Cancer Story - Karen
Karen was invited to Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centre by a friend before her cancer surgery, and she was being introduced about the cancer support services provided by the Center. When Karen walked into the distinctive building which is different from the hospital setting, the beautiful environment made her feel very comfortable. Even so, Karen was not familiar with the new environment and felt a bit heavy and upset. After coming to Maggie’s Centre again to meet with the staff and participated in some activities, the unfamiliar feelings disappeared gradually. Since then, every time when Karen walked into the Center, she felt cozy and enjoyed the healing atmosphere.
Karen was very scared and worried after she heard a lot about the terrible conditions caused by other cancer treatments. Fortunately, she had visited Maggie’s Centre before her other treatments started. When she had any doubts and discomfort, she came to the Centre to seek advices from the nurses who could give her correct and practical information. With the support of Maggie’s Center, Karen was psychologically well prepared with sufficient knowledge for the circumstances that she may face. Consequently, even Karen felt uncomfortable during the treatment, the situation was much better than expected.
Karen believed that psychological stress was more disturbing than physical suffering. As a cancer patient, she kept worrying about whether she was physically fit for continuing the treatment and cancer recurrence. All kinds of uncertainties made her suffer from many sleepless nights and tremendous mental stress.
Activities provided by Maggie’s Centre helped Karen a lot. For example, she felt physically and mentally relaxed after joining the Aromatherapy Workshops; her insomnia was also greatly reduced after participating in the Relaxation Therapy. The Chinese Nutrition Talk gave her the confidence to choose the food she liked so that she could enjoy each meal more and the quality of her life was improved. In the Music Therapy Well-being Group Karen could express her emotions freely. She not only made new friends there but also renewed her self-understanding unexpectedly. 'I like "Mediation" very much! It helped clarify my mind and relieve my emotions effectively. I am so fortunate to receive my cancer treatments at Tuen Mun Hospital as Maggie’s Centre is close by. Every time I went to the hospital for follow-up consultation, I could also visit the Centre to take care of my emotions.' Karen said. All in all, although Karen has to face different issues and distress, Maggie’s Centre had provided her timely support when needed. Apart from the medical treatments in the hospital, the Centre’s support to Karen did enhance her physical and mental well-being.
'Maggie’s Centre not only provided support for cancer patients, but also for their carers!' Karen’s husband, Jack said. As a family member, Jack certainly faced a lot of pressure. He tried hard to search lots of information hopefully to help take care of Karen. However, as he was inexperienced and not a professional, Karen can hardly completely rely on those information and sometimes Jack might feel quite helpless. Subsequently, Jack and Karen came to Maggie’s Centre to meet the professional team. they learned practical information and knowledge there which helped them to build up confidence in facing issues of the illness. To Jack, the stress of being a cancer carer was greatly reduced.
Even though it is hard to accept being diagnosed with cancer, Karen learns to face it positively. She understands that cancer patients will encounter various uncertainties, but she encourages them not to worry too much. For medical treatments, just leave it to the hands of the medical professionals. In dealing with personal emotions and psychological stress, cancer patients can participate in support groups so as to meet more peer patients, learn from and support each other. Though participating in different activities, they can also learn to manage stress and become more relaxed. Last but not least, Karen advises to learn to pay more attention to those lucky happenings around you, to care more about those people around you, and dare to plan for your future journey.