When you’re facing cancer, and dealing with the inevitable truth that there’s a chance you may not make it through, it’s natural to feel like you should have been more appreciative of the life you led before the diagnosis. Stefanie Wardrep says that after her breast cancer diagnosis, she couldn’t help but feel guilty that she has wasted part of her life before her diagnosis dealing with depression.
“When I was diagnosed I had an almost overwhelming sense of regret for time lost dealing with depression,” Stefanie says. “When you’re faced with your mortality, you think ‘I wasted time.’ Even though I can now see that, it couldn’t be helped. You have to deal with your mental health at whatever pace that you can.”
Stefanie says that during treatment, the rigidity of her schedule kept those feelings of depression at bay for awhile, but they returned when she was in recovery. Survivors often tell us that recovering emotionally is a big part of the cancer journey as well. “I think what I wasn’t prepared for was when treatment was over … I felt like, oh, I’m lucky and I’m alive, so I should just be happy all the time. And that wasn’t totally the case for me. I know that I should have just been nicer to myself, and I want other people to be nice to themselves … it takes time. Your treatment wasn’t overnight, and neither will your recovery be.”
Learn more about SurvivorNet's rigorous medical review process.
When you’re facing cancer, and dealing with the inevitable truth that there’s a chance you may not make it through, it’s natural to feel like you should have been more appreciative of the life you led before the diagnosis. Stefanie Wardrep says that after her breast cancer diagnosis, she couldn’t help but feel guilty that she has wasted part of her life before her diagnosis dealing with depression.
“When I was diagnosed I had an almost overwhelming sense of regret for time lost dealing with depression,” Stefanie says. “When you’re faced with your mortality, you think ‘I wasted time.’ Even though I can now see that, it couldn’t be helped. You have to deal with your mental health at whatever pace that you can.”
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Stefanie says that during treatment, the rigidity of her schedule kept those feelings of depression at bay for awhile, but they returned when she was in recovery. Survivors often tell us that
recovering emotionally is a big part of the cancer journey as well. “I think what I wasn’t prepared for was when treatment was over … I felt like, oh, I’m lucky and I’m alive, so I should just be happy all the time. And that wasn’t totally the case for me. I know that I should have just been nicer to myself, and I want other people to be nice to themselves … it takes time. Your treatment wasn’t overnight, and neither will your recovery be.”
Learn more about SurvivorNet's rigorous medical review process.
