The Monster of the Morning: Coping with Chronic Illness
What’s a sufferer and a caregiver to do?
How does one cope with chronic illness?
Whether you’re the patient or you take care of a chronically ill person, coping with the ongoing symptoms, drug side effects, and so much more can be difficult. Not to mention, the surprises and crises that catch you unawares. It’s just plain stressful; there’s no other way to describe it.
According to Merriam-Webster, the definition of cope is:
to deal with and attempt to overcome problems and difficulties.
According to the CDC, 60% of Americans have a chronic illness — heart disease, cancer, lung disease, diabetes, stroke, and a few more. “Chronic” means the disease plans to stick around a while, like forever. While “acute” signifies something that comes on quickly and often resolves quickly as well.
That’s a lot of coping going on, isn’t it? You’ve probably heard of “coping mechanisms” particularly in the construct of healthy versus unhealthy strategies to manage one’s stress. Dealing with caregiving stressors, of which there are many, requires a healthy handle on your own psyche. Healthy movement (aka exercise), meditation or prayer, a good night’s sleep are positive approaches to stress that can help one overcome…
