Mental Health and Mesothelioma

Mesothelioma is a devastating, life-changing condition that can pose unique challenges to the mental health and wellbeing of patients and their families. The psychological and emotional symptoms of mesothelioma are sometimes overshadowed by focus on the physical symptoms. However, it’s important to remember that mental health is an essential part of mesothelioma patients’ overall health and wellbeing, and can significantly affect their prognosis and quality of life. In this article, we’ll delve into mental health for mesothelioma patients, and explore coping strategies for patients and the people who love them.

Mental Health and Mesothelioma: The Basics

People with mesothelioma can experience a wide range of mental health symptoms, which are widely documented in mesothelioma research. Importantly, the psychological effects of mesothelioma may present differently in different people. Mesothelioma patients may also experience different mental health symptoms at different points in time, which can vary in frequency, intensity, and disruption to daily life.

Primary Emotional and Psychological Symptoms:

• Initial shock and related distress: Being diagnosed with mesothelioma is often itself a psychologically traumatic event. In the immediate aftermath of diagnosis, mesothelioma patients may experience a variety of emotions and psychological states, including:

• Shock and numbness
• Denial, disbelief, and confusion
• Deep sadness and a sense of loss
• Acute anxiety and panic
• Anger and a sense of betrayal
• Guilt and regret 

• Depression: Once the reality of a mesothelioma diagnosis sets in, it is very common for patients to experience depression or depressive symptoms. This sort of depression is more severe and disruptive to daily life than regular sadness. It may include:

• Persistent sadness, felt nearly all day every day, for at least two weeks
• Hopelessness
• Lack of interest in previously enjoyable activities
• Restlessness and lack of energy
• Sleep disturbances (sleeping too much or too little)
• Anger and irritability
• Concentration and memory difficulties
• Appetite changes (especially lack of appetite)
• Feelings of guilt or worthlessness
• Preoccupation with death and suicidal thoughts or feelings

• Anxiety: People with mesothelioma may also experience anxiety and panic.This may be an ongoing, generalized feeling or may be attached to specific triggers (such as attending treatment, thoughts about prognosis, or even something seemingly unrelated). Symptoms may include:

• Overwhelming worry or fear
• Tension
• Difficulty focusing
• Going over worries in your head over and over (rumination)
• Anger and irritability
• Headaches or migraines

Mesothelioma-related anxiety can also cause panic attacks, which are sudden episodes of extreme fear or discomfort, often accompanied by a sense of losing control and of impending doom, as well as physical symptoms that may feel like a heart attack or a serious medical issue (i.e., difficulty breathing, heart pounding or racing, chest pain, trembling or shaking, chills, weakness, dizziness, tingling or numbness, chest pain, nausea, stomach pain, and/or digestive distress).

Social and Relational Effects

• Social isolation and withdrawal: Many people fighting mesothelioma experience a sense of profound social isolation. Mesothelioma frequently makes it difficult socialize: patients may feel stigmatized or othered, like people can’t relate to what they’re going through, and physical symptoms can make socializing uncomfortable or outright unmanageable. These factors, among others, can cause people with mesothelioma to feel left behind and alienated. Some people with mesothelioma may also self-isolate, appearing apathetic or even hostile to engaging with others.

• Difficulties in close relationships and family dynamics: Mesothelioma often causes profound disruptions within patients’ families and closest relationships. Often, children or spouses become caretakers, changing their former relationship dynamics, as well as their roles and responsibilities. This can be very difficult for everyone involved. These role changes and disruptions, in addition to the enormous amount of stress experienced by mesothelioma patients and caregivers, can cause adjustment difficulties that often puts strain on their relationships.

Impact of Treatment and Impaired Physical Health on Mental Health

• Mesothelioma-Based Symptoms: Mesothelioma causes increasingly severe physical symptoms that can have a significant effect on mental health. Tumors and fluid buildup can make it difficult to breathe or move around, making some patients feel trapped and like they’re losing their independence. This, in addition to other symptoms like chronic pain and fatigue, can lead to worsening depression, anxiety, anger, and apprehension about the future, as well as increased social and interpersonal difficulties.

• Treatment-Based Symptoms: Mesothelioma treatments come with a wide range of potential side effects that can impact psychological health. Chemotherapy, for example, often causes a set of cognitive difficulties referred to as “chemo brain”, which can include cognitive symptoms (such as difficulty with memory and concentration), depression, and severe fatigue, which can be psychological and emotional as well as physical. Worrying about these side effects—as well as the effectiveness of treatments—can also exacerbate stress and anxiety.

Coping Strategies: What to Do About It

While the psychological effects of mesothelioma can be severe and may seem daunting, there is help. There are many coping strategies that mesothelioma patients and their loved ones can utilize to address even the most profound mental health struggles. If you or someone you love has mesothelioma and is struggling with their mental health, consider the following tips:

1. Seek Professional Mental Healthcare: First thing’s first: if you’re struggling with your mental health, it is essential to reach out to your doctor or your mesothelioma care team. Many people need professional help to treat and care for their mesothelioma-related mental health difficulties. You can ask for a referral from your care team, or can seek out a qualified mental health professional (such as a counselor, social worker, therapist, psychologist, or psychiatrist) yourself. They can evaluate your needs and offer a wide range of therapies, coping skills, and in some cases medications, which can significantly alleviate psychological symptoms. If you are seeking your own therapist, try to find someone who has experience working with cancer patients.

• Find a support group: As we touched on earlier, mesothelioma patients and their loved ones often feel like they are going through something that no one else can understand, which can be lonely and isolating. Mesothelioma support groups are a very effective way to combat that feeling, allowing you to share experiences, coping mechanisms, resources, and community with a group of other people who know what you are dealing with from personal experience.

• Take advantage of palliative care. Palliative care refers to treatments and therapies aimed at improving your quality of life and reducing pain and discomfort, which can be a huge support for mesothelioma patients’ mental health. Ask your mesothelioma care team about palliative care resources, especially those aimed at mental health and wellness.

• Set realistic expectations, don’t suppress your emotions, and be kind to yourself. Mesothelioma patients should remember that they are doing their best in a difficult situation, and should not pressure themselves to be, feel, or act a certain way. Often, frustration and anxiety about one’s mental state can worsen mental health issues, and can lead to guilt or the urge to suppress negative or overwhelming feelings—which generally only serves to worsen mental health. It can be helpful to remind yourself that your feelings and psychological symptoms are not inherently wrong or bad, nor do they reflect poorly on you.

• Try alternative therapies: There are many alternative therapies (sometimes called holistic or complementary therapies) available to mesothelioma patients. While these therapies are not conventionally medical in nature, some mesothelioma patients find them beneficial to their mental health. Common alternative therapies include:

• Mindfulness and meditation
• Yoga, Tai Chi, and Qigong
• Acupuncture and reflexology
• Journaling
• Reiki and energy therapy
• Herbal medicine and supplements
• Therapeutic and lymphatic massage

• Make important medical, legal, and financial decisions as soon as possible. One of the major mental health stressors for mesothelioma patients is uncertainty about the future, some of which stems from having unsettled affairs. It is generally helpful to sit down with medical social workers, attorneys, and financial planners to make big decisions as soon as possible. While this may seem difficult, it is ultimately helpful to get those worries off your plate.

• Lean into loved ones and community: While it may take some conscious effort, it is important for mesothelioma patients to be able to lean into their communities as much as possible. Reach out to friends and family members and arrange quality time together, and don’t be afraid to be honest about how you are feeling rather than putting on a brave face. Now is the time for good communication and letting people know how you really feel, rather than keeping it all inside.

• Get as much healthy food, sleep, and exercise as possible. While it may seem cliché, diet and exercise (as well as getting quality sleep) can make a huge difference in the mental health and general wellbeing of mesothelioma patients. You can read more about diet and exercise for mesothelioma.

• Spend your time on things you enjoy. Mesothelioma patients often feel like their lives revolve around treatment, which can negatively affect their mental health. One way to address this is by consciously filling your time outside of treatment with things you enjoy. If you have hobbies or interests, people you like spending time with, or places you want to go—even if it’s just a favorite park or restaurant—make sure to treat yourself and enjoy your spare time to its fullest whenever you can. Of equal importance is knowing when to rest: it’s okay to say no to things you don’t have the energy or desire to do.

1.  Seek compensation: Mesothelioma patients and their families often grapple with anxieties about how they will cope with losses and expenses related to mesothelioma—as well as anger and a sense of injustice about being exposed to asbestos. Finding out about your compensation options and starting the process is often deeply alleviating of some of these anxieties and resentments, as patients feel a sense of reassurance that their loved ones will be cared for, and that those who caused their illness will be held responsible.

Are you or a loved one looking for more information about mesothelioma? Call (855) 385-9532 to learn more.