fear of cancer

[cocohac]

Hello everyone,
I suffer from health anxiety for the past 10yrs but recently it has become worst amd I consently think I have something wrong. I have a great fear of cancer something most of you on here can relate too.
I am a beauty therapist and I have to face my fear every week as I have a client who has a massage every thursday who has terminal cancer and she benefits from my massages as it helps to relax her but every week I feel sick and anxious before going to see her and when I get home I sometimes cry.
She doesn't know I have a fear of cancer but she talks about the treatment she is having and the side effects etc
I know they say facing the fear is a good thing but for me its making me worse xx

[Beyonderz]

I understand you very well, I also have a fear of cancer (like many other people do). Sometimes I can't even watch some medical TV shows, if there is something related to cancer in that episode.
Even though I listened a lot about cancer and types from my dad's doctors (he had his throat removed by cancer and had a part of his colons removed also) and they say, frequent yearly controls can help detecting it early which is saving lives in that disease.
We are mostly worried about the symptoms we are having here and there, but doctors say that mostly cancer doesn't show any symptom before it gets to the later stages, where, the symptoms will be a lot more severe and not only one, but many of them together.
So actually we always think the worst (catastrophic thinking is typical in anxiety related issues), even though the symptoms we are experiencing aren't getting the attention of doctors.

Think that way, of course it's hard to be around that person because of your fear but, you are helping her a lot. Helping her to feel herself better and relaxed. Try to be strong and feel well soon.

[cocohac]

Hi,
Thank you for replying to my post. I just try and put my feelings to one side and keep thinking I'm helping her and that's what keeps me going each week.doesn't make it any easier though and I know it sounds mad but sometimes I fear that by touching her skin when massaging I'm going to catch it . Obviously my rational mind knows you can't catch it but that's when the HA kicks it .
Thanks again for your reply xx

[swgrl09]

I work with senior citizens and am always encountering people with cancer, which is my fear too. It's interesting though because sometimes I react the way you are describing and get afraid, and other times the fact that they are seniors and still kicking, and a lot of them have had cancer at a younger age and gotten through it, makes me feel a little bit better. It reminds me that cancer is NOT always a death wish, which is hard for me as that's how my mom died.