Powerful Coping Strategies for your Chronic Illness
As someone who copes with an auto-immune condition, I understand what it is like to live with a chronic illness.
When you are first diagnosed with a long-term health condition, it can be disorienting and overwhelming, As time goes on, we cann end up struggling with how best to deal with our condition and the impact it has on our lives.
Learning to cope with the daily stressors of living with your chronic illness also includes learning how to deal with stress and the effects of stress.
When you have a chronic illness, you can become more susceptible to the impact of stress because there are so many additional aspects of having an illness that compounds your day-to-day life. This can include pain or discomfort from your symptoms. You may also learn and experience new limitations that can lead to frustration and more.
Managing both your self-care and your condition are quite important and can truly help your physical, mental and emotional well-being.
Steps you can take to Help you Cope with your Chronic Illness
There are some steps you can take steps to improve the quality of life and minimize the challenges of living with a long-term illness which can help you to start to cope and regain control.
Learn More about Your Condition
It is important to learn about your symptoms and treatment options for both the short and long-term. Ensure that you are using reputable sources to build your knowledge.
Turn to your medical professional to ask the questions you have about your illness.
Find your Strong Support Systems
Search for associations and organizations for people with your specific conditions. These can be online or in person supports. You can gain community support from people who have the same illness and can relate to and understand what you are going through. You can also learn more about the illness and new discoveries which can improve your knowledge.
Pay close Attention to your Body
Keeping a record of your symptoms can help you notice trends and changes in your symptoms and also help you monitor how you are feeling on a day-to-day basis.
This can help you learn what makes you feel better and what makes you feel worse. This helps you to better understand your body and also the emotional and mental impact your condition has on you.
It helps to provide this information to your medical specialist so they can better understand how the condition impacts you.
Become your own Leader & Advocate
Gaining a sense of control can greatly improve how you feel and can improve your quality of life.
This can help you more effectively manage your treatment plan and help you identify adjustments that may need to be made over time. Learning about your medication, including symptoms and side effects is also important.
Exercising your body and eating healthy can improve your mood and possibly ease your symptoms.
A Final Note & Bonus Resources
Managing your mental health is just as important as managing your physical health. This will help you balance your emotions, perspective and relationships.
If you would like to read or learn more about living with chronic illness, go to my Recommended Resources page for resources & books I suggest for your support.
Remember as you learn more about your chronic illness, that there are resources to support you and to help empower you as you learn and adjust on your journey.
