Cancer survivors often experience anxiety and fear. Identifying triggers and seeking help can help you manage mental health in remission.

A journey with cancer often continues long after the disease has gone into remission. Survivors often experience anxiety and fear, not only regarding their health but their future and that of their loved ones.

Identifying anxiety triggers and employing strategies to cope can start at home. At any time, you can reach out to a healthcare professional if you need help. They can connect you with resources to support your mental health.

In a crisis, you can call the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988.

Coming out of cancer treatment is often a time of varying emotions. Loved ones and friends might want to celebrate the “good news,” but the person who’s in remission might have a range of other emotions.

The emotions can include relief, anxiety, worry, and depression. The feelings might come from fear of the cancer coming back, financial stress, relationship strain, or worry about what’s going to come next.

Fear of cancer recurrence combined with rumination can also make symptoms of anxiety and depression worse.

Some people also experience post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). This is when certain triggers related to treatment, such as smells and sounds that occurred during chemotherapy, cause anxiety and fear when people encounter them in remission.

Other examples of PTSD symptoms might look like feeling anxious about going to the doctor’s office or hospital, having recurring nightmares about your cancer experience, or feeling paranoid about signs of cancer recurrence.

If you’re navigating life in cancer remission, it might help to know that you’re not alone if you’re experiencing challenges with mental health.

Studies have shown people who survive cancer are more likely to live with depression or anxiety than people who’ve never had cancer. But there are also ways to get help.

Some doctors talk with all the patients they treat with cancer about anxiety and depression. This can give the person a chance to discuss their mental health.

It also allows the doctor to try to identify mental health concerns and recommend ways to manage them.

Once you’re in remission, you might see a doctor less frequently. It can, therefore, help to know some of the signs of an anxiety disorder so you can seek support.

An anxiety disorder means having a consistent feeling of dread or anxiety. It’s much more frequent than having occasional worries or fears. Cancer-related anxiety can have symptoms that affect your body and how you feel, like:

  • inability to manage feelings of worry
  • feeling restless or on edge
  • trouble sleeping
  • quick loss of energy
  • concentration problems
  • irritability
  • headaches or muscle aches
  • unexplained pain

People who’ve had cancer might also have PTSD symptoms. PTSD can cause many of the same symptoms as anxiety disorders but can also include:

  • avoiding memories that cause stress
  • avoiding people
  • losing interest in life
  • feeling shame and guilt
  • re-experiencing traumatic experiences through nightmares or flashbacks
  • hypervigilance, or being on high alert
  • having intrusive memories about cancer-related traumatic experiences

Talking about these feelings with a doctor, even a primary care doctor, can help someone learn ways to manage their mental health and treat their condition.

When you’re in remission, there might be certain experiences that cause higher levels of anxiety. These can be triggers. Each person has their own triggers, but some of the most common are experienced by many people post-cancer:

  • Follow-up appointments: Some refer to this as “scanxiety,” when a person waits to find out whether they’re still in remission or whether there are signs of recurrence.
  • Physical symptoms and pain: These feelings in the body might bring up a fear of recurrence or other emotions connected to how the body is different post-cancer.
  • Feeling healthy: Having no symptoms can also bring up emotions in some people. Some cancers, like ovarian cancer, have few outward symptoms. That can mean it’s hard to self-monitor and can increase anxiety before follow-up appointments.
  • Making lifestyle adjustments: Often, after cancer treatment, a person has to adjust their previous physical activities. This can cause feelings of stress as the person navigates the “new normal” after cancer.
  • Returning to work: After cancer, returning to work can cause anxiety, even if a person has a supportive workplace. Many factors, from “chemo brain,” which can affect concentration after treatment, to new personal priorities post-cancer, can all impact work.
  • Navigating relationships and family: Worry can come from wondering how cancer will continue to impact relationships. Many people also worry about how they can care for their loved ones in the years to come.

One first step in managing anxiety is identifying your emotional triggers. You might be experiencing a mix of worries and emotions, and it can be hard to know what’s underneath all of the feelings.

Journaling

Starting a journal is one option. You can write down what’s happening and how you’re feeling each day to help make sense of your experiences.

Stress management

Other things you can try to help you cope include meditation, guided relaxation, and creative activities like art and music. Exercise, even moderate physical activity, can help ease tension.

Sharing your feelings

Talking about your feelings can also help. You can seek support from your inner circle of friends and family. There are also support groups for people who have experienced cancer.

Joining a group might be one way to deal with the anxiety and fear that can come with cancer remission. The American Cancer Society’s Patient Programs and Services portal might be a good place to start.

Professional help

When a person is living with a mental health condition, it can be tough to know when or if to seek professional help. If you have persistent feelings of anxiety or worry or any other signs of PTSD, you might want to consider speaking with a mental health professional.

If you visit with a mental health professional, they might offer you a number of strategies, like a form of talk therapy called cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT).

Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) is a kind of CBT where people who’ve had cancer can learn to take specific action on things they can change while accepting that which cannot be changed.

Help is out there

If you or someone you know is in crisis and considering suicide or self-harm, please seek support:

If you’re calling on behalf of someone else, stay with them until help arrives. You may remove weapons or substances that can cause harm if you can do so safely.

If you are not in the same household, stay on the phone with them until help arrives.

Anxiety and fear are common among people who have survived cancer. Mental health conditions, including cancer-related anxiety disorders and post-traumatic stress, can affect daily life.

To cope, you can try identifying your anxiety triggers, managing stress, and joining a cancer survivor support group. Reach out for help whenever you feel overwhelmed or want more information on strategies to treat anxiety or PTSD.