Winning the Fight against Cancer-Related Fear and Anxiety

There are few diagnoses that are as anxiety-provoking as the dreaded phrase "You have cancer." Worry, fear and depression are some of the most dominant psychological challenges associated with a cancer diagnosis, which can cause physiological changes to the body; irritability, headaches, sweating, difficulty concentrating/breathing or sleeping, and trembling, as well as gastrointestinal discomfort and increased blood pressure are just some of the many very real physical symptoms of anxiety.

For cancer patients in particular, severe anxiety that goes untreated can be extremely debilitating, seriously impacting his/her daily life and recovery efforts. Cancer medications, which can trigger anxiety and other serious side effects, can exacerbate the situation. For some, the emotional weight is detrimental to the patient's very survival when the anxiety becomes overwhelming and interferes with cancer treatment. For survivors, learning to accept body changes, scheduling follow-up tests, returning to work and post traumatic stress present new areas of anxiety.

Neurofeedback brain-wave training is a helpful tool for patients who are in the throes of cancer treatment, or survivors who are rebuilding their lives. Retraining the brain through non-drug operant conditioning helps enable the production of healthy, normal brain-wave patterns that help reduce the feeling of anxiety and improve the quality of life. In addition, studies have shown neurofeedback to be helpful with other conditions commonly experienced with cancer treatment including "chemo brain," chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy and insomnia.

Neurofeedback can help relieve anxiety so that you can explore all possibilities to achieve healing. Mindful meditation, psychotherapy and support groups like Healing Boobies are other avenues to recovery. Contact our office to learn more about neurofeedback training for cancer patients, and visit www.healingboobies.com to join our international support group of breast cancer thrivers.