Now What? Tips for End of Treatment

• This can be a scary time. You have been active in dealing with your cancer and now treatment has come to an end. Often, people ask themselves the question, Now what do I do?


• Being seen less can trigger fear and worry. Trust that your treatment team has done this many times before and knows what a good schedule is for your follow-up appointments.


• Often the expectation is now that treatment is over you should be happy. Quite frequently this is when you can become depressed. There is actually time to think now, not just do. Allow yourself some time to move through this, but if it lingers too long, do not hesitate to seek help to get you through this time period.


• Explore and develop self-care strategies that work for you: meditation, prayer, diet, exercise, taking naps, imagery, excursions into nature, journaling and other creative forms of expression, etc. This will help you feel like you are still being active in caring for yourself.


• It is common to have varying levels of anxiety regarding future appointments and tests. For some this is high and then levels off, for others the longer out they are, the more the level of anxiety increases. Try to increase self care strategies around these times.


• Others may think you should be able to get right back to your old routine. Depending on the duration and type of treatment, this could take a while.


• As you get back to your routine you may experience a “new” normal. For some there are still fatigue and memory issues that require adjustments in scheduling etc. For memory issues – lists come in handy.


• The return to “normal” varies for everyone; for some it happens quickly and for others it takes longer, sometime a year or more. This also varies depending on if it is a first time treatment or a repeat treatment.


• The end of treatment is also a time when the caregiver can “crash”. They can let go now and also need time to recover.