Stress and anxiety after a breast cancer diagnosis

It’s common to feel anxious or stressed after being diagnosed with breast cancer.

This might be the first time you experience anxiety. Or if you’ve had anxiety in the past, it may come back. And it might feel different or worse than before.

There are techniques and support to help you reduce stress and cope better with anxiety.

Stress and anxiety can make you feel nervous, worried and tense. This can range from feeling a bit uneasy to a continuing sense of dread. 

You may also feel panicked and frightened. 

Other signs of stress and anxiety include:

• Change in appetite
• Feeling sick
• Difficulty sleeping
• Headaches
• Muscle tension
• Tightness in the chest and shortness of breath
• Racing heart rate or more noticeable heartbeats (palpitations)
• Difficulty concentrating and making decisions
• Feeling tired
• Diarrhoea 
• Feeling more irritable than usual
• Feeling overwhelmed
• Racing thoughts
• Sweating

In some cases, anxiety can become so overwhelming that it leads to panic attacks. This is where the physical symptoms of anxiety build up quickly and you can feel very scared.

Some people with stress or anxiety also have low mood or depression.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental health condition that can be caused by stressful or scary events, including health problems like cancer.

The symptoms of PTSD include:

• Reliving traumatic events through nightmares and flashbacks
• Avoiding people or places that remind you of the traumatic events
• Feeling on edge and unable to relax
• Feeling isolated, numb, irritable or guilty
• Difficulty sleeping
• Difficulty concentrating
• Persistent negative thoughts and beliefs

It’s normal to have some of these symptoms after a stressful experience like a breast cancer diagnosis.

But if these symptoms don’t improve after a few weeks or they’re affecting your day-to-day life, speak to your GP or treatment team. They can give you advice and, if necessary, refer you to a specialist.

There are lots of ways you can reduce stress and anxiety. 

Distraction

This involves learning to focus on the things around you, or a hobby or interest, to help you shut out negative thoughts.

Relaxation, visualisation, mindfulness and meditation

You can use these separately or together to reduce stress and tension by relaxing the mind and body. This can help improve wellbeing. 

The mental health charity Mind has more information about relaxing and calming exercises that you can try.

And the NHS has more information about mindfulness.

Planning

These tips might help you feel more in control:

• If you can, break down larger tasks into smaller tasks
• Avoid doing more than 1 thing at a time
• Set achievable goals
• Make a list of priorities
• Ask other people for support where possible

One-to-one counselling

Counselling takes place in a private and confidential setting, either in person or online.

You’ll be able to explore feelings such as anger, anxiety and grief, which can be connected to your cancer diagnosis, making them easier to understand and cope with.

Your GP or treatment team may be able to refer you to counselling services in your area.

Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT)

CBT can help you change patterns of thinking and behaviour that may be stopping you moving forward. 

Unlike some other types of therapy, CBT focuses on problems and difficulties you’re having in the “here and now”. Instead of exploring causes of your distress or symptoms in the past, it looks for ways to improve your state of mind in the present.

If you think you might benefit from these techniques, your treatment team or GP may be able to advise you on how to access them. 

Physical activity and healthy living

Regular exercise, whether it’s a brisk walk or yoga, can help clear your mind and reduce your stress levels.

Eating healthily, limiting alcohol and avoiding smoking can help improve your overall wellbeing. It can also have a positive impact on your mood and can reduce stress and anxiety.

Although drinking alcohol and smoking may seem to help with stress in the short term, there’s evidence that in the long term, they can negatively affect your mental health and make you feel more stressed and anxious. And they can both lead to other health problems too.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) recommends that people who have had breast cancer limit their intake of alcohol to below 5 units per week.

Complementary therapies

Some people find complementary therapies and activities such as yoga, tai chi and Qigong can reduce stress and anxiety and improve their mood.

Talk to someone

If you’re finding it difficult to cope emotionally, you might want to talk to someone about how you’re feeling. 

This could be someone in your treatment team or your GP, who can also signpost you to other services that can help you.

If you’re struggling with stress and anxiety, you can speak to one of our nurses for more support. See the bottom of this page for ways to get in touch.

Talking to someone who has had a similar experience may also help, for example through a local support group. You can search support groups near you on the Macmillan Cancer Support website. You can also chat to others on our forum.

If you’ve been diagnosed with primary breast cancer, our Someone Like Me service can match you with a trained volunteer who’s had a similar experience to you.

And if you’ve been diagnosed with metastatic (secondary) breast cancer, our secondary breast cancer services can help you connect with others, either in person or online.