We All Need Somebody to Lean On …
The journey of post-treatment cancer brings challenges and opportunities. Minutes, days, months, and sometimes years after the completion of cancer treatment, feelings of loss involving the end of actively responding to the disease are common. Usually a significant amount of time and energy has been spent going to appointments and treatments so that when the endeavor to obliterate those rogue cells ends,you can feel strange and empty. Having something to do in the face of life-threatening illness is oddly comforting, even in its horrendousness. The support team of doctors, nurses, technicians, family, and friends are present while you’re in the eye of the storm, and being held by that support team, as well as feeling a sense of power in fighting for your life, creates a sense of purpose. There is a feeling of being watched; your surveillance team is on high alert. You feel an odd sense of safety. Then you are suddenly cut loose, still carrying the lingering physical and emotional effects of your diagnosis and treatment, as you embark on another phase of your life.
There is power in connection and community. Resources and information not only help you in pragmatic ways but help you feel less isolated as you find your way. Here are several links to online resources that may be of help to you.
Cure Today http://www.curetoday.com/community
Women’s Cancer Resource Center www.wcrc.org
Stupid Cancer – for young people dealing with cancer www.stupidcancer.org
