Coping with Chronic Illness — what the evidence says

Having a long-term, or chronic, illness can disrupt your life in many ways. You may often be tired and in pain. Your illness might affect your appearance or your physical abilities and independence. You may not be able to work, causing financial problems.

For children, chronic illnesses can be frightening, because they may not understand why this is happening to them. These changes can cause stress, anxiety, and anger. If they do, it is important to seek help. A trained counselor can help you develop strategies to regain a feeling of control.

Support groups might help, too. You will find that you are not alone, and you may learn some new tips on how to cope. You may be able to manage your illness better if you learn more about it. It is important to evaluate the information that you find, to make sure that it is reliable.

It is also important to find a health care provider that you can trust.

Where this page came from

This page was imported from MedlinePlus, U.S. National Library of Medicine. MedlinePlus is produced by the U.S. National Library of Medicine and is in the public domain.

Nobody has written it yet — it is the source material at a new address, which is why search engines are asked to skip it and why no one earns from it. It is up for grabs: take it on, and it is yours to rewrite and to earn from.