“…mind-body therapy includes talk therapy, moderate daily exercise, massage, supplementation, and Martin Seligman’s “explanatory style” and the study of positive psychology…”
A diagnosis of an incurable blood cancer, multiple myeloma, brings a host of negative emotions- sorrow, fear, anxiety and on and on.
Yet your oncologist will usually prescribe only therapies to manage your physical symptoms. But what about your mental symptoms? What about mind-body therapy?
The definition of mind-body therapy in cancer care is broad and deep. Perhaps too broad and deep. Most people suspect that the mind plays a role in cancer care but the problem has always been that medical science refuses to study and understand this role. Myeloma patients, survivors and caregivers are left to their own thoughts and feelings about how their mind might play a role in their cancer care.
My own myeloma survivor journey into mind-body therapy and my cancer has run the gamut over the past 25 plus years from:
- talk therapy,
- moderate daily exercise,
- massage,
- nutritional supplementation, to
- and Martin Seligman’s “explanatory style” and the study of positive psychology (I’m not a cheerful person…).
Like most of my therapy history I have tried lots and lots of things. Though I still exhibit symptoms of PTSD and OCD.
I manage my multiple myeloma pretty well. Like nutrition, supplementation and other lifestyle therapies that I pursue on a daily basis, I consider mind-body therapy to be essential and just one more aspect of what MM survivors need for long term health.
I am not a psychologist nor a psychiatrist. Not by a long-shot. But I am a myeloma survivor. Each and every blog post linked below is a therapy to manage my mental health that I’ve written about in hopes that a newly diagnosed myeloma patient would benefit from it.
Is my mental health back to normal? Am I cured? No. But my mind-body therapies linked below help me manage each and every health challenge I live with. The blog posts linked below represent more than 15 years of research and writing about this essential topic.
I am both a long-term MM survivor of and a MM cancer coach. To learn more about evidence-based but non-conventional therapies like mind-body therapy, scroll down the page, post a question or a comment and I will reply to you ASAP.
Thank you,
David Emerson
- Cancer Survivor
- Cancer Coach
- Director PeopleBeatingCancer
Recommended Reading:
“Cancer-related post-traumatic stress (PTS) is a lot like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) but not as severe.
Patients have a range of normal reactions when they hear they have cancer. These include:
- Repeated frightening thoughts.
- Being distracted or overexcited.
- Trouble sleeping.
- Feeling detached from oneself or reality.
Patients may also have feelings of shock, fear, helplessness, or horror. These feelings may lead to cancer-related post-traumatic stress (PTS), which is a lot like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). PTSD is a specific group of symptoms that affect many survivors of stressful events. These events usually involve the threat of death or serious injury to oneself or others. People who have survived military combat, natural disasters, violent personal attack (such as rape), or other life-threatening stress may suffer from PTSD. The symptoms for PTS and PTSD are a lot alike, but most cancer patients are able to cope and don’t develop full PTSD. The symptoms of cancer-related PTS are not as severe and don’t last as long as PTSD.
Cancer-related PTS can occur anytime during or after treatment.
Patients dealing with cancer may have symptoms of post-traumatic stress at any point from diagnosis through treatment, after treatment is complete, or during possible recurrence of the cancer. Parents of childhood cancer survivors may also have post-traumatic stress.
“Summary: For the first time, researchers have shown that practicing mindfulness meditation or being involved in a support group has a positive physical impact at the cellular level in breast cancer survivors…”
“Aromatherapy, yoga, and other methods used in cancer care to improve the mind’s capacity to affect bodily functions and symptoms.
“Spirituality isn’t limited to religious tradition. It can also include meditation, mindfulness, and related practices that help us connect with the moment and with others. Cancer can be a challenging and demanding experience for patients and their families. For many people, spirituality or faith provides a source of support and comfort in this time.”
