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| Hello,
and welcome to
“Have a Great Life! Perfect
Health Not Required,” where each month
you’ll get tips, ideas and suggestions to help
you meet the challenges of your illness and have
a great, fulfilling life.
This ezine is sent to a subscription-only
list. If you feel that it has reached
you in error, please accept our apologies.
To unsubscribe, send an email to
unsubscribe@chronicillnesscoach.com.
Here’s a suggestion that many of you may want
to use if you’re not already doing so: When your
doctor prescribes a new medicine, ask him or her
if it will deplete or interfere with the absorption
of important vitamins or minerals. Many medicines do,
and doctors often forget to tell us about these side
effects. A good summary of them is at the bottom
of the page at Drug Store News Continuing Education Program .
Feel free to forward “Have a Great Life!” to others with chronic
illnesses who could use some helpful tips each month.
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| Monthly
Tip: How to always get the understanding and compassion you need
Those of us with a chronic illness can often
find ourselves needing understanding and compassion.
Sometimes we can get it from spouses, friends, and others.
But as we know all too well, there are times when those
people aren’t able to give us the understanding and compassion
we need. What can we do then?
Before I answer that question I’m going to tell you a brief
story about what not to do:
I’m a volunteer host for an online Crohn’s and colitis support
chat room. Several weeks ago there was a man in the chat room
who was very upset. Frank (as I’ll call him) had missed several
days from work due to a flare-up of his Crohn’s disease (Crohn’s
is a chronic and often severe inflammation of the digestive tract).
When he returned to work, his boss, who knew of his condition,
chastised him for missing work without expressing any concern or
compassion for Frank whatsoever. That was hard on Frank, and he
spent a lot of time in the chat room telling the rest of us how
hurt and angry he was because of his boss’s uncaring behavior.
He then came up with the idea of leaving his colonoscopy pictures
on his boss’s desk to both teach him a lesson and have him see the
error of his ways. I tried to tell Frank that that wasn’t a good idea,
but he wasn’t listening all that well.
Clearly what Frank needed most was understanding and compassion. However,
from the way he described the situation, the chance that he could get
any from his boss ranged from slim to none. Instead of trying to get it
from his boss, and feeling hurt and angry when he didn’t, what Frank needed
to do was give himself the understanding and compassion he needed. And the
same is true for us when we find ourselves with the same needs, and with
spouses, partners, friends, colleagues, or bosses who for whatever the reason
aren’t able to meet them.
My tip is that it ultimately is up to each of us to give ourselves the care,
compassion, and understanding we need. This may seem difficult or even unnatural
to do, but it doesn’t have to. Thinking about how we would treat someone we loved
and cared about who wasn’t feeling well, such as a close friend, a spouse, or a
child, and then treating ourselves the same way can go a long way to meeting our
need for understanding and compassion.
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| New
Fr*ee Chronic Illness Coaching Group Teleclass
What would it be like to have a satisfying and fulfilling life,
rather than a life about and in spite of having a chronic illness?
Having that kind of a life is possible. Participating in group
coaching is a great way to get there.
I will be offering a fr*ee two-session introduction to telephone
group coaching for people with chronic illnesses. This is a great
opportunity to experience its value firsthand. I sincerely hope that
you will take advantage of it.
Group coaching is so effective that I am confident that if you actively
participate in the introductory teleclass you will have a breakthrough
in your life.
This two-session telephone group coaching introduction is fr*ee. Your
only cost will be your normal long distance telephone charges.
Days and times:
Thursday, January 27, 6:00 PM PST (one hour) and Thursday, February 3, 6:00 PM PST (one hour).
To sign up send an email to intro_group_teleclass_signup@chronicillnesscoach.com.
If you're not available those dates, send an email to intro_group_teleclass_notify@chronicillnesscoach.com
and I'll let you know when the next introductory teleclass will be held.
For more information about this Introductory Chronic Illness Group Coaching Teleclass please see my website.
If you have any questions, send an email to intro_group_teleclass_info@chronicillnesscoach.com.
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| Ask
The Coach
Pam, who has lupus and fibromyalgia, asks:
“What should I say to all the people who tell
me that I look fine and that I shouldn't be using
a handicapped parking permit, collecting disability
benefits, and things like that?”
My answer to Pam depends on whether she wants silence
her questioners and put them in their place, or whether
she wants to educate them about the fact that many people
with serious chronic illnesses appear healthy.
In the first case, while I don’t recommend being rude, I
would suggest that Pam not explain or justify her parking permit,
etc. I might say something like, “You’re welcome to call this
number if you think I’m not entitled to a handicapped parking
permit,” and give the person a card with the number to call.
In the second case Pam could ask something like,
“Do you know that many people with serious
chronic illnesses appear healthy?” If she wanted to she could
go on to say that she has systemic lupus erythematosus, and
either briefly explain what it is or suggest that the person
take a look at the lupus.org website. She could also, to save
herself the time and trouble of repeated explanations, carry cards
with that information on it.
If you have any non-medical questions about
meeting the challenges of your illness and having
a great life that you’d like answered, send them to
askthecoach@chronicillnesscoach.com.
Best wishes on your journey to having a
great life!
 Sincerely,
Tom Robinson
Crohn’s Disease Survivor and Life
Coach for People with Chronic Illnesses
www.chronicillnesscoach.com
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