In
20 years working as an oncologist and running cancer support groups, I have
learned that most people who have been given a cancer diagnosis wish for two main
things:
1.
They want to be cured of their cancer (or they want to live
for many, many years with a great
quality of life), and
2.
They want to feel better. They want the awful feelings of
stress and fear to settle down so they can enjoy their lives.
I am heartened and
grateful for many wonderful not-for-profit organizations who support thousands
of people in achieving their goals by providing them with the information and teaching
them crucial life skills for the cancer journey. The first three of these “Empowerment
Essentials” are
#1 – Getting the best care
from the medical system
#2 – Empowering your body
with loving habits like exercise and diet.
#3 – Working with
difficult feelings, settling stress levels and reframing distressing thoughts
Information is power
When I first began my
practice in the mid-1990s my cancer patients often shook with nervousness the
first time they met me. These days those
who are recently diagnosed often nod at me as I explain their diagnosis and treatment
– because they understand what is happening, often with access to great people
and resources that support them in their journey.
I’ve noticed the second
wave of empowerment over the last decade. People hear the message about
exercise and healthy diet through multiple media before they get to me. It
makes me smile because in most cases it will increase their chance of cure and longevity
- and they will feel better when they make these loving lifestyle choices.
A new goal: Improving
brain function
Though my patients going
through treatment have identified “brain fog” (problems with memory and
concentration) as a major issue for as long as I’ve been practicing, more
recently people on the cancer journey have started asking for help. So I am now hearing another goal: “I just
want to be able to think clearly again”.
Fortunately, we’re in the
midst of another revolution in empowerment based on neuroscience and
scientifically-proven techniques which help people think and function more
effectively. Your brain will continue to
change and set down new neural connections throughout your lifetime. You can actually choose which brain pathways
(feelings and abilities) you want to nurture.
My hope in writing this article is to offer some practical advice using a
few techniques that can help your brain function much better.
I’ve referred to the first
three Empowerment Essentials above because you’ll need to draw on these same skills
to maximize how well your brain works. Here are some specifics for brain care:
1.
Getting the best care from the medical system includes
drawing on the expertise of different specialists. Ask your oncologist or nurse directly “Is
there someone in the medical system who can help me learn some ways to think more
clearly?” Or if you’re suffering from excessive fatigue ask if someone can help
you with ways to manage your energy levels.
Perhaps an Occupational therapist or Physiotherapist could help you
problem-solve ways to manage tasks and fatigue. They may also teach your exercises
to increase your physical stamina.
2.
Talk to your family doctor about any issues relating to
changes in your thinking/memory. There are
many possible correctable causes to symptoms of fatigue and fuzzy
thinking.
3.
See a nutritionist! They can assess if you’re getting enough
of your B-vitamins (key chemicals used by the brain) or whether you need to
take a multi-vitamin. Science is also showing that flavenoids (found in berries
and other foods) can sometimes help clear the ‘foggy feeling’.
4.
Loving your body through exercise is absolutely critical to
improving brain function. During a moderate 30 minute workout a hormone
in your brain called Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor is released which primes
the brain to learn and remember better afterwards. It also appears weight training
is a key component to increasing brain blood flow and overall function. One of my 79-year-old prostate cancer patients,
who was still running a flower business when he began hormone treatment,
started pumping iron with a much younger group. He noticed that on the days he
worked out, he was mentally much crisper at work – like he was able to push
oxygen up into his brain.
5.
Decreasing stress and anxiety is key to maximum mental
performance. Working with an expert like a psychologist or taking a course like
mindfulness-based stress reduction will prime your brain to use the higher
level thinking, and bypass the primitive stress-brain pathways. When our stress levels are lower, we actually
grow new brain cells in the hippocampus which is the part of the brain responsible
for creating new memories.
Meditation is the new
‘Exercise’
Practicing meditation or
some other relaxation technique in which you work to slow down some of the
mental chatter is a critical skill in improving your brain function. A daily practice resets our baseline stress
level (what I call our stress-o-meter) to a lower level. Our brains are better able to focus on what
is in front of us when we practice meditation.
Even in this moment your brain is simultaneously processing more than a
dozen inputs (sights, sounds, feelings in your body, thoughts…). When the
stress-o-meter is on low, it’s as if the dials from all these inputs is set at
a lower level – which allows you to focus more easily on the one thing you rest
your attention on.
The power of “Taking in
the Good”
Dr. Rick Hanson, author of
Buddha’s Brain and Hardwiring Happiness, points to our
evolutionary biology to explain the ‘negativity bias’. We are primed to learn
from and remember negative experiences while the positive states (peace,
confidence, gratitude) usually bypass our memory systems. We ruminate on our
difficulties and forget to allow ourselves to experience the good. Learning the skill of “taking in the good” is
very important for two reasons. Firstly, we can train our brains to experience more
of the positive emotions and we’ll feel better. Secondly, when feel happier our brains also function
better – we literally see much more of what’s happening around us, and our
inherent creativity is primed to go.
The simplest explanation
of how to ‘Take in the Good’ is to stay with positive feelings when they arise in
your attention for at 10-20 seconds at least six times a day. For example, if
you notice a feeling of gratitude (“oh, I love my grandchild so much”) then
stay with the heart-felt feeling. Let it
sink into your psyche and spirit. Hold
it there and let your body absorb that wonderful feeling for at least a dozen
seconds. You are literally setting down new connections in your brain that will
make it easier to re-experience those same feelings the next time you are
primed to feel grateful.
You can also practice this
technique by generating the emotional state without the external cue. As an example when you write down simple
things (seeing sunshine, or sipping a hot cup of tea on a cold morning) in a
gratitude journal every night for a few weeks, your perception of the world
will change – you will be more grateful – and your brain will work better.
Neuroscience is a burgeoning
field and new information is constantly arising to help you become an expert in
your own brain care. Learn and practice the techniques and habits that make
most sense to you. Your brain will
continue to grow and change with time – and you can make a huge difference in
how you think and function. That’s one fact worth remembering.
