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Health & Wellbeing Ideas

We know that there are countless published data highlighting the psychological burden of cancer but we also know that even the idea of having cancer or going through the process of investigations to rule out cancer can cause a high level of stress and anxiety. I too, was referred to the dermatology department under the two week wait cancer referral pathway (UK) to rule out a possible skin cancer in late 2018. Whilst I was 100% convinced it was not malignant, I had clearly noticed prominent changes to a longstanding mole on my hand over the last few months. For my peace of mind, I therefore wanted a second opinion and went to see my own GP, who agreed it would be reasonable to be referred onwards.

Fortunately, as I thought, it turned out to be a benign (i.e. non-cancerous) lesion but reflecting back on my own feelings and emotions throughout this time, there were two striking things I noticed (and that’s not to mention that doctors really don’t make good patients!). One was that there was some reluctance on my part to actually see my GP. Notwithstanding my busy working schedule as a GP myself, the time delays of managing to book a routine appointment and the fact that I wasn’t convinced this was actually something sinister, I now ask myself, ‘Was there an element of fear about the possible diagnosis of cancer even on an unconscious level and hence my delay in seeking medical advice?’. Quite possibly. Secondly, as one would imagine, I did some basic research on skin cancers the day before my appointment but remember having a brief moment of anxiety where it crossed my mind to think, ‘But what if?’. I am sure these feelings are not unique to me and after all, medical professionals are human beings as well.

Clearly, for the cancer survivor, the psychological effects are likely to be far greater as there will be times where you may think ‘What if it recurs?’ and needless to say, there are numerous studies linking cancer with anxiety and depression. Of course, the stakes are even higher if you have just been diagnosed with cancer where floods of emotions and worries on many levels will likely be present. I do believe, however, that if you are someone who can keep a positive mindset and sustain a high level of emotional and physical resilience even in the face of adversity, this will enable you to manage stress and anxiety better and therefore, allow you to make smarter decisions. This in turn will improve your general wellbeing and hopefully lead to better outcomes, wherever you are on that cancer-free journey. Focus on what you have in the present moment and set this as your baseline and look forwards, rather than focusing on what you do not have and dwell on the past.

Many of the links here are aimed at enhancing your inner strength and to focus on the (positive) mindset; hopefully, some will be motivational, others inspirational. Dedicating time to this will be a worthwhile investment to improving your general health but will also likely change the way you interact with the outside world and possibly give you a new direction and dimension to your life. You should then be able to focus on what really matters to you. Whilst there are various resources, TED talks for example are an exceptional resource where they have some truly amazing speakers (you can even make a playlist).

Aspects of Health and Wellbeing

There are a lot of topics that can be part of Health & Wellbeing. Here, I have broken them down into nine sections for easy viewing but some of the other topics are also covered in the Cancer Prevention Research and what I have called, The ‘Feeling Good’ Factor (both shown below).