Not everyone is lucky enough to live a normal life. For millions of people, their lives changed after being diagnosed with a debilitating disease. They face several unique challenges each day that make living a healthy, happy, and fulfilling life difficult.
Chronic Kidney Disease, for example, affects 37 million people worldwide. Kidney patients have a continuous need to get inpatient dialysis services and the never-ending costs of treatments. This is on top of CKD’s long-term effects and complications, like anemia, hypertension, and heart disease.
But despite having a debilitating disease, many people still manage to live a normal life. They can maintain a healthy lifestyle recommended by their healthcare providers. Even with the nature of their diseases, they can stay resilient with the help of the following tips.
Learn to Accept Your Limits
Now that you know the cause of your pain, discomfort, and other symptoms, the next best step is to get to know your limits. Focus on the things you still have control over. This will enable you to manage your disease and change your lifestyle for the better.
You might need to sacrifice many things to accommodate the kind of lifestyle that will better fit your diagnosis. It would be better to skip the tasks you are used to and start creating a new routine. Consult your healthcare providers with your new one to make sure you are leveraging your energy to boost your health and happiness in the long run.
For instance, make time for healthy lifestyle habits like getting enough rest and sleep, eating the recommended diet, and investing in exercise. Be consistent when it comes to health visits and take medications and other interventions. But don’t forget to keep your limitations in mind and learn to make compromises for your own health’s sake.
Find Different Types of Help
More than one type of help is available for you with or without your debilitating disease. This goes beyond the physical help you will require now that you are fighting your own battle. You also need emotional and mental support to keep you sane, happy, and healthy at the same time.
There are your close loved ones you can turn to when things get tough. They might not necessarily know how it feels to have the same situation as you do. But remember that they are having a rough time accepting your situation.
Then there’s your healthcare provider team, consisting of your general physicians and mental health professionals. They can offer expert advice on how to live life anew. They can also provide professional mental support now that chronic disease is making life harder than before.
Don’t forget about support groups available for people with the same illnesses. Know that you are not alone. There could be millions fighting to live their remaining years because they also have the same battle to fight.
Stop Living an Unstable Life
You might be close to reaching your dream, only for your illness to ruin everything. You could be an athlete about to star in a varsity team or an employee who is close to getting his dream promotion. But with a debilitating disease slowly taking a toll on your health, you might need to rethink your life.
This might mean accepting early that you have to find other things to do with your life. You can be successful with other endeavors only if you put your mind to it. If you don’t, you can end up making your condition worse and not live long enough to achieve your dreams.
There are ways you can live a fulfilling life, even if nothing went according to your original plans. You might not be able to live a life doing what you have always planned to do. But you can try finding another purpose in life, which is often a whole different world from what you were used to.
Maximize the Positives
They say there’s always a rainbow somewhere after the rain. If you focus on the negatives, you will be too blind to enjoy the good things in life. Know that being resilient and grateful will make you realize that your condition does not and should never define you.
Choose to be positive, resilient, and grateful. Before going to sleep, think of three things you are thankful for. Upon waking up each day, think of all the things you can do, what you can change for the better, and ways you can achieve these.
Many successful and famous people are fighting their own debilitating diseases. Despite their conditions, they manage to live a fulfilling life and touch other people’s lives in their own ways. You can do the same only if you choose not to use your condition as an excuse.
