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Emotional health after cancer: How are you doing really?
Cancer: Managing Symptoms | Last Active: Oct 31 4:04pm | Replies (272)Comment receiving replies
I highly recommend sharing this discussion with the patient experience office or patient & family advisory councils at your cancer centers. They need to hear the stuff you've been sharing here - all of you. @dianamiracle I can imagine how much it meant to get a call out of the blue and be genuinely asked how are you doing? I think many cancer centers offer programs and services such as access to a social worker, support groups, classes, etc. However these are all services you have to seek out. It would mean so much to just have someone sit beside you and ask "how are you, for real?"
Has anyone looked into classes or group sessions at the cancer center? Has anyone seen therapy dogs at their hospital?
If your hospital doesn't have therapy dogs, let me bring the dogs to you. I present Caring Canines of Mayo
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@colleenyoung Our dog used to be a caring canine at Mayo Jax. While I was going through breast cancer treatment there, my husband trained Molly and she passed the testing with flying colors. After my treatment was done other than scheduled check ups, he enrolled Molly in the Caring Canine program and they went just twice a month because we do live 1 1/2 hrs. away. To be honest, we got lax and didn’t make her “follow the rules” when we were at home in our local neighborhood park with her doggy friends both human and canine. She flunked the test when she had to retest I think 2 years later...can’t really remember. As my cancer was returning, this took a backseat to other priorities. One day during her scheduled hour (and that was Mayo’s limit) we counted Molly’s business cards before starting. John handed out 83 business cards in maybe an hr and 10 minutes (because he was standing in the hall waiting for me to get a prescription filled). She loved it but she was totally worn out when her hour was finished. That is a wonderful program.