Three Ways Therapy Can Help People With Chronic Illness
Chronic illness can affect almost every part of life—including mental health. Luckily, getting the right support from a psychologist can make a big difference. In this blog, we’ll dive into impacts of chronic illness on mental health and benefits of therapy for people with chronic illness.
What Is Chronic Illness?
Chronic illness is a wide category. Typically, people consider chronic illness to include medical conditions that do not go away within six months, do not have an easy cure, and will not result in death in the near future. For chronic illness, treatment usually involves learning to manage symptoms.
Some people with chronic illness have a relatively stable condition. Other people can expect to live with their chronic illness but know that it might go away. Other illnesses flare up episodically: someone might go through periods of relative sickness and relative health.
In Rhode Island, some of the most common chronic diseases are hypertension, arthritis, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. Other examples of chronic illnesses include cancer, multiple sclerosis, digestive disorders, movement disorders, asthma, and fibromyalgia.
How Does Chronic Illness Impact Mental Health?
Living with a chronic illness can touch almost every part of life. This includes an intense impact on mental health.
First, chronic illness can have psychological effects. People with chronic illness experience more psychological distress than average, partly because the illness itself can cause psychological or emotional symptoms. For example, conditions involving activation of the immune system can have biological effects on the central nervous system that increase the risk of depression.
There’s also the physical side. Pain, fatigue, flare-ups, or limitations make it harder for people to do things they used to do with ease. The limitations of chronic illness—and the burden of managing it—can contribute to feelings of helplessness, frustration, sadness, or hopelessness. People with chronic illness may need to deal with frustration as their plans are disrupted, grief from missing out on experiences, and loneliness from feeling as though other people do not understand the challenges they face.
These limitations may have difficult material consequences for people, such as lost income or trouble maintaining relationships. For instance, chronic illness may lead to social isolation, or may come with stigma that is difficult to deal with. In addition, life with chronic illness can be unpredictable. People’s mental health especially suffers when they have illnesses that come and go. Lastly, navigating doctors, treatments, and insurance is exhausting for many.
Therapy for Chronic Illness
Psychologists, especially health psychologists, can help people cope with chronic illness. In therapy, these psychologists can create a space where people feel understood. Clients may benefit from learning pacing strategies, practicing mindfulness to ease stress and pain, or building self-compassion so they can let go of guilt when they need rest. They may also learn how to advocate for themselves with medical providers or in relationships, which can be empowering.
Here are a few ways working with a psychologist can help people cope with chronic illness.
1. Adjustment
Therapy can help people with chronic illness navigate the adjustment period. People who are newly diagnosed with illness often must make new meaning in the wake of this diagnosis. Therapists can help people who are newly diagnosed with challenges such as:
Finding a purpose in life,
Maintaining a positive outlook and navigating distress,
Bolstering their self-esteem,
Managing interpersonal relationships,
Dealing with their illness and symptoms, and
Navigating health care systems.
Overall, therapy for chronic illness can help people regain their sense of control in life; although they cannot control the illness, they can control their reaction to it. Therapy can help people with chronic illness reduce their sense of isolation and rediscover joy in life despite still experiencing symptoms.
2. Managing Anxiety and Depression
Many people with chronic illness fear the condition will progress or recur. This common fear is known as “health anxiety,” and may cause people to feel anxious about bodily changes. Health anxiety can be a useful way for people to manage their condition, yet can also become harmful to mental well-being.
Finding a therapist can help people with chronic illness learn to manage these fears. For instance, a therapist can assist someone in coping with their illness and bodily changes.
3. Coping With Pain
Chronic pain is common among people with long-term illnesses. Chronic pain can be psychologically taxing. It makes daily tasks require increased amounts of energy; can interfere with employment, family life, relationships, and social life; and can hinder sleep and lower mood.
Therapists for chronic pain can help people manage their condition. Studies have found a variety of methods of therapy help with chronic pain, including cognitive behavioral therapy, acceptance and commitment therapy, mindfulness, and more.
Psychologists can help people experiencing chronic pain process their distress, as well as validate their experiences. In addition, therapy can help people regulate their pain. Therapy can reduce the intensity of pain people experience and help people cope with pain when it occurs.
Conclusion
Navigating life with a chronic illness can feel overwhelming, but finding the right support can make a profound difference. Clients who receive therapy for chronic illness can become more self-confident and hopeful, building resilience and reclaiming parts of their life they may have felt they lost.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I find a therapist who understands chronic illness?
You can start by searching for a health psychologist or a therapist who lists experience with chronic illness, medical conditions, or chronic pain on their professional profile. Don't be afraid to ask potential therapists about their experience working with people who have conditions similar to yours during an initial consultation.
Can therapy help with physical symptoms like pain or fatigue?
While therapy doesn't cure physical symptoms, it can be incredibly effective in helping you manage them. In fact, research shows that therapy can help people cope with pain and reduce the amount of pain they experience.
How can therapy help people with chronic illness?
A psychologist can help someone with chronic illness adjust to their diagnosis in many ways, such as helping someone maintain a positive outlook, manage interpersonal relationships, and navigate health care systems. Therapy for chronic illness can also help people manage anxiety and depression, and cope with chronic pain.