What do I need to do in order to be best prepared for treatment mentally?

What do I need to do in order to be best prepared for treatment mentally?

This is a tricky one because I have to say this sort of anxiety about getting started on therapy usually ends up being way out of proportion to how kind of anticlimactic it is once we start these therapies. In this case, thankfully, because these therapies are pretty gentle and well tolerated for most for most folks. But the unknown is always scary. It doesn't matter if I tell you it's mild. It's scary because it's unknown. So what I would say to folks is, if possible, the best thing folks can do is kind of, you know, embrace their support system with family, friends. Sometimes it's actually folks that are part of the medical system where they're at some of the nurses or nurse practitioners that they're interacting with a lot. And of course, the doctors as well. Not everyone is blessed in the modern world to have their family and friends nearby. So for that, we also have a lot of patient advocacy groups Lymphoma Research Foundation, Lymphoma, Leukemia Society and many others where folks who have had similar experiences are sharing their stories and really, you know, with Facebook and other social media things, there are a near infinite number of these support groups. So I can't endorse one specifically, but just having folks that have gone through something very similar to you, you know, last year can be a great comfort in helping address that anxiety. You know, you can't just have a doctor say to a patient, it's going to be fine and then think, oh, it's going to be fine. That doesn't make you feel like it's going to be fine. But to hear the story of other people and to have your support system around is a big deal. It's also a time for for various patients to realize what kind of person they are. Some patients are very anxious and just having a thought that there is cancer in them growing, even if it is indolent, it even if it's not going to do much, can lead to a lot of anxiety. And and the fact that cancer is a disease of surprises that can change in spite of the best available therapies and the best available trials, it's kind of unnerving to several patients. So trying to to have that that perspective, that knowing a cancer is, I think, and understanding what kind of person they are is very helpful in choosing their disease [treatment]. Also engaging in good diet and exercise keeps the patient's mind off these anxiety provoking thoughts that often can be very helpful in leading to a healthy, healthy mind having a healthy lifestyle. And I always suggest patients to have that also in mind when they when they're planning to do because this is not a disease which can often just be treated with a high dose chemo and things are done, this often stays with them much longer. So definitely very helpful, especially many of the patients with CLL tend to be older and they have additional issues, much anxiety, often depression, and these have to be addressed well, that can help in leading a better, fruitful life much longer.