Feeling Guilty - Should I?

After recovering from and surviving thyroid cancer last year, I am wanting to look and feel healthy again. I have always been a "summertime" tanner and would like to go to the tanning bed again. The problem? I am being made to feel guilty since I am "predisposed" to cancer. I am very grateful for being "cured" of cancer. Does it seem like a slap in the face of fate if  I go tanning?

This may seem like a very irrelevant question, but I am really struggling with the view that others have. As if I am squandering away my gift of a second chance. Does this make sense to anyone else? Do you have those feelings of guilt now that you have survived cancer?

I just want to feel and look good again, and occasionally tanning makes me feel good; it is so relaxing!!   

Thanks all for your response. It helps to hear from others who have gone through similar experiences. 

Pamela  

Pamela,

It was very important to me to resume as many of the regular activities of my life as soon as I possibly could during and after treatments. Getting back to normal and getting my life back was always on my mind. And I have done that. However, I do feel that I was given a 2nd chance, so I've tried to focus and regaining those things that I enjoy that are not harmful to me, and not do the things that were harmful to me, like drinking beer every night (which I loved to do).

I think you should get back to your life routine and not feel guilty. What does guilt have to do w/ anything anyway? Having said that, tanning is definetly bad for you and I'm sure you look just great w/o it, will look even better as you age w/o it, and can find other ways to enjoy that 15 minutes. Buy a nice relaxing meditation cd. Stop tanning not because of guilt, stop tanning because it is harmful to you is my opinion.

God Bless.

Rick

Hi Pamela,

I agree with Rick.    Buy a good book or CD. 

Stay out of the tanning beds and the direct sun. 

 Why tempt fate.

Good luck to you.

Chessie - Thanks for the reply, but  "buy a good book or CD."  What does that have to do with anything? Are you implying that because I would like to go tanning I am somehow ignorant? 

If I am taking you wrong, please enlighten me. 

Chessie -I am sorry. I didn't see Rick's message and didn't understand the reference to the CD/book.  I didn't mean to snap back at you!  Not seeing his message first, I completely took your message out of context. :D

Thanks Rick for your reply. I do other things to relax. That isn't the reason I want to go tanning. I do find it relaxing as well as laying out in the pool.  A dermatologist did tell me it was "better" to get a tan in the salon than in the direct sun though.

I am still young (29) and just want to get back to my life. I finally feel good (took about 6 months of dose adjustments) on the inside and want to look good on the outside (and not get burned on my vacation). lol

Thanks again for your replies.  

I feel really bad for even bringing this up. I went over to the skin cancer board just to see how others are doing, and realized how awful melanoma and other skin cancers really can be. I honestly had no idea how ravenous it could be (and I'm in the medical field).

I cannot believe how lucky I have been in this cancer journey, and I feel "guilty" (there's that word again Rick :) for even caring about being tan after reading some of the stories of those with skin cancer. 

Rick and Chessie are right. Our health is more important than if we look pasty in the summer. :D

Off to go look for a fake tan in a bottle....   

After being DX with skin cancer 3 years ago. at the age of 30. My Dr told me to stay out of tanning beds. He said the beds were way worse than direct sun light. direct sun light can offer shields such as cloud cover to eliminate UVR. I would stay far away from the beds.

After The dr.s heard my history and my excessive exposure to tanning beds, they contributed many of my skin problems to the beds alone.

On 5/9/2008 rooney33147 wrote:

I feel really bad for even bringing this up. I went over to the skin cancer board just to see how others are doing, and realized how awful melanoma and other skin cancers really can be. I honestly had no idea how ravenous it could be (and I'm in the medical field).

I cannot believe how lucky I have been in this cancer journey, and I feel "guilty" (there's that word again Rick :) for even caring about being tan after reading some of the stories of those with skin cancer. 

Rick and Chessie are right. Our health is more important than if we look pasty in the summer. :D

Off to go look for a fake tan in a bottle....   

Greetings. Have your cake and eat it too ? get that tan in a bottle and 70 sunblock, have a sit at the pool feel the sun upon you staying clear of tanning beds ?

 I find that getting back to normal is parimount to feeling better inside, we have survived the beast this far and given it many a things along the way. I see compromise to the question. And don't feel guilty about posting this is not trivial, feeling back to normal can assist in warting off depression, You are young and with a careful approch to this situation you can have it be part of your quality future. Surrender to the sun but be careful along the way. Yet another viewpoint .

glowworm