6 New Year’s Resolutions for Chronic Illness Patients
While most New Year’s resolutions revolve around goals like diet and fitness, they aren’t always tailored to people with chronic illnesses. As someone with a chronic illness, you may navigate life a little differently than others, so it's essential to tailor your health and wellness goals to fit your needs.
However, what exactly would these New Year’s resolutions for chronic illnesses look like?
If you’re looking for inspiration, here are six New Year’s resolutions you can implement next year.
Prioritize medical appointments
Take this time to review any upcoming appointments you may have. It’s easy to become so overwhelmed with other aspects of your life that you may easily forget some of your appointments. To avoid missed appointments, keep a planner or use your phone’s calendar as additional reminders for upcoming doctors’ visits.
Also, be sure that you’re getting regular check-ups, like dental cleanings, mammograms, and primary care visits. It’s crucial to stay up-to-date on your overall health and not just the areas impacted by your chronic illness.
Chronius can help you keep track of your upcoming appointments and take care of any appointment prep you may need. Join the waitlist to be one of the first users on the Chronius platform.
As you attend these doctors' appointments, it’s essential to remember that you should be an advocate for your health. You can self-advocate for yourself by communicating with your healthcare providers when you have any questions or concerns about your chronic condition. Self-advocacy is key to becoming a decision-maker in how your health is managed.
Adopt a good sleeping pattern
Having a chronic illness can bring about periods of fatigue throughout the day. In addition, with a chronic illness, your sleep patterns may be irregular due to chronic pain or exhaustion.
It’s recommended that everyone gets at least 7 to 9 hours of sleep each night. Adults sleeping five hours or less can increase their risk of developing other chronic illnesses. So, setting a time to go to bed each night can improve your sleep quality and help your body recover from the day.
Also, fatigue is a common symptom commonly associated with chronic illnesses, so if you get sleepy during the day, it's completely okay to take a nap if needed.
Stay physically active
Becoming more physically active is a typical New Year’s resolution for many, but it is crucial for boosting overall health. As someone with a chronic illness, you may be limited in how much physical activity you can do, but alternatives are available to get you moving.
A few examples of low-to-moderate levels of physical activity you can do include:
Walking
Swimming
Bicycling
Yoga
For adults with chronic illness, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends at least 150 minutes (or 30 minutes five days a week) of moderate-intensity physical activity a week.
Before engaging in physical activity, speak with your doctor to discuss any exercise that may harm your health.
Try new hobbies
Consider adopting new and fun hobbies for next year. Whether learning how to garden, reading more books, or starting a blog, choose a hobby that interests you the most. Having hobbies can keep you busy and get your mind off the stresses that chronic illnesses can cause.
Join support groups
Sharing your chronic illness experiences with your partner, family members, or friends can be challenging. However, having people who understand what you’re going through can be helpful when dealing with a chronic illness.
With this in mind, there are many support groups where you can share your stories, vent, and provide advice to others. You can search for in-person groups, or, if you’re uncomfortable with in-person events, you can join several online groups.
Some support groups are meant for anyone with a chronic illness, while others are designed for specific conditions, like:
A membership fee may be required to join certain support groups.
Focus on self-care
Managing a chronic condition can be mentally and physically exhausting, so making time for self-care is crucial. How self-care is practiced is different for everyone, but it primarily involves any activities that can help you meet your social, emotional, and physical needs. For chronic illness patients, our self-care needs relate to managing our conditions.
Here are some ways in which you can practice self-care with a chronic illness:
Try mindfulness practices like meditation and breathing exercises
Attend massage sessions for relaxation and pain relief
Stay on top of medications and vitamin supplements
Take therapy sessions to improve mental health
Set boundaries with friends and family by saying “no” when you feel too tired to go out.
Start journaling your patient journey
Create a vision board
As mentioned, living with a chronic illness poses challenges that may not fit into the typical New Year’s resolutions others may have. However, as a chronic illness patient, you can easily tailor your goals to serve your health needs.
Use the resolutions mentioned above to continue working towards your goal of improved health and overall well-being with a chronic illness.
How Chronius Can Help
If living with chronic illness feels like a full time job, you aren’t alone.
That’s why at Chronius, we make it easy to navigate the healthcare system as a patient. Our online care management platform brings together all of your health records and offers a 1-click appointment prep tool that easily synthesizes your health story for your care team. You also can track all of your symptoms, identify trends, learn from vetted medical information, and follow a custom patient journey map. Plus, if you needs hands on support, our Care Advocates are available to help you with any issues you may hit up against. Personalized support as you navigate your care journey is what we are all about.
Interested in learning more and signing up for our waitlist? Claim your spot today.
