Lung cancer is a heavy blow for patients, not only to bear the physical pain, but also to experience tremendous psychological fluctuations. As a family member, it plays a vital role in the psychological counseling of patients. The following are some effective psychological counseling methods.
1. Establish trust relationship:
-Active listening: Give patients enough time and space to talk about their fears, worries, anger and other emotions. When patients speak, family members should listen attentively, use eye contact, nodding and other ways to show that they are listening carefully, do not easily interrupt. For example, when patients complain about their fear of illness, family members only need to accompany them patiently so that patients can feel understood.
-Honest communication: maintain honest communication with the patient, and choose the appropriate way to inform the patient of the illness according to the patient’s psychological endurance. If the patient wants to know the details of the disease, explain the treatment plan, the progress of the disease and other information to them in a gentle and understandable language; if the patient is psychologically fragile, it can protect them to a certain extent, but also avoid deception. For example, you can say, “The doctor is trying to make the best treatment plan for you, and we can work together.”.
2. Give emotional support:
-Show affection: often show care and affection to the patient and let them know how important they are in their family’s heart. It can be through hugging, kissing and saying warm words, such as “We all love you very much and will always accompany you through this difficulty”. This emotional warmth can enhance the patient’s sense of security.
-Empathy and comfort: Embrace the patient’s pain and comfort them when they are suffering from side effects of treatment or anxious about the future. You can share some cases of successful recovery of similar patients, or simply say, “You are suffering now, we are all very distressed, if you feel uncomfortable, talk to us”, so that patients can know that their families can understand their hardships.
3. Help patients maintain a positive attitude:
-Encourage social activities: Encourage patients to keep in touch with relatives and friends and participate in some social activities appropriately. For example, you can organize small family gatherings, or arrange for patients to meet and chat with old friends. Social interaction can make patients feel the joy and warmth of life, reduce loneliness and excessive attention to the condition.
-Develop interests and hobbies: according to the patient’s physical condition and interests, help them develop or resume some hobbies, such as reading, painting, playing chess, etc. Interests and hobbies can divert the attention of patients, so that they can temporarily forget the pain in the process of focusing on hobbies. If patients used to like painting, family members can prepare brushes and paper for them to create simple works in the ward or at home.
-Focus on the positive side: Guide patients to focus on the positive factors in the course of treatment, such as minor improvement after each treatment, improvement of examination indicators, etc. When the patient completes a chemotherapy, if the side effects are less than expected, the family members should point out in time that “this chemotherapy is much better than last one, it seems that the treatment is very effective” to help the patient build up confidence in the treatment.
4. Relieve the patient’s stress and anxiety:
-Create a relaxed environment: Try to create a quiet, comfortable and warm environment at home or in the ward. Items that patients like, such as photos, flowers, etc., can be placed. If the patient is in the hospital, bring a pillow or blanket familiar to the patient to make them feel at home. The comfort of the environment can relieve the tension of patients to a certain extent.
-Assisted relaxation training: Teach the patient some simple relaxation methods, such as deep breathing, progressive muscle relaxation, etc. Family members can practice with the patient, such as instructing the patient to inhale slowly, inflate the abdomen, and then exhale slowly, repeating several times. Spend some time each day with relaxation exercises to help the patient reduce anxiety and physical tension.
5. Enhance the patient’s sense of self-worth:
-Affirm the patient’s contribution: review the patient’s past achievements and contributions in family, work or society, so that they can know that their life is valuable. It can be said that “you see, you have paid so much for this family before, and you are our pride to cultivate such excellent children”, which makes patients feel their importance from the bottom of their hearts.
-Involve patients in decision-making: In terms of treatment and living arrangements, patients should be properly involved in decision-making, such as the choice of treatment options, dietary arrangements, etc. When patients feel that they still have the ability to control their lives, it can enhance their sense of self-worth and self-confidence. For example, when choosing chemotherapy drugs, family members and doctors can introduce the advantages and disadvantages of different drugs to patients, so that patients can participate in the choice.
In a word, family members’psychological counseling for lung cancer patients is a long-term and meticulous process, which requires patience, love and perseverance. Through the comprehensive application of various methods, we can help patients face the disease and treatment with a positive attitude.
Lung cancer
