Having a chronic illness comes with many challenges. Some challenges include:

• People not understanding what it is like to have a chronic illness

• Having to say no to plans or cancel last minute 

• The frustration that comes from your body being able to do something one day, and not the next

• Feeling hopeless when you cannot get a diagnosis or there are no treatments available 

• Burnout from having to keep up with scheduling and going to appointments, refilling medication, long calls with insurance companies, symptom tracking, and more. 

• Going through painful procedures, adjusting to new medications and side effects, and coping with new symptoms that seem to appear or change every few months 

 

It is hard to figure out how to cope with the changes that your health makes in your life. It can also be hard to understand how your mental health affects your physical health and vice versa. Processing what it is like to manage and live with a chronic illness and learning coping skills can ease the burden of illness and make it a little lighter to hold.