No one wants to rush to the emergency room, especially with a sick child. But when your gut is telling you it’s serious, there’s no time to waste. Decisions like this often need to be made quickly during great moments of anxiety and uncertainty. And the last thing on anyone’s mind is to pack a “Go Bag” for the Emergency Room. This is not the time to be thinking about toothbrushes or phone chargers as everyone scrambles to help with what’s most important at the time.
As a parent or caregiver, there’s nothing more gut wrenching than watching your child struggle with a cancer diagnosis. And of course, you want to do everything you can to help them. Thankfully, in addition to medical care, there are many valuable tools parents can use to help their children cope with cancer. And among them is a self-care plan.
Creating a plan with self-care strategies is a good way to help children feel emotionally and physically stronger. These strategies are particularly helpful for children when they are dealing with challenging situations like medical procedures or difficult treatments. A self-care plan empowers them to continue to be resilient and better able to handle future stressors. In fact, even practicing small self-care acts like deep breathing exercises can promote body and mind wellness and decrease stress.
A cancer diagnosis can be difficult, even exhausting to process. The treatment regimen is often physically and emotionally grueling. And it can be scary and overwhelming especially for kids. But research has found that putting pen to paper, or fingers to keyboard can be a powerful therapeutic tool. Journaling through cancer provides a vehicle for reflection and for sorting out one’s inner most thoughts. It’s a constructive way for your child to get feelings and emotions off their mind and onto paper. In fact, it can be an important part of self-care. Particularly as your child weaves through the uncertainty and fear that cancer characteristically fosters.
All kinds of people get cancer. Grandparents, uncles, neighbors, teachers and yes, even children. In fact, every year about 15,590 young people from birth to 19 years old will receive a cancer diagnosis in the United States. To put this in perspective, every day 47 families in the U.S. will learn that their child has cancer. And for those of us who receive this gut-wrenching news, life instantly changes as cancer catapults our child into their cancer journey.
Many a great musician have talked about the healing powers of music. For example, Prince described music as “healing.” He said that “Music holds things together.” And Elton John said, “Music has healing power. It has the ability to take people out of themselves for a few hours.” As can be seen by these comments, there’s no question, there are healing powers of music!
The moment the doctor utters the words, “Your child has cancer” your world is turned upside down. And what follows after the initial shock is stress. It can be extremely stressful for both you and your child as you try to comprehend the disease, the medical jargon and what lies ahead. But, it’s important to recognize that this stress is a normal reaction to the situation. As a matter of fact, there are ways to help manage childhood cancer stress.
Medical tests can be scary, no matter how old you are. And for kids with cancer, it’s really hard because tests and procedures are a large part of their cancer journey. But by properly preparing your child for medical tests you can help lower their anxiety and provide them with valuable coping skills.
Selecting an appropriate gift for a child with cancer can be tricky. It’s hard to know what they’d like or even be able to use when they’re not feeling well. And you certainly don’t want to buy something that is inappropriate or would make their situation worse. But don’t let this stop you from giving a gift for a child with cancer. You just need to do a little homework before choosing a gift.
While children with cancer during coronavirus face challenges such as increased social isolation, there is some good news. According to a study led by Andrew Kung, MD, PhD, Chair of MSK Kids and his colleagues at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer, children and teens with cancer are not at higher risk of being affected by COVID-19 than children without cancer. The research also shows that children with cancer who have COVID-19 often have mild symptoms like those of healthy children.
“Your child has cancer.” These words are probably the most frightening words a parent will ever hear. And amidst our own fears, is the equally daunting thought of talking with your child about cancer.
Talking with your child about cancer: why they need to know
It’s only natural to want to protect our children from the cancer and the fear that comes along with it. For this reason, it may be tempting to consider holding off talking with your child about cancer or even not telling him at all. But not telling the truth will only lead to problems later.
Kids usually know when something is wrong. They may not be feeling well or may wonder why they have so many medical visits. In fact, some children will create their own idea as to what they think is wrong. Not knowing what is wrong or what to expect may cause your child even more anxiety, stress, and fear. For this reason, being honest tends to lessen a child’s stress, guilt, and confusion.
