There is an invisible gap between the cancer disease and our spiritual structure; But there is a bond that has proven to be quite strong. Before we start talking about this relationship, it would be more accurate to talk about the literal meaning of cancer.
Cancer as the literal meaning; It is explained as "malignant tumors that become evident by the irregular division and proliferation of cells in a tissue or an organ." There are many different types of cancer, and if they are not detected and treated early, the results can unfortunately be fatal.
Although there are many encouraging medical developments regarding cancer; It is not enough for people to get rid of the fear of getting cancer or the intense fear they experience when they are diagnosed with cancer. A patient diagnosed with cancer first reacts with shock and disbelief. The next stage is; "why me?" phase. The patient cannot find this disease suitable for him and may rebel internally. May experience intense feelings of anger. For this reason, it is recommended that the patient be prepared psychologically and then given this news by accurate, knowledgeable and competent people. When this news is given, the patient may suddenly become silent, cry, or start asking questions hastily. The important thing here is to never suppress these reactions of the patient, to allow the patient to experience his emotions and to make him feel that you are with him. Sentences hurriedly recited in order to comfort can often make the patient feel that they are not understood and cause the feeling of anger to intensify.
After the shock phase, the anger phase begins. Depression is one of the most common psychological problems observed during this period. Because the patient goes through many tests and examinations. Many interventions are made to his body. The thing that fundamentally scares a person the most is the deterioration of body integrity, and cancer patients experience this very clearly. This uncertainty and anxiety about the future and life are effective factors in the emergence of anger.
The last stage is the acceptance stage. The person has accepted the disease and concentrated all his spiritual strength on its treatment. The patient feels more hopeful about his treatment. It has a more positive structure.
In all these stages The patient's medical, psychological and social support must be abundant and correct. To briefly talk about the effects of psychological support on cancer treatment; The cancer patient's self-image is damaged and this damage to his psychological structure must be repaired. Psychological support will enable the patient to become aware of his/her self-worth again, to cope with the negative emotions such as anger, irritability, hopelessness and anxiety that arise with the disease, and to focus all his/her attention on his/her treatment. Many studies have shown that psychological support has serious positive effects on treatment and survival.
Apart from all this, it would not be wrong to say that cancer is a family disease. After the patient is diagnosed, family members also suffer serious devastation. Psychological support plays an important role in this difficult process for patients' relatives who fear losing their loved ones. Relatives of the patient tend to hide all their negative emotions, especially in the presence of the patient. It is necessary to reveal the suppressed emotions in a suitable environment, with the help of an expert and with the help of the right techniques, and to ensure that the patient's relative is able to cope with these emotions.
The main issues that psychologists can support in cancer are providing counseling about the disease, enabling the patient to reveal and recognize his emotions, responding to the spiritual needs of both the patient and his relatives, ensuring that he can cope with the stress and anxiety that arise during the treatment process, chemotherapy and We can say that it is to support patient compliance in major cancer treatments such as radiotherapy.
In cancer, psychological support is as important as who gets this support. Not every psychologist is competent to work with cancer patients. Cancer is a completely different field of expertise, and psychologists working in this field specialize in psycho-oncology. As in every subject, it is best to start with an expert professional in this field.
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