Coping With Autoimmunity

[Guest guest]

When you are diagnosed with a serious chronic autoimmune disease, it

is normal to question your well-being and your mental ability to

cope with the life changes that are part of living successfully-with

any serious chronic illness. A few basic suggestions are crucial for

you to consider in order for you to manage your illness better.

Understand your illness and the treatment plan established by your

physician. Ask questions of your doctor about your particular

condition, especially what changes and symptoms you can expect to

encounter.

Following the treatment plan designed by your physician is vital.

If you are unsure of the treatment plan, do not be afraid to ask

questions or even get a second or third opinion. Ask questions about

the side effects of medications and medical tests and the effect or

benefit they will have on your condition.

Let your doctor know if some new symptom is occurring. Persons

with chronic illness often feel that their doctors are going to

think they arechronic complainers if they are honest about how they

are feeling. They may worry that their doctors will simply give them

more prescriptions, adding to the many medications they are already

taking. Another fear patients may have is that if they complain too

much, their doctors may not want them as patients. It is much better

to discuss what is going on and how it might be treated than to

worry about what the doctor will think.

In short, don't be intimidated by the medical proffession.

Remember, your doctor is your partner in fighting your disease. Be

honest with your doctor. You hurt only yourself if you are not up

front with your physician. Play a role in your treatment plan. Once

satisfied that is right for you, follow it.

Fatigue may accompany many of the autoimmune diseases. Learning

how to pace your activity level can put you in control of your

illness. It is important to listen to your body and stop before you

feel you are tired. Pacing your activity can help you sustain a

relatively normal and consistent energy level. Patients often feel

guilty if they slow their pace and therefore rest only when they are

not feeling well or are very tired. This forced rest period can last

a few days and patients then try to " catch up " and accomplish all

they were unable to do during the time they were resting.

The cycle of high activity and prolonged rest periods can interfere

with managing of the disease process and, with some autoimmune

diseases, create a need for more medication to control the

constitutional symptoms that accompany those illnesses. By learning

to spread out your work load, you will be able to accomplish as much

while feeling better both physically and emotionally.

If you have an autoimmune disease that requires a special diet,

following this diet is very important. Doing so can play a major

role in the management of your illness and your sense of well-being

Learning the ins and outs of nutrition and healthy food preparation

puts you in control of your diet and, in turn, better management of

your disease.

You can expect to have a variety of emotional responses.

Typically, newly diagnosed patients feel the " anger, denial,

bargaining, depression and acceptance " cycle identified by Kubler-

Ross as a response to coping with a significant loss and major life

changes. You may feel isolated from others and experience fear of

the unknown future.

You can expect to have a variety of emotional responses.

Typically, newly diagnosed patients feel the " anger, denial,

bargaining, depression and acceptance " cycle identified by Kubler-

Ross as a response to coping with a significant loss and major life

changes. You may feel isolated from others and experience fear of

the unknown future.

Understanding these responses and their causes will help you

determine what works best for you in overcoming them. Be open and

forthright with those around you. It is important that you do not

blame everything that goes wrong on your illness.

Use " I " messages with others. If you are not feeling well,

say " I'm not feeling well and I could really use your

support. " " You " messages are usually interpreted defensively and get

in the way of the real issue, which is your need for support. It's

okay to lean upon your support system when you need to.

Chronic illness often has so many ups and downs that it can be

emotionally draining. How you handle this emotional roller coaster

is very important and personal. Some of the techniques may involve:

trying to keep up a normal life-style, pacing yourself and your

activities, using relaxation techniques, covering up your pain, and

joining support groups. You must find out what works best for you.

Understanding that your emotional state, and trying to cope, can be

fatiguing in themselves is a step in the right direction.

Give yourself and your family time to adjust. Nobody adjusts

overnight to something that may significantly impact on the rest of

his or her life. Viewing life with a serious illness as one more of

life's challenges is helpful. Understanding that you might

experience feelings of worthlessness, depression, anger and self-

pity, and that it is normal to experience these feelings, helps you

master coping techniques.

Joining a support group for persons with chronic illness is very

helpful to many patients. Professional counselling may be in order

if you are unable to cope in spite of every effort to do so.

Understand that you did nothing to cause your illness and that

life is not always fair. Bad things do happen to almost everyone at

sometime in a lifetime. It is how we deal with these life changes

that makes the difference between a life of coping and a life of

moping.

Dealing with the emotional aspect of having a chronic illness is a

challenge. Often the unpredictability of a serious illness makes you

feel out of control of your life and well-being. This can cause

anxiety for both you and your family