I finished my chemotherapy almost a year ago. I was happy, positive and welcomed a great grandson last year. I've gone from feeling really good and looking forward to life, to feeling sad and thinking about dying all the time. Has anyone gone through this and came out positively?
Hi LesleyH.
I am sorry you are feeling this way. It’s so hard to feel normal again after going through cancer treatment. I think a delayed reaction is quite common. I have metastatic cancer and one of the most emotionally difficult times for me was when I first reached remission. The fear of recurrence, the horrors of what had endured playing constantly through my mind, the expectation of everyone that I should be back to normal. The arrival of new life into your family is also in an odd way a reminder of the passing of time for you. It would be easy to trot out the usual platitudes of going out, getting exercise, doing things you enjoy. Maybe you would benefit from some counselling or similar? Our help pages have some information about moving on after treatment and also links to local services. If there is a MacMillan centre or a Maggie’s at your hospital you might find support there. I found a mindfulness course was really helpful.
www.macmillan.org.uk/.../after-treatment
Macmillan Support Line - 0808 808 00 00, 7 days a week between 8am-8pm
I am a Macmillan volunteer.
I have metastatic Triple Negative Breast Cancer, in remission
