Cancer is a very common non-communicable disease. Millions of people in the world get diagnosed with cancer each year. According to Cancer Index’s latest report, 148,000 people are diagnosed with cancer each year in Pakistan alone. Apart from this, a whopping 101,000 die battling cancer.
Cancer’s treatment is a long and tiring process. It involves regular visits with a cancer specialist who might either suggest chemotherapy or surgery. If it comes to surgery, a long cycle of consultations with a cancer surgeon starts followed by complicated surgeries.
All of these visits to hospitals lead to severe depression among cancer patients. In many cases, the patients might lose their will to live. In this article, we are rounding up some tips to handle cancer-related depression.
- Stop obsessing over the disease
Cancer is a long-term illness which can turn fatal. It is also known to be unpredictable, which means that the doctors can do everything right and still it might get worse. This realization that cancer can drive one to the door of death is enough to trigger severe depression.
The treatment of cancer is another reason that around 80-90% of cancer patients suffer from depression. Long chemo sessions along with frequent surgeries are bound to take a toll on a person’s mental health.
The worst part is that all the fears of a cancer patient are rational and there is no way around it. In such a situation the only way to make life better is to stop obsessing over the disease. Yes, your life might depend upon the course your disease takes but your life does not have to be consumed by it.
You should let the medicines do their work and in the meantime, you should focus on the better things in life and cherish them. A good way to do that is to ask a trusted family member to make medical decisions on your behalf and keep you updated.
Although it is important to keep track of major developments in your treatment but it does not mean that you have to spend your days engulfed in medical reports.
- Prepare for the worst part
During the course of treatment of cancer, chemotherapy is the worst for a patient’s mental health. The good part is that chemo sessions are scheduled beforehand which means you can get yourself mentally ready.
In the days leading up to a chemo session, you should try and cheer yourself up by surrounding yourself with people you love. You can also indulge in food and other comforts of life so that you can take the day of the session as a bad day instead of a bad life.
- Medication
Depression at the end of the day is a disease and thus can be treated like one. If you feel yourself plunging deep into the depression, you can ask your doctor to refer you to a psychiatrist. The psychiatrist, in turn, can then prescribe you with some medication that is bound to help you tackle cancer-related depression.
Cancer is a hard ailment. It takes a heavy physical toll on a person’s health. Depression in such a physically vulnerable time can be very dangerous as it can lead to suicidal tendencies. If a family member or a loved one is fighting the battle of depression, you should make sure that they are coping well. In the end, it is the support of loved ones that pulls people through such hard times.
————
This article was produced in partnership with oladoc.com, a digital health company in Pakistan. Using oladoc, you can find the best cancer specialists in Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad and book an appointment online.
