When your loved ones are living with a serious illness, you won’t let them tackle the obstacles alone. Their struggles are your struggles. Their pain is your pain. Their fears are your fears. You listen to them, care for them, and walk their disease journey with them. You’re their rock on the days when everything seems too difficult to handle. You’re there to help them in any way you can.
But who helps you?
Many patients facing serious illness say that some of the most difficult things to deal with are pain, stress and a loss of control. This is because an illness like cancer, COPD, kidney disease or ALS can make an independent person feel helpless for the first time in their lives.
If you or a loved one are living with Alzheimer’s Disease or another form of dementia, you know you are facing a difficult road ahead. The disease begins with memory loss, confusion and trouble making decisions, and gets worse over time, eventually affecting basic control over the body. But with the help of a medical specialty called palliative care, there is a lot that can be done to make people living with dementia more comfortable and reduce their distress.
Life with heart failure can be a difficult journey. Your symptoms may get in the way of day-to-day activities, your family members may worry about how to take care of you, and you may be unsure about what to expect and how to plan for your future. Palliative care can help make that journey easier for you and your family so you can live as well as possible.
Palliative care is team-based medical care that is focused on improving quality of life for people living with serious illness and their families. It provides an added layer of support to control your pain and symptoms and to coordinate your care. Your palliative care team will work closely with your heart doctor and any other doctors who are treating you, to make sure your treatment plan is right for you. … Read More
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