Exercise and Thrive: Getting back to you

Exercise and Thrive is the result of a multi-year partnership between YMCA of the USA and the Lance Armstrong Foundation in response to the growing body of evidence that physical activity can improve cancer survivor’s quality of life, lessen treatment side effects and help recovery.

“Exercise and Thrive fills the void from the end of active treatment,” says Heather, Senior Program Director at the Briggs YMCA in Olympia. “People are given the confidence they need to use their bodies after treatment. This lets people know that exercise is safe and that they can do things that they did before the cancer.” Participants will receive support and coaching from professional YMCA staff and volunteers as well as social support from other survivors.

Additional Information

• Must have medical clearance for their doctor or nurse practitioner to participate.
• Cancer survivors must have completed active treatment.
• All participants will receive a free 12-week South Sound YMCA membership, which includes access to both South Sound YMCA facilities.
• After completing the program, participants will be offered the opportunity to join the South Sound YMCA without paying a joining fee.

The South Sound YMCA is excited about partnering with Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center to provide this amazing opportunity in Thurston County. The initiative is a key component of Activate America®, the YMCA’s bold approach to directly address our nation’s growing health crisis. Through Activate America, the YMCA is redefining itself and engaging communities across the country to provide better opportunities for people of all ages in their pursuit of health and well-being in spirit, mind, and body.

Olympia Downtown YMCA 
510 Franklin Street SE
Olympia, WA 98501
(360) 357-6609
Class Days: Tuesdays and Saturdays
Class Time: Tues: 6:30-8 pm, Sat. 9:30-11:30 a.m.
Class Session: September 11—December 1, 2012
For additional information, please contact Member Services at 360.357.6609

Briggs Community YMCA
1530 Yelm Highway SE
Olympia, WA 98501
(360) 753-6576
Class Days: Mondays and Wednesdays
Class Time: 2:00 p.m.—3:30 p.m.
Class Session: September 10—November 28, 2012
For additional information, please contact Member Services at 360.753.6576

Do you have chemobrain?

Editor's Note: PRCS is posting the following post on behalf of the University of Washington Memory Health Program.

Are you a cancer survivor who is struggling with concentration, word and name recall, or keeping track of things? You are not alone.

Millions of cancer survivors are living with memory or thinking difficulties often referred to as “chemobrain.” Many survivors find this impairment so severe that it interferes with basic activities of daily living.

The prevalence of chemobrain is hard to pin down, with estimates of cancer patients affected ranging from about 14 percent to as high as 85 percent. While researchers agree that its occurrence is much more dependent on the type of treatment than on the specific type of cancer, little is known about who is most likely to suffer a long-term deficit or how to guard against it. Source.

At the University of Washington Memory Health Program, we are searching for new ways to address daily thinking difficulties in cancer survivors. We are conducting workshops to learn how to improve thinking and memory abilities. In the workshops, we provide resources and offer practical, everyday solutions.

This program consists of 7 one-hour group-based workshops and pre- and post-workshop memory tests. If the group-based memory skills workshops are effective, participants may experience improved thinking abilities. Additionally, taking part in research provides participants with a unique opportunity to contribute to new ways of promoting health and treating disorders.

We generally hold our workshops in Seattle, but we are currently searching for eligible participants in the South Sound so that we can conduct workshops in Olympia or Tacoma. If you are interested in participating (in Seattle or South Sound), please contact us at (206) 277-1041 or toll free at 866-577-1913 or email us at wellness@uw.edu.

Combating survivor's guilt

The following was received via our "Suggest a Blog Topic" feature. If you would like to write in please click here to use the form provided.

I was diagnosed with colon cancer in October of 2009, I had my first chemo treatment in Dec of 2009 and had my last chemo in April of 2010. I had complications from the chemo and radiation that required me to go back to the oncology clinic on a regular basis for labs and fluids through August of 2010. I still have monthly visits to have my port flushed and for routine labs that require me to continue to visit the clinic. There are times when I walk into the clinic and see so many people struggling with their personal battle against cancer and often feel like I am intruding as I am now well into my recovery phase. I find myself feeling guilty as I still have my hair, I am not wrapped in a blanket sick from the chemo, and am sitting next to patients that may see me as ‘too healthy’ to be there.

What you are describing is called "survivor guilt" and it is not at all unusual during recovery from cancer and its treatment. Guilt after surviving a trauma also can occur after war, plane crashes, natural disasters, and other events where people feel they have no control over outcomes. Just as cancer is actually hundreds of different diseases with a myriad of treatments, there are also a variety of emotional responses one may have throughout the cancer journey.

Every individual diagnosed with cancer is on their own journey. The waiting room in a cancer treatment center is filled with individual stories, some very painful and others uplifting and healing. When we focus on the superficial exterior of others, we sometimes miss the complexity and depth of their experience. Some individuals with early stage disease, minimal treatment with few side effects and excellent prognosis suffer more emotionally than those with later stage disease and poor prognosis. Judging what others may or may not be experiencing and then judging ourselves can be paralyzing.

Cancer is not equitable or fair; accepting what you can control and releasing what you cannot can be therapeutic. Some cancer survivors describe that they feel less guilt when they "give back" to the cancer community in some way. The period after cancer treatment ends can be a ripe time for self-reflection and an examination of how to move forward. Seeking help from a mental health professional or spiritual adviser can significantly help cancer survivors process their experience, reassess goals, and realize being in each moment.

You might also like:

• Who is a cancer survivor? What's in a name?
• Soup ladies warm hearts of cancer patients

 Other resources:

• curetoday.com: "Getting Through Survivor Guilt"