Young adulthood is full of feelings. Add cancer to the mix, and emotions can feel louder, messier, harder to name, or easier to ignore just to get through the day. Many young adults impacted by cancer become very good at holding it together, even when there is a lot happening beneath the surface.
Mental health in the AYA cancer experience often shows up in quiet and complicated ways. Anxiety that hums in the background. Fear of recurrence that pops up out of nowhere. Emotional fatigue, numbness, irritability, or overwhelm that does not always make sense. For many AYAs, these experiences continue long after treatment ends and deserve space, care, and curiosity.
In this May edition of The Inner Canvas, Inside Out, we are highlighting Mental Health Awareness Month by creating space to notice, explore, and express what is happening on the inside. Led by a clinician, participants will explore their internal emotional world through guided creative coping practices designed specifically for young adults impacted by cancer. Using doodling, journaling, mindfulness, visualization, and art response, participants will experiment with turning feelings into shapes, colors, words, and meaning.
This session is structured but playful, reflective but grounding. Participants will engage in creative activities and connect with other young adults who understand, providing space to explore emotions without pressure to fix, explain, or tidy them up.
No art experience is required. Truly. This is not about talent or making something look a certain way. The focus is on expression, nervous system regulation, and emotional awareness rather than aesthetics or outcomes. Participants are encouraged to show up exactly as they are and engage at their own pace.
Participants will leave with creative tools they can return to when emotions feel overwhelming, unclear, or hard to put into words, along with a reminder that paying attention to mental health is not extra credit in survivorship. It is part of the work.
Who: Young adult patients & survivors (ages 18 to 45) impacted by cancer
What: A 90-minute guided creative workshop led by Lauren Morales, LCSW
When: Every Third Wednesday of the month. May 20th, 2026 @ 3:00–4:30 PM PT / 5:00–6:30 PM CT / 6:00–7:30 PM ET
Where: Virtual on Zoom