By Andrew Esch, MD
When you are living with ovarian cancer, the symptoms and side effects can take a toll. Bloating, pain, nausea and fatigue can stop you from doing the things you enjoy, and can prevent you from keeping up with your treatments. Ovarian cancer can also have a big effect on your emotional health, body image and sexual functioning – all of which can create stress for you and your family. … Read More
Would you like to know about a medical team that can help you manage the symptoms and stress of living with a serious illness? If you have cancer, COPD, heart or kidney disease, Parkinson’s, or any other serious illness, you might benefit from palliative care. If you don’t know much about it, watch and listen to the webinars, podcasts and videos on GetPalliativeCare.org. You will learn from other patients, caregivers and palliative care experts as they explain how a referral to a palliative care team can help provide improve your quality of life. … Read More
The number of medical and patient support organizations actively recommending palliative care continues to grow for people living with serious illnesses, and for good reason: palliative care focuses on relieving the symptoms and stress of the illness, and the goal is to improve quality of life for both the patient and the family. … Read More
For Marion, breast cancer and its treatment brought pain and depression that kept her from the things she loved doing. She was diagnosed with stage IV breast cancer in 2014. Eventually, Marion’s oncologist referred her to palliative care.
Palliative care (pronounced pal-lee-uh-tiv) is specialized medical care for people living with serious illness. This type of care is focused on providing relief from the symptoms and stress of a serious illness. The goal is to improve quality of life for both the patient and the family. Palliative care is provided by a specially-trained team of doctors, nurses and other specialists who work together with a patient’s other doctors to provide an extra layer of support. It is appropriate at any age and at any stage in a serious illness, and it can be provided along with curative treatment.
“Since I began seeing palliative care, I am much more aware of living purposefully, of spending my time doing things that mean something,” says Marion. … Read More
Are you or a loved one living with an illness like COPD, cancer, Parkinson’s, heart, or kidney disease? If you are, you might greatly benefit from palliative care – and you should demand it.
Palliative Care (pronounced pal-lee-uh-tiv) is specialized medical care that is focused on relieving the symptoms and stress of a serious illness. The goal is to improve quality of life.
Palliative care is provided by a specially-trained team of doctors, nurses and other specialists who work together with your other doctors to provide an extra layer of support. It is appropriate at any age and at any stage in an illness, and it can be provided along with curative treatment.
You can receive palliative care in a variety of places, including the hospital, outpatient clinic and at home. Most insurance plans, including Medicare and Medicaid, cover it.
What can you expect from palliative care? You can expect relief from symptoms such as pain, shortness of breath, fatigue, constipation, nausea, loss of appetite, depression, anxiety, difficulty sleeping and much more. Palliative care helps you carry on with your daily life. It improves your ability to go through medical treatments. It helps you better understand your condition and your choices for medical care. In short, you can expect the best possible quality of life.
To see if palliative care is right for you or a loved one, take the quiz. Answer the questions to determine whether palliative care is right for you or someone close to you. If you need palliative care you just have to ask for it! Tell your doctors and nurses that you would like to see the palliative care team. You can start with the Palliative Care Provider Directory on GetPalliativeCare.org. That’s where you can find palliative care in your area, quickly and easily.
Register Now: Managing Anxiety & Depression When Living with a Serious Illness
Date and Time:
May 14, 2019
1:00-2:00 pm EDT
Featured Presenter:
Andy Esch, MD, MBA
Webinar Description:
If you or a loved one live with an illness like cancer, COPD, heart disease or others, you likely know the feelings of anxiety and depression. You may assume that it’s normal to feel sad or worried when you’re sick. While it is normal to have days when you feel blue, something is wrong if these symptoms don’t go away, if you’re having trouble eating or sleeping, or if you’re not enjoying things the way you normally do. Palliative care can help by treating the symptoms and stress of your illness – including anxiety and depression. Palliative care is available at any stage of your illness and the sooner you get it, the better.
Join us to learn more.
Who should attend:
Patients and their caregivers
Dr. Esch is medical education consultant to the Center to Advance Palliative Care. A palliative care specialist, Dr. Esch focuses on improving quality of life for patients and their families as they face serious illness. Dr. Esch earned his medical degree from the University of Buffalo.
When Kelly—a central New Jersey woman in her early 30s—is asked what brings her joy, she doesn’t have to think very hard.
“It’s definitely being with my young son. He’s my world. His smile lights up my life,” says Kelly.
Since she was 12 years old, Kelly has faced an array of medical issues. Over the years, she has dealt with lupus, mitochondrial disease, a clot in her lung and main vein to the heart, and autonomic neuropathy. These issues have caused additional heart and bladder problems, as well as gastropareses, which affects the normal movement of muscles in the stomach. Kelly had done her best to deal with the chronic pain for nearly half her life, but in 2016, the issues became unbearable, and even the smallest task became an issue. … Read More
When you receive a diagnosis of cancer, congestive heart failure (CHF), COPD, or any other serious illness, it can be very hard to think clearly on the spot. In such a situation, try not to be preoccupied with asking all the “right” questions immediately. Here are some questions that can help with your conversation:
If you or a loved one is living with a serious illness and struggling with pain, stress or other symptoms, a referral to a palliative care team can help provide relief and improve your quality of life. While a doctor referral is usually necessary, here’s a place to start: the Palliative Care Provider Directory on GetPalliativeCare.org. The Provider Directory is designed to help you find and locate palliative care in your area, quickly and easily.
If you’re living with an illness, it’s not unusual to also suffer with fatigue. Fatigue is the feeling of being easily tired so that you are unable to do everyday tasks. You may feel especially forgetful, have a sense of general weakness, and feel unable to focus.
Fatigue is one of the most common symptoms of illness, but it is often not recognized by doctors. If left unaddressed, this symptom can undermine your quality of life and even your ability to pursue treatment for your illness.
