San Diego Therapist Blog: Regina Huelsenbeck, PhD

What really causes cancer? Is it lifestyle and genes? Is it just a random unexplainable thing? Do my thoughts have something to do with it? Does my relational history and/or my trauma history have anything to do with it? Why did I get ill?

These questions plague people living with cancer, and they plague them sometimes, even after they survive. In my doctoral research with cancer survivors, 87% of the participants shared that they had often wondered "why" they got cancer. Many had come up with different theories to try to understand WHY they could have possibly gotten cancer. These theories ranged from toxins in the food they ate, surgeries they had, the water pitcher they drank from, bad genes, God picked me, pesticide and herbicide exposure (which actually has been linked to lymphoma), to a loss of meaning and depression in their life prior to diagnosis

Theorizing and questioning is extremely normal. Although many people, even clinicians, tend to be uncomfortable with the why question, it is completely NORMAL. Other researchers have found that asking and wondering why often served individuals in their coping with cancer (See Shelley Taylor's research out of UCLA on coping/breast cancer). These researchers explained that this questioning seemed to be an adaptive step in the process of finding meaning for their experience.

It is however useful to discuss these uncomfortable questions and existential questions with a therapist, trusted friend or counselor. Often, people facing a life threatening illness like cancer feel very alone and sometimes find it difficult to share what they are really thinking and feeling with others. At other times, people report feeling very understood by their friends and family and may not choose to get additional support. If however, you are feeling alienated, reach out- spill your beans and boost your immune system in the process. Don't do it alone.

Love and Light,

Regina

In my review of endless psychological literature for my dissertation on the experience of cancer, I came across some pretty interesting studies. I am thinking in particular of a phenomenological-hermeneutic study done by Persson and Hallberg (2004), which is just a fancy way of saying they interviewed people at length- via in depth taped interviews about their experiences of cancer- and then analyzed what these people said.

They interviewed 18 Leukemia or Lymphoma survivors and found 3 major differences in their stories/experiences of cancer:

1. One group seemed to evaluate their experience as strengthening.

2. A second group "accepted and adapted" to the experience

3. A third group viewed the experience with bitterness

They also reported that the third group had trouble at all three evaluation periods (they interviewed/evaluated the people at diagnosis, during treatments and at post treatment) integrating and sharing the story. These people seemed to stumble over the story, have trouble in the process of storytelling- their words were more jumbled and unprocessed. The implication is that these people hadn't "experienced" or deeply processed their experience of cancer- as much as those people in the other two groups.

This third group also reported being afraid of losing control over their feelings at times, and afraid at times that they were going mad. In other words, they attempted to distance themselves from the experience as much as possible because they weren't quite sure they could navigate the difficult feeling states.

Interestingly the first group also reported having these fears around their feelings at times- worrying they were going mad- or worrying about losing control. However this group in general was able to cope with these states. So it's not that these people in the first group were superheroes- they were afraid of their feelings too, but somehow they found a way to FEEL.

Xureb and Dunlop (2003) conducted a similar type of study and found that the people going through cancer bring with them "both the present values in their life, as well as a life long pattern of dealing with adversity in their confrontation of a life threatening illness".

Both of these studies seem to be saying that an individual's experience of cancer is colored by their CHOSEN REACTION to this trauma- and that this reaction is actually a life long pattern- a usual way of responding to adverse/traumatic events.

Jimmie Holland, the pioneer of psycho-oncology, echoes this assertion that the experience of cancer is extremely individual. She was struck over and over again by how many people she saw with the same illness, diagnosis, and the same physical symptoms, but had such striking differences in emotional reactions.

 Is it possible to bring more mindfulness to this process so you don't end up in the third group- floundering- running away from the experience- running away from feelings? Is it possible to change the way one experiences things? Can Mindfulness practice help this process?

Hans Selye conducted the very first meaningful research on stress. He didn't intend to research stress...Hans was originally interested in the effects sex hormones have on physical functioning. He was hanging out with his rats, conducting his sex hormone experiments when he started noticing the stressful implications the interventions were having on his rats. Hans recognized that no matter what intervention he placed upon the rats, their physiological stress response was the same- every time. AND furthermore, this physiological stress response was individualized: each rat had his or her own patterned response to stress.

And guess what? It's true for us as well. No matter what the stressor, we have our own individualized physiological reaction to it. It's the same every time! Your response is different than my response. Some people first feel a stomach tightening, then warm hands, others immediately feel back pain, then feel a hot wave travel down their arms, others have gastrointestinal squeezing... These physiological responses are actually as detailed and individualized as a fingerprint.

Do you know what your pattern is? What happens first, second, third, fourth....? Regardless of how your body reacts to fear, remember, that it is a stress response. This is your body's way of letting you know that you are stressed. It is communicating. 

Oprah has manifested again...she teamed up with one of the most mindful and powerful spiritual leaders of our time, Eckhart Tolle. If you haven't heard of him, he wrote The Power of Now and recently published A New Earth. He has changed thousands of people's lives by awakening them to their true nature. He has helped thousands learn how to PLUG IN to stillness.

Every Monday 8pm central time you can listen to him live from their virtual classroom. OVER 139 countries listened to the very first course they telecasted. If you cannot make the class live, or even if you do, you can download each of these courses for free. You can subscribe on ITUNES

Although this scheme might seem like more pop-psychology, "Secretish", or new agey, if you really listen to what Eckarts says or read his books, you will find the truth in his words.

He simply offers a way to plug into stillness, "the place where there is no mental noise"... 

Learn how to unplug from your conditioned thought processes, and plug into your heart and what is true. Plug In!

Love and Light,

Regina