Strength in Seeking Help: Navigating the Emotional Roller Coaster of Pancreatic Cancer

I am a school psychologist. Through my long career I have engaged in providing therapeutic supports for children and adults. I had never sought supportive therapeutic intervention (with the exclusion of mandatory sessions that were necessitated by my doctoral clinical program).

There comes a time when you recognize the need for this support. I was told, by my oncologist, that these services were available at Mass General. What, unpleasantly, surprised me was that the social worker thought it was okay to talk to me in the infusion room, in my cubicle, but obviously next to other patients. She offered me no appreciable help through her words. I subsequently told her I was "fine" and wouldn't require her services further.

But I knew I had to speak with someone. My emotions were all over the place. I needed someone who could untwine all the thoughts and fears and anxieties I was experiencing. My Personal Care Physician suggested I find a therapist through Zendoc. It turns out that the psychologist I contracted with had Colon Cancer; he also had a Whipple. What were the odds?

My sessions ended at the time of the Whipple. He provided me with coping strategies that were effective, assisting me to not only manage my emotions but providing me with beneficial information to deal with my Whipple surgery scheduled for three months hence.

This content is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice.

Individual differences vary; personal health decisions should be made with a qualified professional.