Waiting for Results – Managing Uncertainty During Cancer Care
The Anxiety of the Unknown
Few things feel as unsettling as waiting for medical results. Whether it’s a biopsy, a scan, or bloodwork, the days or weeks between testing and feedback can feel endless. This kind of anticipatory anxiety is common in cancer care—sometimes referred to as “scanxiety.”
At our Tunbridge Wells clinic, many clients describe the experience of waiting as one of the most difficult parts of treatment. You may find yourself bracing for bad news, frequently checking your phone or email, or swinging between hope and dread.
Uncertainty is emotionally demanding. Our minds want answers, structure, and control. When those things are missing, the brain fills in the gaps—often with worst-case scenarios.
Common Reactions During the Waiting Period
Everyone responds differently to uncertainty, but common emotional and physical experiences include:
Feeling irritable, short-tempered, or tearful
Trouble sleeping or waking early with racing thoughts
Increased worry or “what if” thinking
Feeling stuck between planning for the future and fearing it
Hypervigilance for symptoms or physical changes
Difficulty concentrating or being present
For some people, waiting re-triggers earlier traumas—like past diagnoses, treatment side effects, or difficult conversations. For others, it’s a new kind of stress they weren’t prepared for.
Why the Mind Struggles with Uncertainty
As humans, we’re wired to resolve uncertainty as quickly as possible. The brain sees it as a potential threat and pushes us into problem-solving mode—even when there’s no actual action to take. This is why the waiting period can feel so helpless and out of control.
If you’ve had bad news in the past, your brain may also try to “prepare” you emotionally by anticipating it again. While this is a protective strategy, it often increases anxiety and creates unnecessary emotional pain.
How Therapy Can Help
Working with a Clinical Psychologist can help you develop tools to manage uncertainty and stay emotionally regulated—even when the outcome is unknown. Therapy provides a space to feel your emotions without becoming overwhelmed by them.
1. Grounding Techniques
When your mind is spiralling into “what ifs,” grounding practices can help you return to the present. Techniques might include breathwork, sensory grounding, or visualisation exercises. These are simple but powerful ways to calm the nervous system.
2. Normalising Your Experience
In therapy, you can name the fear, frustration, and exhaustion without needing to downplay it. Many people feel pressure to stay positive or composed—but honesty is more healing than forced optimism.
3. Cognitive Tools for Reframing
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) helps you recognise unhelpful thought patterns and create space from catastrophic thinking. For example, “I’m going to get bad news” might become “I don’t know yet, and that’s uncomfortable—but it doesn’t mean the worst will happen.”
4. Learning to Tolerate Uncertainty
ACT (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy) and mindfulness approaches focus on building your capacity to sit with discomfort. You don’t need to like the waiting, but you can learn to respond to it with flexibility instead of fear.
5. Self-Compassion During Difficult Moments
Compassion-Focused Therapy (CFT) supports you in treating yourself with the same kindness you would offer to a friend in the same position. This can be a powerful antidote to the inner critic that often appears during vulnerable times.
Finding Balance While You Wait
You don’t need to spend the entire waiting period either focusing on the outcome entirely or distracting yourself. It’s okay to check the status of results. It’s also okay to go for a walk, laugh with a friend, or enjoy a moment of peace. These things don’t mean you’re in denial—they mean you’re human.
Therapy can help you find that balance: staying connected to your reality without being consumed by fear.
Support in Tunbridge Wells and Kent
If you’re navigating cancer care and struggling with anxiety during waiting periods, you are not alone. At The Tunbridge Wells Psychologist, our Clinical Psychologists provide supportive, specialist therapy for people living with and beyond cancer.
We use evidence-based approaches like CBT, ACT, CFT, and EMDR to help you manage distress, rebuild trust in your body, and feel more grounded during uncertainty. Whether you’re waiting for results, adjusting to life after treatment, or simply needing space to process, support is available.
