Cancer leaves many wounds. And while we have a tendency to focus only on the physical effects that cancer causes, anyone who has battled cancer will tell you that the emotional scars can be just as jarring.

Beginning the first day you hear those words, “You have cancer,” the world as you knew it is suddenly turned upside down. In a matter of minutes, your mind races to comprehend the impact of the words you just heard. And for days afterward – and any number of long, sleepless nights – a thousand thoughts may come and go, along with a crushing cascade of emotions.

“Please, walk me down from the emotions of love and joy” – said no one ever. While there are as many chemical reactions in the body that equate to these positive, desirable emotions than there are to the negative, undesirable emotions of fear, anxiety, and stress, the point is that emotions are powerful influences that affect the state of our health.

Emotions Release Chemicals Throughout Your Body

The chemistry of emotions has been well researched. An article published in the International Journal for Modern Trends in Science and Technology describes emotions as “complex chemical reactions in the body’s nervous system characterized by neurophysiologic changes associated with thoughts and behavioral responses.” Put simply, emotions are made up of chemicals and are a direct result of the thoughts we think.

No one would want to be emotion-less, or without emotions, as they enrich our life experience. If we pay attention to our emotions, we can gain insight into how our body is translating the experiences we face. It is when there is a prolonged imbalance of negative emotions that our body may become overwhelmed and respond in a negative, unhealthy manner. Put another way, a preponderance of negative emotions results in a preponderance of chemical reactions that, over time, can damage the physical body.

One of the most obvious and easy-to-understand emotions–and its physical consequences–is the emotion of fear. Fear is a survival response. And fear is very physical. Fear begins when you perceive (in your mind) a threat. In order for your body to handle the perceived threat, myriad physiological responses happen within milliseconds:

• The amygdala (your middle brain) springs into action, alerting your nervous system with an all-hands-on-deck emergency alert;
• Cortisol, adrenaline, and other stress hormones are immediately released into your body;
• Your heart rate rises;
• Your blood pressure goes up;
• You breathe faster;
• And believe it or not, your blood flow changes direction – it flows away from your heart and into your extremities just in case you need to run fast to outdistance an enemy.

In other words, your body is preparing itself for fight-or-flight. It’s doing what it was designed to do. (5 Things You Never Knew About Fear)

The emotion of fear is all too real for cancer patients and it can continue for long periods of time. Depression is another emotion that cancer patients often experience. According to The National Cancer Institute (NCI), one in three cancer patients experience mental or emotional distress with a reported 42% percent of breast cancer patients and 41% of head and neck cancer patients leading the way. Also according to the NCI, 25% of cancer survivors experience symptoms of depression, 45% experience anxiety, and many also experience PTSD symptoms. Sadly, cancer survivors are 2x as likely to die by suicide.

Turning the Tables on Negative Emotions

So how do we deal with these emotions that are a very real reaction to the physical threat we face — the threat of cancer? In a fascinating study reported in the Clinical Journal of Oncology Nursing, mindfulness-based stress reduction was demonstrated to be a significant intervention for breast cancer survivors. Mindfulness simply refers to a practice that uses meditative and attention-directed exercises to minimize stress and increase awareness of the present.

The goal of mindfulness is to purposefully disengage from beliefs, thoughts, or emotions and to focus instead on the present moment. If you can teach yourself to detach yourself from the thoughts and emotions you are experiencing, you can discover a power you never even knew you had.

Another study, “Evidence for the Role of Mindfulness in Cancer: Benefits and Techniques” published by Cureus, researchers evaluated the effects of various mindfulness techniques on cancer patients. Their conclusions?

• Cancer-related sleep disorders: results indicated a notable decrease in insomnia and other sleep disturbances commonly experienced by cancer patients.
• Radiation therapy: participants who actively practiced Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) experienced significant improvement as compared with those who did not practice the technique.
• Mindfulness and the Immune Response: T-cells of participants in the group that participated in MBSR were more readily activated. These T-cells are the heroes of the immune system, effective in fighting cancer cells and other unwanted intruders.

Techniques used in Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) include:

• Practice Sitting Meditation: sit in a comfortable position and direct your full attention on the sensation of breathing.
• Perform Your Own Internal Body Scan: focus awareness on individual parts of your body.
• Practice Being Non-judgmental: pay full attention to whatever is occurring at the current moment, but do not judge it.
• Have Patience: accept the fact that events unfold in their own time.
• Develop a Beginner’s Mind: try to see everything as if it were happening for the first time.
• Trust Yourself: Learn to honor your feelings rather to suppress or distrust them.
• Avoid Striving Too Hard: practice having no goal other than meditation itself, accepting what thoughts come and go.
• Learn to Let Go: try not to hold onto, or reject your experience.
• Practice Kindness: practice being kind and warm in the face of difficulties while avoid being self-critical.
• Develop Your Innate Curiosity: investigate whatever appears in your experience, without automatic judgment.
• Develop the Art of Acceptance: practice being objective as you completely accept all thoughts, feelings, sensations, and beliefs that come and go in your mind’s process.

Start by steering your mind toward positive thoughts. It can take a little practice because the natural tendency is to stray from the thought at hand. When you notice your mind doing this – stop, breathe, focus, and redirect your thoughts. Allow yourself to envision a healthier body, a body without cancer.

In order to stay as positive as possible, you may find, as I did, that I needed to disengage from negative people that surrounded me and find like-minded people who encouraged me and understood what I was going through. If that is the case for you, too, realize that this may be an opportunity for you to give yourself permission to focus on what you need to fight the battle you’re fighting. And make no mistake – cancer is a battle. Why not try incorporating the art of mindfulness into your arsenal of cancer-fighting techniques?

Resources:

Reich RR, Lengacher CA, Alinat CB, Kip KE, Paterson C, Ramesar S, Han HS, Ismail-Khan R, Johnson-Mallard V, Moscoso M, Budhrani-Shani P, Shivers S, Cox CE, Goodman M, Park J. Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction in Post-treatment Breast Cancer Patients: Immediate and Sustained Effects Across Multiple Symptom Clusters. J Pain Symptom Manage. 2017 Jan;53(1):85-95. doi: 10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2016.08.005. Epub 2016 Oct 5. PMID: 27720794; PMCID: PMC7771358.

Liu H, Gao X, Hou Y. Effects of mindfulness-based stress reduction combined with music therapy on pain, anxiety, and sleep quality in patients with osteosarcoma. Braz J Psychiatry. 2019 Nov-Dec;41(6):540-545. doi: 10.1590/1516-4446-2018-0346. PMID: 31116262; PMCID: PMC6899366.

Witek Janusek L, Tell D, Mathews HL. Mindfulness based stress reduction provides psychological benefit and restores immune function of women newly diagnosed with breast cancer: A randomized trial with active control. Brain Behav Immun. 2019 Aug;80:358-373. doi: 10.1016/j.bbi.2019.04.012. Epub 2019 Apr 3. PMID: 30953776.

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