Hi all: I am sending all of you good vibes for all the scans coming up. I vote for distraction. I usually do something i really wanted to do and get lost in the moment. The next thing you know.. My mind "forgets" about the upcoming test.
Great advise! I have been cancer-free for 2.5 yrs after a stage 4 colon cancer diagnosis. Scanxiety is very real and can really wreak havoc on a person. I love nature, animals, and photography so I take long hikes with my camera all the days leading up to the scan. The closer I get to nature the calmer I get. I also get copies of my scans as soon as they are ready. If I had an oncologist who told me I wasn't allowed to see the results before him/her, I'd find a new oncologist! Waiting for those results causes unnecessary stress that I don't need.
Hi, I'm Sonia from LiveSTRONG. Just wanted to let you know how much I enjoy articles. I'll be thinking of you on Friday and saying a little extra prayer for a good report. Continued blessings!
When I had to have the MRI after my breast cancer diagnosis I was a wreck I don't even ride elevators if I don't have to scaling flights of stairs is my preference...so I knew without a doubt that I would not be able to make it through w/o a little help and I decided that while I was not sure I would be awake to come out of the machine it was better than the alternative. I had them play my favorite Sirrus XM station in my ears and there was a mirror that reflected the outside. The medication helped significantly. But now my anxiety is another surgery....that is something that I knew with reconstruction of the breast I would have to do but now that it is here well.....I had to have it postponed due to a root canal which is a whole other anxiety..LOL...I just don't like being so confined I guess. But I find that I have a great support system and while I try to give my pat answer of "i'm okay" when asked I find that perhaps I need to be more honest with some people. Not ALL people....Thank you so much for your blogs. It helps so much to hear and comment with others who know what you are experiencing.
Late after-effects of chemo have lead to several scans of my brain and a sometime there- sometime not - pituitary tumor. I can 'stay in the moment', really well, until 24 hours before the scan. Then, I become a ball of electric anxiety which everyone can feel; especially me! I then turn on meditations. Either my own, on Soundcloud.com under Yoga Being or someone elses. I listen to soothing guided meditations and rest and breathe. On the day of the scan, I ask that my husband be able to come in with me and rub my feet. I use wax earplugs, bring a lavender eye mask and I do diaphragmatic breathing. When it's over, I practice meeting each negative thought with the opposite positive one. I've learned that if something is there, it has been there, and I will deal with it. I have a strong spiritual connection, good friends, yoga and meditation and two young dogs to keep me grounded.