If you’ve recently been diagnosed with cancer, you have had to deal with shock and even grief, Now it’s time to become a fighter. Here are some tips to help you deal with your illness and continue to enjoy life.
Chemotherapy can damage the body in many ways. One key to remaining healthy throughout your treatment is to keep your weight stable and your immune system strong. If you are losing weight, eat calorie-rich, sugar-free foods. Also use foods and vitamins to boost your immune system, such as vitamin C, garlic and tomatoes.
Keeping your weight on point with the right diet does more than let you feel great, it also has been shown to lower the risk of cancer. Mix your diet with a good deal of fresh fruits and vegetables to put a nice bow on your daily routine. These little changes can make a huge difference in your well-being.
Quit smoking immediately if you have cancer. Smokers with cancer often think that quitting is pointless since they are sick anyway. However, the chemicals that are contained within the cigarette will impede your recovery process.
Aside from talking to your close friends, family members, and your doctor, you should also try to talk to other cancer patients. Those who have had first hand experience with cancer will know better than anyone else what you are going through and they can offer support and share experiences to help you through.
There is always a chance that a mammogram won’t be able to spot any tumor, so a manual breast inspection is in order if you want thorough results. A skilled mammogram technician should also be skilled at giving a manual exam and also skilled in showing you how to give yourself a breast exam.
A great way for cancer survivors to deal and to know what lies ahead is to network with other survivors. There are plenty of cancer survivors in the world, thankfully, and they meet up at support groups and even on internet forums, so you can always keep in contact with other survivors.
Whether you are healthy or stricken with cancer, the worst thing you can do is smoke. Do not smoke under any circumstances. Smoking is a known cause of cancer with 100s of carcinogens in a cigarette. Not only that, smoking can exacerbate cancer and its symptoms and make it worse.
When you’re dealing with cancer, you’ll have to let a great deal of new people into your life. In addition to doctors, nurses and medical assistants who help attack your physical disease, you’ll need people who provide support and empathy, so that you don’t develop depression or other mental problems along with the cancer. You can’t do this alone; be ready to allow people into your life to help.
Cancer doesn’t have to take root in your brain in order to play tricks on your mind, so always remember to keep fantasy and reality separated from one another. You will begin to feel as if you’re sleepwalking and dreaming while you’re awake during your bout with chemo. Keep your mind focused and simply ignore the “weirdness.”
Many people suffering with cancer also have post-traumatic stress disorder, commonly known as PTSD. If you notice that you have any of the symptoms of PTSD, you should immediately get help from a professional. Symptoms of PTSD include aversion to people or places, flashbacks of events, irrational fears, and changes in your sleep patterns.
More than anything, the biggest key you’ve learned throughout these tips is that you have to want to get better. Even if it’s only implied and not directly addressed, the motivation and will to succeed is what will propel you past this enemy. Along with the right information, you can be a winning fighter in any scenario.
