[Love and Sex Series 336]Postoperative depression affects quality of life…

Transcript◆Liang Yingxiu

After partial resection or radical resection of breast cancer, although the condition is relieved and controlled, it does not mean that it is cured. There are still many problems, such as psychological stress, upper limb edema, physical weakness, etc., which seriously affect the patient’s quality of life.

(Kuala Lumpur News) As we all know, breast cancer patients experience great body shape changes due to surgery, which can easily cause psychological burden and emotional changes such as depression and anxiety. This proves that there is a close relationship between emotions and the disease. Therefore, postoperative emotional management is very important. important.

Acupoint massage helps calm the mind and calm the mind

Chen Huimei, a Chinese medicine practitioner, pointed out that a bad mood will affect sleep; and when the sleep time and quality are insufficient, it will hinder the repair function after surgery and even interfere with the balance of the nervous, endocrine and immune systems. This vicious cycle is very important for mediating. In terms of metabolism, it can have negative effects and delay the patient’s postoperative recovery.

“From the perspective of traditional Chinese medicine, qi causes all kinds of diseases, and all diseases are caused by qi and then aggravated by qi. To put it simply, when qi is out of balance and the internal organs are out of harmony, cold, blood stasis, poison and other pathological substances are produced in the body. As a result, tumors form; the longer the tumors stay in the body, they will gradually consume the body’s righteousness.”

The theory of traditional Chinese medicine points out that the liver meridian is related to the breasts, and stagnation of liver qi in women can easily lead to breast cancer. Since emotions and qi are closely related, the most critical method of traditional Chinese medicine treatment is to soothe the liver and regulate qi.

If liver qi is not flowing smoothly, it is easy to damage the liver and cause imbalance of qi. The Yellow Emperor’s Internal Classic says: If the spirit is kept internally, the disease will be relieved. The old secret of preventing and fighting cancer is to maintain a good attitude in order to achieve the purpose of peace of mind and relaxation of liver qi.

She said that she can usually chat more with relatives and friends, listen to some soothing music, or find a platform that suits her to vent her discomfort.

In addition, Chinese medicine emphasizes acupoint massage. “We can select some acupoints that can relax the mood, calm the mind and improve sleep quality, such as Neiguan point, Shenmen point, Yintang point, etc.”

“First place your thumb or index finger on the fixed acupuncture point.

On these acupuncture points in no particular order,

Knead with moderate strength and speed,

About 5 to 10 minutes, 3 to 4 times a day. “

“You can also brew Chinese herbal tea on a regular basis. Choose Chinese herbal flowers that can soothe the liver, relieve blood stasis and soothe the nerves, such as chrysanthemum, greenberry, lotus, rose, mint, etc. After adding 5 to 6 flowers, pour in 300 to Use 400cc of boiling water and let the Chinese medicinal flowers soak in the water for about 10 minutes before enjoying.”

Eat easy-to-digest high-protein foods

She often receives questions: “Doctor, what should I take to replenish my body after surgery?”, “Doctor, I found on the Internet that I can’t eat chicken, duck, or drink milk after the surgery. Is that so?” Others would ask her, what health care products can be taken?

“Before taking nutritional supplements, patients should complete a comprehensive assessment of their individual nutritional status and also need to understand the purpose of nutritional supplements. Because surgery involves more collective consumption, it is necessary to make adjustments in diet to promote wound healing and restore physical strength. . Generally speaking, patients should eat foods that are easy to digest, high in protein and rich in vitamins after surgery.”

The World Health Organization recommends that daily sugar intake should not exceed 50 grams. Consuming 25 grams or less can reduce the risk of other diseases such as obesity or diabetes. As for whether milk is a carcinogen?

She revealed that this is also a common question. Milk is a source of high-quality protein and calcium. It can make up for the calcium loss that occurs in breast cancer patients after surgery. It can also provide a small amount of essential fatty acids, which is a protective factor for breast cancer. Because breast cancer surgery Consuming Qi and blood will cause patients to have insufficient Qi and blood after surgery. Traditional Chinese medicine often emphasizes that the spleen and stomach are Qi and blood as biochemical resources. Therefore, if the patient has less activity after surgery, the gastrointestinal function will be disordered, often manifesting as fatigue, dizziness, appetite deviation, and nausea. Heart palpitations, abdominal distension, diarrhea or constipation, etc. At this time, traditional Chinese medicine focuses on taking care of the abdomen, spleen and stomach in rehabilitation treatment after breast cancer surgery.

High chance of postoperative lymphedema

She said that when the function of the spleen and stomach is strengthened, qi and blood can be biochemically normal, and the patient will recover faster. Therefore, after surgery, patients should drink more chicken soup, fish soup, longan soup and other foods that strengthen the skin and nourish the kidneys, and then eat an appropriate amount of dry, cool and moist foods, such as pears, black plums, bananas, lotus roots, peach gum, etc.; meals that replenish qi and promote body fluids, such as Jujube Huangqi soup and lotus seed lean meat soup can help consolidate the curative effect of surgery and facilitate recovery. Adding appropriate amounts of traditional Chinese medicine such as yam, coix seed, corn, tangerine peel, mountain pepper or lily will not only make the food more delicious, but also help strengthen the spleen and stomach. .

“The incidence of lymphedema after breast cancer surgery is high, and the recurrence rate 3 years after surgery can be as high as about 77%. This is because axillary lymph node dissection was performed in the affected area, which damaged the meridians, resulting in a decrease in the water and moisture function of the body, and the menstrual flow The fluid remains without melting, forming edema.”

“Qi and muscle imbalance, meridian congestion, unfavorable blood type, and water formation. Water overflows and stays on the skin, resulting in edema. Therefore, traditional Chinese medicine treats lymphedema after breast cancer surgery by draining water to reduce swelling, promoting qi, activating blood, and removing blood stasis. This is common. The main treatment method is a combination of acupuncture and traditional Chinese medicine.”

postoperative lymphedema

Acupuncture and Chinese medicine combined treatment

Traditional Chinese medicine treats lymphedema that occurs after breast cancer surgery. Acupuncture and a combination of traditional Chinese medicine are commonly used as the main treatment methods.

Chen Huimei pointed out that acupuncture can re-open the patient’s occluded lymphatic vessels by stimulating the meridian system of the upper limbs. It can also stimulate the contraction of striated muscles, causing scars; the activities of local muscles and joints are limited and even painful, which seriously affects the patients’ daily life. For example, activities such as getting dressed, doing housework, or lifting objects.

Postoperative exercise to establish speed sequence

“Clinically, as long as the patient thinks the scar is itchy, uncomfortable or painful, it is called a problematic scar. The larger the wound, the more serious the involvement and the wider the scope, not only the local area. Adhesions and even movement can affect it.”

Interventional adjustment of distal or visceral muscles and fascia can be done by fixing the front surface skin with acupuncture, allowing the patient to move the inner muscles independently, unblocking the adhesion nodules in the body, and restoring the level of activity. This can help the patient improve various post-surgery conditions. Uncomfortable.

Postoperative exercises are mainly based on firmness and speed sequence; after surgery, you will start with rehabilitation exercises such as loosening the fist, making a fist, and rotating the wrist. After you become proficient, you can combine flexion and extension of the total joint and small range of muscle and joint movements, and do 3 to 4 exercises a day. times, each time can be done for about 10 minutes; in the later stage, the range of motion of the shoulder joint can be increased, and it can be done at least 4 times a day, each time can be done for about 15 minutes.

After that, it is necessary to prevent the affected limb from sagging and abducting to cause blood and fluid accumulation in the armpit. It is also best to reduce the large swing of the hand.

Do not encourage strenuous exercise

She said that strenuous exercise is generally not recommended after breast cancer surgery. During aerobic exercise, it is recommended to control the exercise intensity at 50 to 70%. Appropriate upper limb exercise is beneficial to people suffering from upper limb lymphedema after breast cancer surgery. It is helpful and can enhance muscle strength and improve physical fatigue.

“Research has shown that yoga can effectively restore some upper limb functions in breast cancer patients; however, you must be very careful during yoga operations, because exerting force or incorrect posture can easily damage the muscles, thereby aggravating the patient’s upper limb limitations.”

In addition to modern exercise, patients who are interested in slow and elegant exercise can combine it with activities such as Tai Chi or Baduanjin. These exercises focus on breath regulation and are unhurried and slow in nature, so that patients can breathe smoothly after exercise. Feel refreshed.

Regular review and timely treatment

Regular postoperative review plays a vital role in the early diagnosis and timely treatment of breast cancer. Regular review can mainly detect and deal with adverse reactions caused by drug treatment in a timely manner; in addition, it can detect whether the tumor has relapsed or metastasized, and then Early detection and early treatment, because the first peak period of breast cancer recurrence and metastasis is about 2 to 3 years after surgery, so it is generally recommended to have regular review every 3 months within 2 years after surgery; 3 to 5 years after surgery Regular review should be done every six months every year; if there is no recurrence or metastasis for more than 5 years after surgery, regular review can be done once a year.

Follow-up with traditional Chinese medicine can also consolidate the efficacy of surgical treatment. The main purpose of traditional Chinese medicine conditioning is to reduce postoperative complications, promote physical recovery, remove residual tumor cells in the body, inhibit tumor recurrence and metastasis, and improve the patient’s quality of life. Traditional Chinese medicine conditioning runs through the entire process of breast cancer. In addition to postoperative conditioning, it also shows a detoxification effect during the treatment period. After completing Western medicine treatment, Chinese medicine treatment is used to assist the balance of righteousness, yin and yang of the human body, and improve immune function, so that the human body’s righteousness can be maintained in a full state and effectively Reduce the possibility of recurrence and metastasis.

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