CANCER AND THE FAMILY LIFE CYCLE by Theresa A. Veach Ph.D. Donald R. Nicholas Ph.D. & Marci A. Barton Ph.D

Author:Theresa A. Veach, Ph.D., Donald R. Nicholas, Ph.D. & Marci A. Barton, Ph.D.
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: BRUNNER-ROUTLEDGE

It is sometimes easier for families to want to forget about the severity of the illness and its treatment and to move too quickly back into “normal” life. In doing so, expectations of immediate recovery and standards of rehabilitation and functioning may be set too high, resulting in increased frustration, distress, and discrepancies between the needs of the patient and those of the other family members (Harpham, 1994). Using the above-listed assessment questions, the family is helped to rebuild its new system with thoughtfulness in their plans for long-term organization and congruency between the realistic demands of the illness and the emotional desires of the family members.

Cancer Patients Living in Limbo

The completion of active treatment and the rehabilitation phase is more than just physically surviving cancer, it is about the quality of life experienced by cancer patients and their families (Harpham, 1994). During the rehabilitation phase, cancer patients may experience the entire range of emotional reactions, from elation over the completion of treatment to deep depression because life still appears “unreal” and uncertain. Although emotional reactions during this phase of the illness will vary widely depending upon individual coping skills and styles, both physical and emotional responses will depend greatly upon the cancer patients type of cancer and its severity, as well as his or her age and place in the family life cycle. Psychosocial considerations are thus dependent upon the extent to which physical rehabilitation is needed by the patient and the developmental tasks that may be delayed (temporarily or permanently) due to the illness (Rolland, 1994).

Grief and Loss. Some cancer patients may experience feelings of grief and loss at critical points along the clinical course of cancer such as during the termination of treatment (Clark, McGee, & Preston, 1992). Most cancer patients experience some degree of grief, whether these feelings are due to the loss of existential myths regarding the assumptions of the “normal” unfolding of life events, or the loss of physical appearance, function, and abilities. Again, emotional responses to loss will differ according to age and developmental task requirements. Loss of the ability to have children will be very different for the young adult during cancer rehabilitation than for the patient who is raising or has finished raising a family. Physical difficulties such as fatigue and chronic pain can permeate every aspect of the patients lifestyle, forcing changes in functioning, interpersonal rela-

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