Breast cancer can affect not just your body but also your emotional well-being. It will take time to adjust to the changes you’re going through and you may feel a range of emotions, such as:

• Mental stress from your treatment and its side effects.

• Anger about having to go through treatment and feelings of “why me?”

• Anxiety about the next phases of your treatment and possible side effects.

• Fear that your treatments will not work or that the cancer will come back.

• Fear and anxiety about dying.

• Shame or guilt that you have cancer.

• Guilt about the demands that your condition might impose on your family and friends, or that you’re letting people down by being sick.

• Sadness or depression from the feeling that things won’t get better. You may not be motivated to do the things you used to enjoy or feel hopeless or want to pull back from family and friends.

As you move through different stages of breast cancer treatment, it’s normal to feel different emotions. Support groups, individual and group therapy, and peer groups can help you cope with how you’re feeling. Your family and friends can also support you. And don’t be afraid to talk to your doctor or other members of your health care team to help you cope with your emotions.

Click here for more information about support groups in Canada.