friends
Avoiding things that you know are harmless
Thoughts of harming or killing yourself

Physical symptoms:

Unexplained and unplanned weight gain or loss (but not due to your illness or treatment)
Sleep issues, e.g. not being able to sleep, nightmares, or sleeping too much
Racing heart, dry mouth, increased perspiration, upset stomach, diarrhea
Physically slowing down
Fatigue that doesn’t go away, headaches, or other aches and pains

Feeling anger

It happens really often that survivors find themselves feeling angry about having cancer, or about things that happened during their diagnosis or treatment journey. It might have been a bad experience with a health care provider, or being let down by an unsupportive relative or friend.

Feeling of anger are completely normal and can even be a motivating force for positive change. But holding onto anger without channeling or processing it can get in your way, preventing you from taking proper care of yourself or moving on from what you need to. If it’s possible, try to look at what’s causing your anger, and what you might be able to do to ease it a little. Journalling can be a great way to do this.

Feeling alone

After treatment ends, you might feel alone, missing the support you had when you were in regular communication with your care team. They can feel like a safety blanket that has now been pulled away from you – the professional care that can provide reassurance and comfort is suddenly not there. It’s very normal to feel a little lost without that.

It’s also completely normal to feel a bit distant or cut off from others, even the ones closest to you. Friends and family generally want to help, but they don’t always know how, and this can feel isolating. Some may be scared of the disease and practice avoidance to a degree. You yourself might even feel like people can’t really understand you.

Managing loneliness

There are things that you can do to make yourself feel less alone; ways you can replace the emotional support that you had in your care team:

Ask one of your doctors or nurses if it’s ok to call sometimes
You can stay connected from time to time, and this can help you feel less alone. Even if you never call - just knowing that you can may help.
Support services (over the phone or Internet)
Find new sources of support
You can lean on friends, family, other cancer survivors, clergy members or a counsellor – whoever can help you process your recovery.
Join a support group
Besides sharing your own story, a support group gives you the chance to hear what others have gone through and how other people have dealt with the same problems you may be facing. A support group may also help members of your family cope with their concerns

Learn more about support groups

Managing loneliness

There are things that you can do to make yourself feel less alone; ways you can replace the emotional support that you had in your care team:

Ask one of your doctors or nurses if it’s ok to call sometimes
You can stay connected from time to time, and this can help you feel less alone. Even if you never call - just knowing that you can may help.
Support services (over the phone or Internet)
Find new sources of support
You can lean on friends, family, other cancer survivors, clergy members or a counsellor – whoever can help you process your recovery.
Join a support group
Besides sharing your own story, a support group gives you the chance to hear what others have gone through and how other people have dealt with the same problems you may be facing. A support group may also help members of your family cope with their concerns

Learn more about support groups