Having any health condition isn’t easy and these days, it’s pretty much guaranteed that each of us will have to contend with something that requires ongoing management, daily or weekly medications, regular doctors appointments and more.
Whether it’s an ongoing condition like asthma or allergies, something that can be managed through diet and lifestyle changes such as IBS or a progressive condition like Parkinson’s which will require ongoing and continual care for life, there are many ways we can make managing our health conditions – big or small – a little easier.
Obviously I am not a health professional and I can only offer tips that I find helpful through personal experience and the experiences of which I have witnesses in my own family. As always, don’t take your online research as gospel, always follow it up with discussions with relevant healthcare providers which can help decide whether it’s right for you.
Look into your organisation methods
If you’re struggling to keep on top of the organisation aspect of your medical conditions, such as doctors appointments or taking medication on time, then it might be your organisation methods which are lacking. You want to:
Use a system that works for you
Make it easy to see and access (i.e not tucked away in a drawer)
Consider using a pill box to organise medications
Give someone else your medical information
Appoint a trusted person to have access to your medical details, including when you need to take what medications, phone numbers for doctors or specific departments you deal with, any allergies or triggers you might have and more. This can ensure that if you do get into a pickle, you have someone on hand who knows exactly what to do.
Have a support system
As well as that appointed person, having a support system in place is vital for the mental aspects of dealing with medical conditions. It doesn’t have to be a whole support group – although those are brilliant too – but just one trusted friend who you can speak to when things are feeling too much can do wonders.
Use an online pharmacy
If accessibility is a problem for you, then an online pharmacy, such as Curely, could be a life safer. Offering unmatched convenience with 24/7 availability, home delivery and some of which offer online consultations as well. It’s another service and resource to keep in your back pocket to help manage your health conditions.
Learn to listen to your body
When you have health conditions – again, however big or small – you need to learn to listen to your own body. Nobody else can feel when something is becoming too much, you’re getting too tired or you’re in pain. So keep a mental (or physical) log of how certain activities typically make you feel and then you can take that into consideration next time.
Research your own condition
Although you’ve likely been given the basics by your doctor, it’s always worth doing your own research into your specific condition. Not just the symptoms but the causes, the progression (if any) and the science behind your condition. It can give you a lot of power, having that type of knowledge and make you more equipped to deal with your condition more effectively.
From online pharmacies, to support systems, organisation methods and more, there are plenty of ways you can help yourself manage health conditions. Having any condition can be difficult, debilitating, life-changing amongst many other things. So the more we can do to ease that burden on ourselves, the better.