How I Managed Social Anxiety After Breast Cancer

The lady with the sultry voice on the navigation system in our car announces that we will arrive at our final destination in 5 minutes. Suddenly and quite unexpectedly, my heart starts to pound and I begin to sweat. I silently try to calm myself down but after a minute or two of trying, I turn to my husband and say, “Dan, I’m not sure …

Responding to Questions and Comments About Breast Cancer

Your own head is spinning with a breast cancer diagnosis and you have doctors to see, procedures to endure, and decisions to make about your treatment. You may have worries about how you’ll manage your family, your career, and all the responsibilities of your life. You need to find ways to tell your family, your loved ones, possibly children, and close friends. The last thing …

Genetic Testing and Your Family Relationships

With the approach of Mother’s Day in the United States in May, followed soon after by Father’s Day, our thoughts often turn to our grandparents and parents, aunts and uncles. If your family has experienced multiple cases of breast cancer and possibly other types of cancer, you also may be thinking about your health history — and whether or not your family members might be …

Our Friends Respond: About 80% Have PTSD Symptoms After Diagnosis

A study published in March validated what many people diagnosed with breast cancer have felt: Over 80% of women experience post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms after an early-stage breast cancer diagnosis. One year after diagnosis, almost 60% of those women still experience symptoms.

If you’ve been newly diagnosed with breast cancer, you may feel like your emotions are on a rollercoaster, swooping from scared to …

Mixed Feelings During the Holidays?

Most families are more of a mixed bunch of emotions than we see in the photo of matching outfits and happy smiles on holiday cards. Life cannot be photo-shopped, so in our own lives we see what really happens when the camera is off.

The holidays bring a mix of happiness and stress, hopefulness and memories, and mixed emotions for many of us. All of …