Hello all, newbie here so bare with me 
My mum has recently been given a cancer diagnosis and it has completely devastated me. I am already grieving a loss that may or may not happen on top of the stress, worry and anxiety of what is to come. I am 100% commited to supporting my mum all the way and thankfully she has a very loving husband (my dad) supporting her, amongst other family members.
Unfortunately I have a history of mental illness mainly depression and anxiety, of which seem to be triggered by traumatic life events. I am still recovering from a previous life event which felt like it had sent me to hell and back. I'm very concerned that I already feel like I'm drowning and that terrifies me as I need to be able to function to look after my children and work. I simply don't know how to process these types of things in a rational way. I feel like I'm falling off a cliff.
Does anybody have any advice?
Hi Zingy123 and welcome to the Macmillan Community but so sorry to hear about your mum’s cancer diagnosis.
A cancer diagnosis like this in the family can be such a challenging and stressful time but you may well fund that getting support from others who are dealing with the ‘exact same' support challenges can help a lot (I have an incredible cancer so I am on the other side of the cancer process).
The New to Community is like our reception desk where we look to direct you to the best part of the Community for you to get support. The Community is divided into dedicated Support Groups (Discussion Rooms) and when it comes to the practical and emotional challenges of supporting your mum and indeed yourself you may well benefit from joining and posting in our dedicated……
…..support group where you will connect with others navigating the exact same support challenges.
To connect with a group click on the “Bold Italic Link” I have created above then once the group page opens click on “Click to Join” when the black banner appears or “Join” under “Group Tools” (this all depends on the device you are using)
You can then put up your own post when you’re ready by clicking “+new” or “+” in the top right next to the group title. You can copy and paste the text from this post into your new post.
It is an emotional time supporting family so you might find this Macmillan information your feelings when someone has cancer helpful as well as this link getting help with your emotions.
The Macmillan Support Line open 8am-8pm (timings may differ across services) 7 days a week on 0808 808 00 00 is there to help you process all this.
This service provides cancer information, practical information, emotional support or just a listening ear.
We also have our Ask an Expert section but do allow 3 working days for a reply.
Talking to people face to face can be very helpful so do check to see if you have any Local Macmillan Support in your area, do also check for a local Maggie's Centre as these folks are amazing and support all the family.
Please do get back to me if you need further help navigating the community.
Hi Lily The pink I see it’s your first post so welcome to the community but sorry to hear about your challenges.
These are very specific questions related to your post treatment recovery…. and as I have a totally different type of cancer I don’t have any lived experience to help you out.
My first post of call in the early days was always to talk with my clinical team…… do you have contact details for a Cancer Nurse Specialists (CNS)?…. or the clinic?…., I would be calling them. You could call your GP surgery and explain how you are struggling.
But talking with other people who have walked the same journey can help so can I suggest that you click on the link below 
…… then once the group page opens click on “Click to Join” when the black banner appears or “Join” under “Group Tools” (this all depends on the device you are using)
The Lung Cancer support group is a safe place to talk to others with a similar diagnosis, treatment experience, to ask questions and get support.
When you are ready you can introduce yourself by clicking “+new” or “+” in the top right next to the group title. You can copy and paste the text from this post into your new post.
Do get back to me if you need further help navigating the community.
