What is the best word to describe the opposite of illness?
Health, wellness, being disease free are all great options to use. However, what if
you’re not exactly ‘well’ and also not entirely ‘unwell’? I would imagine the
words recovering, recuperating and healing might come to mind. But what does it
really mean to experience them? Everybody knows what being well means and,
unfortunately, many people also know what ill health involves however when you
are going through a recovery process that can be months or years long it is
harder to quantify. Obviously people’s experiences will all differ in many
things but I'm going to try to cover some of the important things you may encounter
if you are slowly regaining health after chronic illness. I felt moved to write
this as I am experiencing exactly this phase and have come across many things
that I didn't realise would be involved in recovery and many subtle elements
that can all add up to make you feel overwhelmed, lost, tired, frustrated and a
multitude of other unpleasant feelings that are not beneficial to overall good
health.
·
Bruises – Six months on and I am still picking
up bruises very easily. My guess would be that my body simply isn't used to
going through the motions of everyday life yet. My knees and feet seem to
always have bruises over them. Some people recommend rubbing arnica onto fresh
bruises to speed up healing. I haven’t found a way to stop getting bruised
(apart from never going near anything ever again!) but I think once my body has
adjusted it won’t happen so much.
·
Forgetting to take your medication (for people
who self-administer) – I found this happened to me for the first couple of
weeks after I came out of hospital. When you’re an inpatient you have very set
times for taking medication and a nurse will bring you them so there’s no
chance of missing a dose. However once you’re home there’s usually no constant
reminder. Obviously it’s very important to take anything you have been
prescribed but I think it’s also important to take medication/supplements at
the same time each day so your body can maintain it’s equilibrium more easily.
Initially I set an alarm for each of the medicines I was taking (as I take them
at different times throughout the day/night) and once I got into a good routine
I stopped the alarm system and I haven’t missed a dose since! For those of you
not so technologically minded then a note by the side of your bed may work or
one by your kettle/toothbrush/front door may help to jog your memory.
·
Blisters and general feet issues – This has been
one of those problems that I had never considered. I was bed-bound/bedridden for
years and once I was starting to walk again I found that my feet couldn't tolerate
shoes for a while. I wore slippers and then moved onto pumps and then trainers
to help with support and comfort while getting used to walking again. Blisters
and cuts were and still are a problem. When you haven’t walked for a long time
your feet lose their calluses and hardened skin. Those of you who spend hours
moisturising your feet to get them baby soft in the summer months will probably
be wrinkling your noses in disgust but that tougher skin is there for a
reason. The parts of your feet that get
the most pressure and wear need to be harder than the rest of the skin on your
body. I found a good way of speeding up the calluses forming was to apply
surgical spirit (rubbing alcohol) to the areas needed. The blisters are
unavoidable but I have found that putting blister plasters over them is the
most comfortable way to cushion them so that you don’t stop walking because of
the discomfort. I tried many different types of plasters, bandages and
surgical-grade dressings but the hands-down winner has to be Compeed blister
plasters. The most important thing is to not stop walking when you are trying
to relearn things like gait, pacing etc. Putting progress on hold while waiting
for blisters to heal will only makes things more difficult and also the chances
are you’ll immediately get another blister when you restart. I'm afraid it’s
another case of grin and bear it or make that - slap a Compeed plaster on them
and keep going!
·
Changes in the outside world and adjusting to
life at a new level – this may seem like an obvious thing but I found that when
I started getting out and about more I realised just how out of touch with the
world I had become. There are so many seemingly inconsequential shifts that you
become aware of that can create a feeling of disorientation and like you are in
an unfamiliar environment that doesn't help you integrate. After my discharge
from hospital I noticed things like plants that had been barely out of the
ground when I had last been well were now great big trees, buildings had disappeared
or been built, shops had moved locations. The list goes on! There were also the
slightly more practical things that I had to get used to. I live in London and
hadn't used an Oyster card before, being driven in a car at 50-70 mph felt like
a white knuckle ride, getting back in touch with old friends, finding my way
through the world of social media. I also found going into shops with their
range of products quite overawing and I struggled to make decisions and
choices. I am still finding that having not been in the loop for so many years
in relation to current affairs, music, films, media news etc. can contribute to
a sense of isolation or separation from your peers. Some of the new things are
lovely like a lot of the ‘firsts’: first time you travel by yourself, first
meal in a restaurant, first time you brush your teeth, first meal you prepare
on your own, first bath… However if you
are feeling a little vulnerable (which you understandably would be) then all
these adjustments can take their toll. I'm still experiencing firsts and
attuning and adapting to my surroundings and new life but I think with time and
the right people surrounding you that you will be able to absorb and digest all
these changes and not feel disrupted or disturbed by them so much.
·
Rollercoaster of emotions – just because you may
be feeling physically and/or mentally better doesn't always mean that you are
going to be happy and smiling all the time. The process of recovery is a long,
hard road and there are going to be bumps along the way. Please don’t be
disheartened or concerned if you spend some time crying your eyes out or
feeling very angry, hurt, guilty or confused. What I have found is that once
your whole ‘self’ realises that things are looking up it’s almost as though
something inside says “Okay, I can relax now, I don’t need to bottle all these
emotions up anymore” Or in other words the barriers or walls you may have built
up inside yourself so you could survive the worst times during your illness are
starting to crumble. It may feel awful and you may feel as though you are lost
at sea but in the end it will help you heal more completely if you can express
and consciously feel those emotions.
·
Pacing activity and managing fatigue levels – I
really think this deserves it’s own piece as it’s a tricky thing to address
concisely because pacing is a very unique and particular thing to do and
fatigue can be pretty subjective. However, from my experience I would say that
recovering from anything be it an operation, a bereavement, a heart attack, a
chronic condition like cancer needs care, self-love, understanding and a
holistic approach. This includes pacing yourself and managing fatigue as best
as you can. Somebody like an Occupational Therapist is very useful at helping
guide you through increasing your activity and trying to assess fatigue states.
·
Family and friends - having enough support from
friends, family, the community and the medical profession is vital and it’s
sometimes the only thing that keeps you upright. You may be surprised by who is
there to help you. I would like to address how best to access after-care in
another article as it can be a huge problem.
·
Perspective - If your period of ill-health has
lasted years or decades then how can you expect to attain good health in a
matter of weeks or months? Keeping some perspective and remembering how far you
have come is essential in recuperating as fully as you can.
These are just some of the points that I
have learned on my journey towards health. I really hope that this article has
helped you either during your recovery or to understand what someone else at
this stage may be experiencing. I would like to put one last thing down in a
hope that just one person reading this can learn where I have tripped up many
times and that is that being kind to oneself, not getting frustrated and
keeping expectations to a realistic level is essential when you are trying to
navigate the rocky road to recovery. To anyone recovering from a long-term
condition I salute you! Well done for getting through the worst intact and
here’s to the light at the end of the tunnel. To anyone still in the depths of
ill health I would like to say there is hope even if you think “Pah! What do
they know?” there is hope. I believe
in Cicero’s maxim ‘Where there’s life there’s hope.’
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