By: Cindy Andrade

ANXIETY  Anxiety is a general term for having feelings such as nervousness, fear, apprehension, and worrying.  It can be reduced by looking for ways to help the child understand what they are about to face in their treatment and life.

CHEMOTHERAPY  Chemotherapy is one of the most common treatments for cancer.  It kills numerous cancer cells by preventing the cells from multiplying further throughout the body.

Ways to Administer Chemotherapy  Intravenously  Oral chemotherapy- Pills and liquid medication.  Injections to the muscle(intramuscular) or under the skin (subcutaneous).

Side Effects of Chemotherapy  Every patient has different symptoms.  Most common symptoms are Fatigue Pain Hair loss or hair thinning Vomiting Constant nausea Loss of appetite Rashes and easy bruising.

CHANGES  As a consequence of all these side effects, children experience anxiety when they realize what this treatment involves.  The children are affected both physically and mentally.

SOCIAL ANXIETY  An anxiety disorder in which a person has an excessive and unreasonable fear of social situations.  Self-consciousness arises from a fear of being closely watched, judged, and criticized by others.

SOCIAL ANXIETY  Children’s new physical appearance such as hair loss, weight changes, skin rashes, or puffiness provokes feelings of self consciousness and they may start to think that society might not accept them anymore.

SEPARATION ANXIETY  Occurs when children are used to being in a safe environment.  For example, when it is time for the child to return to school or go to a place that they are not used to, they develop a sense of anxiety from being apart from the person that protects them.

ANXIETY  The uneasy feeling that children get when they see the tools, such as needles that are going to be inserted in their arm, makes their next visit to the hospital difficult because they know that the outcome for them is going to be painful.

THERAPIES AND TECHNIQUES  There are different therapies to help children reduce their anxiety. Yoga is being used for pediatric patients. Breathing techniques are beneficial because the child can breathe calmly relieving the tension while painful procedures are occurring.

OTHER TECHNIQUES  Virtual reality  Child life specialist  Cooking activities  Video game consoles such as Wii and Xbox’s are also part of the process of distraction.  Camps are offered to the children.

Project  For my project I am designing a coloring/activity book in order to distract the children.

Work Cited  Ahmadi, Michael. "Virtual Reality May Help children Undergoing Chemotherapy." JNCI J Natl Cancer Inst 93.9 (2001): Web. 8 Mar 2012   Aschenbrenner, Martha. Interview. 11 Feb  Hart, J. "Music Therapy For Children And Adults With Cancer." Alternative & Complementary Therapies 15.5 (2009): CINAHL Plus with Full Text. Web. 8 Mar  grunge/kids-cancer-4811.jpg grunge/kids-cancer-4811.jpg  content/uploads/2010/09/separation.jpg content/uploads/2010/09/separation.jpg   content/uploads/2010/05/yogakidsmenn.jpg content/uploads/2010/05/yogakidsmenn.jpg

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