School of Health - Integrative Cancer Treatment - Integrative Oncology | What to expect from an initial consultation with an integrative cancer therapist?
The therapist will want to know about your symptoms, past medical history, and any concerns related to the cancer diagnosis. They may also wish to know whether you are in touch with a support system or have other individuals assisting you through this difficult time. The goal is for them to be able to assist you in finding alternative therapies that work together with conventional medicine while still supporting it.
For example, an integrative cancer therapist may recommend acupuncture or massage therapy as a way of reducing anxiety and pain levels during treatment without interfering with chemotherapy drugs–or they may suggest dietary changes that can work alongside chemo treatments such as cutting out gluten-containing grains from one’s diet. No matter what the therapist recommends, it’s important to remember that you’re in charge of your treatment. Be sure to ask questions and discuss any concerns you have before moving forward with any new therapies. And if at any time you feel like the treatments are too much for you or you’d just like to talk about your feelings, don’t hesitate to call your therapist.
They will assess your emotional needs and provide psychological support
Integrative cancer therapists work with doctors to provide patients with the best possible care. They assess your emotional needs and provide psychological support during treatment, in addition to providing recommendations for complementary therapies such as acupuncture or meditation. Although they can help improve your overall sense of well-being, integrative cancer therapists are not replacements for medical professionals and should always be used in conjunction with a doctor’s advice.
This approach is especially beneficial for people whose treatment may require them to maintain a positive mental outlook throughout their course of treatment. An initial consultation can determine if this type of approach is right for you. You will need to answer questions about your health history and current symptoms, as well as discuss any goals you have for treatment and what you hope to gain from complementary therapies.
They will assess your emotional needs and provide psychological support
Integrative cancer therapists work with doctors to provide patients with the best possible care. They assess your emotional needs and provide psychological support during treatment, in addition to providing recommendations for complementary therapies such as acupuncture or meditation. Although they can help improve your overall sense of well-being, integrative cancer therapists are not replacements for medical professionals and should always be used in conjunction with a doctor’s advice.
This approach is especially beneficial for people whose treatment may require them to maintain a positive mental outlook throughout their course of treatment. An initial consultation can determine if this type of approach is right for you. You will need to answer questions about your health history and current symptoms, as well as discuss any goals you have for treatment and what you hope to gain from complementary therapies.
They may also offer advice on how to manage stress levels and improve quality of life
It is common for cancer patients to seek alternative forms of treatment. One such form, integrative therapy, combines conventional methods with complementary therapies to improve the patient’s quality of life and offer support during their journey through cancer. Integrative therapists may also offer advice on how to manage stress levels and improve quality of life.
A consultation with an integrative therapist can help you decide which treatments might be most beneficial for your unique situation. Integrative medicine uses a variety of different techniques or practices that are designed to promote wellness by addressing the physical, mental, emotional, social/environmental, and spiritual aspects of health care at the same time.
They recommend a specific treatment plan or set up a follow-up appointment
Integrative cancer therapists may also recommend specific treatments such as chemotherapy or radiation therapy along with their other treatment methods. But they will always try to tailor the treatment plan to the patient’s individual needs and conditions. This is because integrative cancer therapists believe that what works best for one person might not be right for someone else who has completely different health problems.
And it’s up to them–the patient–to decide which course of action they want to take based on all the information available from both traditional and non-traditional sources of help like integrative cancer therapists themselves. After the consultation, many people feel overwhelmed with all the information they’ve been given. This is normal, and the therapist should be happy to answer any questions the patient has. He or she may also provide a list of recommended reading material on integrative cancer therapies or other related topics. It’s important for patients to take their time in digesting all this new information and to ask as many questions as necessary to make an informed decision about their treatment.
Many different types of complementary therapies such as massage therapy, acupuncture, meditation,
Cancer is a debilitating disease that can take an emotional toll on the patient. As such, it’s important to consider both conventional and complementary therapies in the treatment of cancer. There are many different types of complementary therapies that may be used to help with pain management, anxiety control, depression, stress reduction, improved sleep quality, increased relaxation, and more. Some patients find they need only one type of therapy while others will use several types at once or overtime as needed for relief from their symptoms. Integrative cancer therapists have training in both conventional medicine and complementary therapies so they can design a personalized care plan for your needs.
They work closely with physicians who prescribe treatments to support you during this difficult journey providing information about how these modalities can work together. The initial appointment is usually 60-90 minutes. During this time, the patient will answer questions about their medical history and presenting symptoms in order for the therapist to determine which therapies would be most appropriate for that person’s needs. Treatments may include acupuncture, auricular therapy, massage therapy, guided imagery/visualization, meditation/relaxation training, reiki (energy), hypnosis, therapeutic touch (energy), biofeedback, or other complementary therapies depending on your specific needs.
The session typically lasts around 45 minutes
It’s important to be aware that you’re not going to be able to fix everything during a 45-minute session with an integrative cancer therapist. In fact, the goal of the first meeting is often simply for both parties (patient and therapist) to get a sense of one another and see what needs attention. That said, by the end of your first session, you should feel like your questions have been answered or at least addressed in some way.
The more time we spend together, the more we can work on healing – so don’t worry if things seem overwhelming right off the bat! The consultation will likely focus on two main areas: what brought you into treatment as well as how illness has impacted your life. It might also explore how your illness makes you feel, where you are in terms of your beliefs about yourself and the world, what changes you’d like to make in your life (if any), how physical pain may or may not be connected to emotional or spiritual pain, etc.