The emotional impact of a diagnosis of MDS or CMML – by Surabhi Chaturvedi
5 Aug. 2024
Below is a video presentation by Surabhi Chaturvedi, senior psychotherapist and service lead for the Haemato-Oncology Psychological Support Team at King's College Hospital, London. She spoke to the MDS UK Support Group about the emotional impact of a diagnosis of MDS or CMML and gave strategies for coping and living well.
Coping with a diagnosis of MDS or CMML
Topics covered include:
- Everyone is different and at different places
- Adjusting to the diagnosis
- Worry, stress and anxiety are normal
- Myths and false expectations of emotional well being
- Exploring self compassion
- Ways of coping with uncertainty
- Softening our beliefs
- The importance of peer support
- Where to get help
About Surabhi Chaturvedi
Ms Surabhi Chaturvedi is the senior Psychotherapist and service lead for the Haemato-Oncology psychological support team at King's College Hospital.
Surabhi Chaturvedi is an integrative psychotherapist with a background in clinical psychology. She leads a team of psychological therapists in a leading Haematology, Stem Cell Transplant, and Cellular Therapies unit in King’s College Hospital, London. The unit provides psychological support to patients and families affected by blood cancers and bone marrow failure, and offers training on psychological care of Haematology patients.
Where to get help
Surabhi mentioned various resources in her presentation, including the following:
- Calm An app to help you manage stress and anxiety, get better sleep, and feel more present in your life.
- Headspace An app to offering evidence-based meditation and mindfulness tools, to help you create life-changing habits to support your mental health
- Jon Kabat-Zinn - Full Catastrophe Living - Jon Kabat-Zinn is an American professor emeritus of medicine and the creator of the Stress Reduction Clinic and the Center for Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care, and Society at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. He is best known for developing Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), a program that integrates mindfulness meditation into mainstream medicine and health care. His seminal book, Full Catastrophe Living: Using the Wisdom of Your Body and Mind to Face Stress, Pain, and Illness, provides a comprehensive guide to using mindfulness to cope with stress, pain, and illness, drawing from his extensive experience in meditation and healthcare. Full Catastrophe Living - is also available as an audiobook on Audible.
- Blood cancer: Supporting body and mind by Surabhi Chaturvedi A piece by Surabhi about the importance of supporting people’s mental wellbeing throughout the course of their illness.
- NHS Talking therapies You can access talking therapies for free on the NHS. You can refer yourself directly to an NHS talking therapies service without a referral from a GP.
- Maggie's Maggie’s is a charity that provides free expert care and cancer support in centres across the UK and online
