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After treatment for mesothelioma, maintaining a healthy lifestyle is essential for long-term wellness. Boosting your health can help control the disease and its symptoms while experiencing some of the most rewarding years of your life. Good health is vital to enjoying time with family and friends.
Start with these tips to create a long-term wellness plan. Regular participation in actively choosing a healthy lifestyle will create a multitude of benefits.
Anyone can benefit from physical activity, but it particularly helps cancer survivors. Staying active will boost your overall health, improve mobility, increase energy levels, and counter the symptoms that may accompany mesothelioma, such as shortness of breath.
Begin with small changes from your normal activity level and do what feels comfortable. Slowly building your physical activity will ensure you are not overwhelmed with a new goal. Aim for 30 minutes or more each day of participation in an activity you enjoy, like walking, yoga, swimming, or cycling.
Even small changes add up to long-term wellness.
The hope is that soon after treatment, you will regain your appetite and enjoy meals again. Stress eating, irregular schedules that come with changes to your daily life, and treatment side effects can make maintaining a healthy weight challenging.
Focus on whole food eating goals rich in vegetables, fruits, beans, whole grains, and healthy fats. Processed meats, red meat, and full-fat dairy should be eaten in limited quantities. Other helpful tips include:
A lack of quality sleep and sleep deficiency is detrimental to health. Poor sleep practices have been associated with the following diseases:
Proper sleep can help avert costly mistakes such as falls, automobile accidents, and poor judgment calls. Physical activity can contribute to a good night’s sleep. Adding these habits to your sleep hygiene will maximize your rest and contribute to wellness.
Stress, anxiety, and depression can be mental health issues that accompany a mesothelioma diagnosis. Mental health is as important as physical health. A cancer diagnosis is life-changing, and finding ways to cope with the realities of these changes is critical.
Never feel embarrassed to ask for help from a mental health professional. It can be essential to remember that there is no shame in asking for physical assistance in treating a disease, and the same principle applies to managing the mental aspect of healing. Ask your doctor or consult your treatment team to bring awareness to available counseling options.
Other avenues of addressing mental health include:
Life is a gift often appreciated even more after enduring lifesaving treatment. Small changes that contribute to long-term wellness add up quickly. You have what it takes to maintain a healthy lifestyle and thrive after mesothelioma treatment.