planning for the future

Make plans for the future…if you make plans for the future then there is a future in your future! Wherever you may be in treatment, thinking positively about the future is the way to go. Your doctors and healthcare professionals are trained experts. By working closely with them on the best treatments available, you're doing what you can to get through your cancer experience.

The small things that you do every day to maintain your normal routine will help prepare for the bigger challenges you may have to face in the near or distant future. For instance, finishing high school so you can get into college takes time. It may take longer if you have missed school because of cancer.

You may feel overwhelmed by your concerns for the future, such as attending college. Have you had your heart set on going to college out of town? Are you wondering now if that will ever happen? Plenty of people have proven that your dreams don't have to come to an end because of cancer, but the "whens" and "hows" may need to be tweaked. It might take a little longer to get everything done in time to graduate, but just keep moving ahead one step at a time.

It’s okay to miss hanging out with your friends. Plan for the time when you'll be with them again by seeing it in your mind, then breathing deeply to relax. Try to accept that it may be awhile before things are the same as before your diagnosis. When you finally do get back to your life as it was before cancer, you may need to adjust some of your goals because of what you've been through. For example, someone that was into extreme skiing before they got sick may need to slow it down because their strength may take a while to return. But it can be done! Look at cyclist Lance Armstrong. He suffered from cancer and then went on to win the Tour de France five times! As inspirational as this is, you need to remember that people recover at different rates. However long it takes you to recover is exactly the correct amount of time!

The point is, know that you are not alone and that there is a future that will be rewarding. Of course, you didn't ask for this challenge, but once you're in it, there are always things you can do to make a difference.

Thanks to Ernest Katz, Ph.D., Julia Challinor, RN, Ph.D., MA. ED., and Mitch Golant, Ph.D. for their permission to use and adapt the above information.