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Coping mentally with a serious illness

A serious illness may give rise to a variety of emotions such as fear, uncertainty, and loss of control over one’s life.

Factors affecting the ability to cope mentally include

  • life circumstances

  • personal ways and methods for dealing with challenging situations, strain, and negative emotions

  • support available for coping mentally and for everyday matters

  • previous life experiences.

Knowledge of an incurable illness, progression of illness, or approaching death puts strain on both the patient and the patient’s loved ones. In addition to the illness itself, the treatments, social situation, and ongoing daily routines around the patient put everyone involved under a great deal of mental strain.

There is a limit to how much a person can cope with mentally. When facing a mentally burdensome situation or stage of life, it’s normal to experience anxiety and feel unwell.

It’s good to acknowledge your personal resources in terms of mental wellbeing, as well as the factors putting strain on them. What state is my life in right now? Processing the things weighing on your mind makes it easier to cope. Take some time to think about how you approach stressful things and what you can do to recover from them; try to identify the things and situations causing strain that you can change, and try to find ways to accept the things that can’t be changed. It takes time to adapt to changes in your situation. Sometimes, just tolerating the situation is enough.

The ability to cope is founded on taking care of the essentials: making sure that you’re getting enough food, fluids, and rest. Ways to support your ability to cope mentally that feel natural to you may come from hobbies and from your circle of friends. Ways to recover from strain include reading, writing, crafts, physical activity, and other activities and experiences you enjoy.

During palliative care and hospice care, you can get support from the unit responsible for the patient’s care or from other professionals. Other places to go to for support include peer support, parishes, and organisations. The main thing is to not carry the burden alone.

Read more in Support for the patient in palliative care:

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Updated 28.3.2025