Hi everyone!
I was reading through your archives as I have been looking for some advice
on how to help my 66 year old Mum.
She is a very strong lady, but was diagnosed with cancer just before
Christmas (this is a woman who has never had a sick day in her life) She
handled it very well, then the second blow came a few weeks after her
surgery when it was discovered that my Dad has terminal cancer...again she
"seemed" to handle it fairly well. shortly after this she was told her
cancer was of an aggressive type and she would have to have chemotherapy,
not just the radiation as she had originally been told. She did 2.5 months
of the chemo and then quit before she was finished as she had become very
ill...
My question for this wonderfully knowledgable group, is the last time I took
her for treatment, she mentioned having what I can only think are panic
attacks...she said she gets physical symptoms and has these overwhelming
feelings of fear that are quite immobilizing...she said she sometimes wakes
up finding herself in this state. Or she will be just reading and it comes
over her, she hasnt been thinking of anything in particular...
I wonder if anyone here might have some suggestions as to how I can help
her? the "right" things to say, ideas to help, or if anyone might know why
she is suddenly having these (other than the overwhelming circumstances in
her life)...could the chemo drugs possibly be heightening her anxiety? She
has never before, to my knowledge experienced these types of things...
Thanks so much for any help you can offer me...
You all seem like a really wonderful kind and caring group of people...
May you all have a beautiful day.
Anne
mailto:desone@...