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Dealing with my feelings

Good to know

People with cancer experience better and worse times. Especially challenging are follow-up visits after cancer treatments or the news that the disease cannot be cured (any more). Such news is drastic and can turn lives upside down.

Your daily life is also influenced by changing emotions. People affected by cancer and those close to them may react with anger, sadness, despair, fear, withdrawal or symptoms of depression. They ask themselves many questions to which there are no answers. For example: "Why me?

In all phases of cancer, your quality of life should be at the centre of your concerns. Various professionals can help you maintain the best possible quality of life by treating your problems and providing support. The recommendations in this flyer are designed to help you manage your emotions more effectively.

You feel...
Or you notice...
What you can do for yourself...
You feel...
Or you notice...

  • You accept your situation

  • You are sometimes afraid when you think about your future

  • Some days you feel exhausted and unmotivated

    What you can do for yourself...

    • Take care of your body. Plan rest periods during the day.

    • Take advantage of the days when you feel well to do activities that you enjoy (e.g. going for a walk, going to the cinema, meeting people you trust).

    • Try not to be alone with your anxieties on difficult days.

    • Express your feelings, worries and questions to those close to you so that they can support you.

       

    You feel...
    Or you notice...

    • You are often sad, even angry

    • You feel like you've lost your bearings

    • You sometimes find it hard to concentrate on an activity or a conversation

    What you can do for yourself...

    • Consider joining a discussion group so that you can talk to other people in a similar situation.

    • Talk to trusted members of your treatment team about your feelings, concerns and questions.

    • Contact the Cancer League in your canton or the Cancer HelpLine for support.

       

       

    You feel...
    Or you notice...

    • You can't concentrate on an activity or a conversation

    • You can't sleep at night

    • You feel desperate or hopeless

    • You panic at times

       

    What you can do for yourself...

    • Contact the treatment team.

    Tips

    Psycho-oncology support

    The announcement of bad news and the emotional shock that accompanies it may not be possible to overcome without the help of a specialist. Psycho-oncologists can help you and those close to you to deal with the emotions you are experiencing by offering you counselling Ask your treatment team for a recommendation.

    Exchanges with other people concerned

    Discussion groups (www.selbsthilfeschweiz.ch)

    Peer to peer services of the Cancer League: Stakeholder Council

    Support from a palliative care team

    When treatment is aimed at relieving symptoms rather than curing the disease, palliative care offers an approach that enables the best possible quality of life to be maintained. Specialist palliative care teams also support and care for cancer patients at home.

    Further information on this topic

    Brochures of the Swiss Cancer League:

    You can download the flyer as PDF here

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