The “Stress-less” Lists
Plan ahead for routine needs to reduce stress during treatment & recovery.
"Remember, most of your stress comes from the way you respond, not the way life is” ― Anonymous
You and your caregiver struggle everyday to bring some semblance of normalcy to life while cancer remains at the forefront of your thoughts at all times. Even in its midst, your health and your caregiver’s peace of mind, I believe, is a cause worth fighting for everyday. Your scans speak to me loud and clear. You are constantly surrounded by information and misinformation courtesy the net and social media. The time and energy it takes to cull what is accurate, relevant and applicable to your needs is something you can ill afford while dealing with cancer. Your plate is full trying to get through treatment while still going to work and living your life with its numerous demands. As you prepare to go through this rigorous, tiring and often unnerving treatment process, I know it would be incredibly helpful for you and your caregiver to be prepared for predictable and oftentimes unpredictable issues that arise during and after treatment. You need less fuss, less stress and more peace of mind.
"The key is not to prioritize what's on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities." ― Stephen Covey
Think lists. Plan for what you can.
No matter what part of the cancer journey you are currently in, you won’t be feeling your best till recovery. So plan ahead with lists of things you might need. Lists help you stress less because they guide you to think of solutions ahead of time for the most common (and so often, taken for granted) dilemmas and questions that arise while you are at home or at work. For example, imagine you just had surgery for a breast mass. At home in your bed you are likely to be tired, groggy, scared and in pain. It’s hard to sit up in bed and there’s absolutely no position you find comfortable to lie in. The surgery site aches and you are likely to be nauseous as well. Your surgeon has given you post op instructions, recommendations for pain meds and even for constipation possibly. You may have had a chemo port put in your chest. Meanwhile, your caregiver is worried about what to feed you, how to help you get some sleep so you can heal.
Wouldn't it be nice if you came home to a wedge pillow to ease you into a comfortable position in bed? How about a robe that has inside pockets to slip the drains into and a lanyard to clip the drains when you are up and about so they are not flopping in your face and your chest?
What about adhesive wipes to clean the sticky liquid on your skin (of course, never remove steri-strips, they need to fall off on their own), and body wipes because getting into the shower is not possible in the first few days after surgery? And just in case the nausea gets overwhelming, think how great it would be to have disposable bags right where you can reach out. The (un)cancer “Surgery List” is the answer.
Stress less with (un)cancer.
We at (un)cancer are here to make the road to cancer recovery as comfortable for you as possible. That includes bringing you simple, practical solutions to ease the burden of complex issues. Our stress-less lists are a great example. They organize and power you through the months of treatment with carefully curated, proven products that ensure you have at hand the little things that actually make a big difference.
The road you travel is already tough; we’d like to make it a wee bit easier for you.