Many children with cancer experience fatigue during and following treatment. Children may describe fatigue as being tired and/or feeling weak. Common causes of fatigue, include:
- Cancer treatment (surgery, chemotherapy, or radiation)
- Low blood counts
- Poor nutrition
- Not getting enough sleep
- Poor quality of sleep
- Trying to do too much
Tell your healthcare provider if your child has fatigue. You can do many things to help your child fight fatigue.
- Encourage physical activity every day.
- A physical therapist can create an exercise program to increase your child’s strength and endurance.
- If your child’s appetite is poor, offer healthy foods every two to three hours while awake. Try to make each snack as nutritious as possible. Talk to your nutritionist for ideas.
- Discourage caffeine.
- Follow a regular bedtime routine.
- Get plenty of sleep each night.
- Alter the child’s regular routines to avoid over extending, such as reducing attendance at school to half days.
If needed, work with your healthcare team to develop a plan to decrease pain.