While traditional therapy approaches can provide valuable support for someone diagnosed with cancer, we’ve learned from our experiences with our members that sometimes a more tailored approach is needed.
We've learned that a therapy approach where the therapist understands cancer treatment and uses an approach that prepares someone for each stage of their journey from diagnosis to survival, proves even more beneficial.
Here’s what it might look like to experience therapy with a Curio therapist:
First, we’ll explore your diagnosis. Many times a cancer diagnosis comes with shock and grief that deserves processing and support. We’ll offer connection, validation, and a safe place to express and process the whirlwind of emotions you might be feeling. We’ll then build on this using Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) to challenge negative through and beliefs relating to your diagnosis. As you’re ready, we’ll work to frame your perspective into one that drives you forward through your treatment. Finally in this stage we’ll equip you with information- information around things like how treatment might progress, how your diagnosis might impact relationships, and more if and as you want it.
The next phase is all about empowerment. We’ll arm you with information and a community of support. In this phase we’ll work with you to create a support network. This network might look like professionals, personal connections, other people on their cancer journey. We’ll continue to provide you with information. We’ll not only provide comprehensive information about the disease, treatment options, and available support resources but also focus on understanding the emotional experience and the brain’s emotional response under threat. We’ll work with you to uncover the emotional impact and create a tailored plan to manage the accompanying emotions. When you bring awareness to your emotional experience early in your journey, we find you enhance your relationships and your emotional wellbeing throughout.
Next, we’ll focus on helping you make decisions. We’ll work with you to understand your treatment options. Then we’ll work together to build a strong sense of your values and goals. Prepared with this map of your values and goals you’ll have a foundation from which to make decisions. Together, we’ll explore your options, without bias. We’ll equip you with a decision making criteria wherein you’ll have a clear sense of the factors that are most important to you. With this you’ll be able to evaluate and compare options most effectively. Throughout the process, we will refine and discover what strategies, such as emotional regulation and stress coping, help you so that you can overcome decision making obstacles.
The fourth phase will focus on helping you manage treatment and side effects. In this phase we’ll use traditional therapy approaches to support you emotionally like Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Supportive Therapy. We’ll also build on these and use techniques that combine the mind and body. Oftentimes our minds and bodies are treated separately but we find at this phase of treatment it is especially important to treat the two together. We’ll focus on issues that are commonly associated with cancer treatment like anxiety, depression, pain management, and changes in body image. We’ll work with you to accept difficult emotions and thoughts while focusing on personal values and taking meaningful actions to enhance your quality of life.
In the fifth phase of support, we’ll focus on monitoring and follow-up. We’ll do this through cultivating present-moment awareness and reducing anxiety through building mindfulness skills. You’ve been through an incredible journey which involves strength and resilience. We’ll investigate what helped you cultivate that strength and use it as a basis to create a values system from which you can continue to build joy and resilience into your life. In this phase we’ll also work together on practical information around surveillance plans, and exploring your relationship with follow-up care.
In the sixth and final stage, we’ll offer education, and resources for thrivers, addressing emotional well-being, lifestyle changes, and managing the fear of recurrence. We’ll work with you to navigate long-term emotional recovery, addressing survivor's guilt, post-traumatic growth, and adjusting to life after cancer. In this phase we’ll use techniques like meaning centered therapy to focus on meaning, purpose, and personal growth after cancer helping you integrate your experience into your identity. We’ll also incorporate strategies from narrative therapy where we’ll work together to create personal narratives that are empowering and your preferred story.
Experiencing a cancer diagnosis is a unique and impactful journey. At Curio we believe you deserve support that meets those unique needs. Our care and phases of support are flexible and adapt to you and your needs as you focus on your recovery.
Reach out to support@joincurio.com for more information about our program or to start working with one of our therapists.
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