The family room™ program allows participants an opportunity to better integrate cancer into their lives by helping them to communicate and cope more effectively. The family room program offers short-term counseling, at no charge, to those people impacted by a cancer diagnosis. These services are available to cancer survivors, significant others, children, couples, families and those who have lost a loved one to cancer.

The family room™ program is staffed by licensed clinical professionals. In our effort to provide this valuable resource to as many people as can benefit from it, we offer a short-term counseling model.

Couples Counseling
For those within six months of diagnosis, we offer the Partners Empowered Program. Partners Empowered is a six-week, structured intervention focused on addressing the common issues of couples coping with cancer. In this program, Dr. Megan McMahon, a clinical psychologist, sees each couple privately for a total of six two-hour sessions. Both educational and therapeutic, the program covers the following topics: communicating with the health-care team; changing routines and roles; enhancing communication in the partnership; examining the effect of cancer on intimacy; and coping techniques and strategies.

The sixth session covers an optional topic determined by each couple’s specific needs. As with all of the participant programs at the Cancer Wellness Center, this program is offered free of charge and is supported by a generous grant from the American Cancer Society.

For couples beyond six months of diagnosis, the family room program offers short-term couples counseling. Counseling allows couples to examine the impact that cancer has on their relationship. Please call the Center to make an appointment.

Family Counseling
Family counseling entails bringing family members together to learn, talk and support each other during the difficult transitions and challenges cancer brings into a family’s life. Family counseling is very beneficial in helping all members of the family develop healthier coping and communication skills. What constitutes “the family” is purely subjective and we at the Cancer Wellness Center will work with whatever grouping of loved ones and friends are most important in the life of the cancer survivor. Please call the Center to make an appointment.

Bereavement Counseling
At the Cancer Wellness Center, we provide comfort, care and compassion as grieving people work through their complicated emotional journey. The grief process has no timeline as each individual’s experiences are personal and unique. This journey may include physical, emotional, cognitive, spiritual and social disruption, and may change the way the bereaved observe and connect with the world.

The Cancer Wellness Center provides bereavement support to grieving individuals, families, organizations and companies. Our bereavement team, directed by Deb Wojcik, L.C.S.W., consists of trained and experienced professionals who believe that grief is a normal, though challenging response to loss. Our bereavement services are offered to Cancer Wellness Center participants and their family members.