Anxiety wearing mask for radiotherapy

Hi and welcome to the community. 
The one most helpful thing that most people find is to have eyeholes cut in the mask. 
Another thing is to organise a music playlist on a cd and take that in for the team to play while treatment is given. Most centres are happy to do this. Maybe he can work on imagining a favourite walk or movie. Something like that as a tactic to take his mind elsewhere. Personally I am a gadget freak and just watched the head move round me and see how the beam changed. But then I’m weird. 
See if any of this helps 

Hi

My son was diagnosed with cheek and jaw cancer in April and had to have CT and MRI scans.  He was ok with the CT scan, but was too anxious for the MRI scan.  His GP prescribed Diazapam for him.  He took this before the rescheduled MRI scan and he was ok.  He had surgery to remove the tumour and bone was taken from his leg to rebuild his jaw.  Once he had recovered sufficiently from the surgery he had his mask made, which he found quite difficult, as Dani has said, eyeholes cut in the mask are helpful, but did take the Diazapam beforehand.  He then had 2 x 8hr sessions of chemotherapy followed by 33 sessions of radiotherapy.  The first couple of radiotherapy sessions he did take diazapam beforehand, but he then managed the radiotherapy sessions without taking anything.  He is still having some problems and just before Christmas he had an emergency MRI and he managed that without taking anything.  Best thing to tell your partner is to try to relax and focus on something he enjoys, maybe sitting on the beach or perhaps he likes sitting fishing, whatever activity makes him happy and relaxed.  That's what the family told our son.  He had a cruise booked for next year with his wife and children, so we told him to think about that while having the radiotherapy and scan.  Your partner will find the nursing staff helpful and understanding, I know that has been the case with my son.  Good luck to your partner, it's not easy but there are relaxation exercises he can do to help.  Please keep us updated, everyone on here is so helpful.  Hope you manage to have a good New Year.  

Macfarlane 

If it helps, being a bit claustrophobic I was anxious about it at first too but found that ‘counting’ really helped. I worked out that if I breathed slowly and deeply I took about 20 breaths each minute.  They’d told me that I’d be clipped down on the machine for 7 minutes, (even though only 2 minutes of that was the actual radiotherapy),  and they were spot on. So on the day, by the time I’d counted to 150 the radiographers were always back in the room unclipping me. I even prepared myself in the bath in the days leading up to treatment by putting a little clock on the side, lying back with a wet flannel on my face and taking 150 slow breaths.  When I got to 75 I knew I was on the home straight.

Also, like Dani, I asked for eyeholes to be cut out so I could see the machine doing its stuff. To be honest it wasn’t nearly as bad as I’d expected and by the end of the first week I had almost no anxiety and just thought  ‘Thank god for this machine. It’s saving my life!’

Hi Welcome to our small community group I had 35 radiotherapy sessions. What i did before treatment started  I used to lie on my own bed at home and set timer for 12 minutes which was approx the time treatment took. Then I would visualise a favourite bike ride corner by corner including coffee stops  where I would go through the motions in my head. I had several ones planned along with favourite walks. I also made my own playlist uo as my centre did have  c d players. I also had eyes cut out like I I used to watch the linear accelerators whirl round. 
practise yoga breathing as well with him breathe in hold for count of 7 then slowly exhale. All the above worked for me. 
plys untamed my mask and spoke to her every session thanked her for saving my life. Now she hangs in the garage snd came to our Ruby wedding party as without her u wouldn’t have been here to celebrate. She was a life saver. 
Hope this helps 

Hazel

Thank you so much.  I will contact the hospital and see whether they have facility to play a CD or he could take in a bluetooth speaker for his phone.

Many thanks. He has been prescribed Lorazepam so hopefully that will help and then perhaps as was the case with your son he won't need it for all the sessions.  Visualising a holiday sounds like a lovely idea.  My best wishes to you and your son.  

Thank you - that is such a good idea to calculate the amount of breaths and relate it to the time for the treatment. Good to hear that the anxiety was temporary.   All my best wishes to you.

Thank you so much for the tips.  We are going to find some yoga breathing exercises this week and practice them.  I think having music or spoken word will help as well.  I so love that you befriended your mask and took her to your Ruby wedding party.   We will have been together 30 years later this year maybe we will have the mask as a guest too!  All my best wishes.

Most do play music. Mine had a video screen on the ceiling too but out of reach of my line of vision. 
Speakers won’t be allowed I’m afraid. I think Hazel left her earrings in one day, the radiographers missed them but the alarm on the Linac sure didn’t.

Hi  no speakers or ear buds will be allowed like a Dani said my earring s were left in accidentally. Wow I had never heard an alarm like it   It was purely my fault I ws too just chatting. Needless to say they didn’t get put back in until treatment had finished. They staff will talk to you during treatment usually just ask. Like I said I took my own c ds and donated them to the unit afterwards. 
I made my own playlists ip snd put on cds. yes venizia has I called her was an honoured guest. 
Hazel x