When a loved one gets a life altering diagnosis it can be scary.  Distressing questions rush through one’s mind such as: will they survive, what are the options, do we need a second opinion, what will their be like now that they are facing _________?   These types of thoughts are normal and can help to evaluate the situation and search for solutions.

However; the longer one fixates on the situation the more likely it is that fabricated stories (usually of the horror kind) begin to develop about what “could happen”.  Along with that, well-meaning friends, after hearing the diagnosis, will share an experience they, or someone they know, went through in a “similar” situation.

Unfortunately, these stories are frequently the worst-case-scenario that happened to their friend’s, cousin’s mother and, not only does the reality of that specific situation get lost through interpretation (think of the game “telephone” – what was…