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Running head: THE IMPACT OF CHRONIC ILLNESS 1
THE IMPACT OF CHRONIC ILLNESS 5
The Impact of Chronic Illness
Tanyanika McMillian
South University
A chronic ailment refers to a disease that persists for a lifetime, and not preventable by vaccines or cured by medication. The disease affects the patients for a very long time and may need intensive management. Chronic ailments pose several problems to the patients including living with the physical effects and disability caused by the disease, dealing with treatments, maintaining emotional balance, and psychological and financial impacts on the patient’s families and friends. The chronic illness chose in week 1 was diabetes. This paper administers a questionnaire to a patient living with diabetes, analyzing the responses and an interpretation of how it will affect the planning care for diabetes.
Questionnaire
1. When were you diagnosed with diabetes?
I developed the symptoms of diabetes and diagnosed at the age of 32 years.
2. Do you have people in your family suffering from diabetes?
No, am the first person in our family to suffer from diabetes.
3. What symptoms did you experience before you were diagnosed with diabetes?
I experienced loss of weight, feeling thirsty most of the time, loss of body energy, waking up almost four times per night to urinate, always feeling tired and constant hunger despite how much I ate. I was also having a dry mouth and skin, which the doctor told me, resulted from the loss of water in the body because of urinating severally.
4. How many times do you need to pee on a daily basis?
A healthy person urinates 4 to 8 times in a day, but I require using the bathroom more than this number of times. I would say I feel the urge to urinate almost every one and half hours.
5. How does the need to urinate regularly affect your everyday life?
Frequent urination prevents me from traveling for long distances, but if I have to travel, I require to use means that will enable me to relieve myself whenever I feel the urge to release myself. I cannot travel more than two hours, and I also need to relieve myself before starting the journey. At my workplace, it wastes a lot of time since I have to leave my severally to visit the bathroom.
6. Have you suffered any loss of weight?
I lost a lot of weight before diagnosis and during the first few months of taking medication, but I have added some weight after managing the disease. However, I have to keep checking my weight because the doctor informed that weight gain could worsen blood glucose control.
7. Do your eyes experience blurry vision?
I experienced it before diagnosis, but my vision has improved after keeping the disease under control using medications. However, I usually experience a change in vision whenever blood sugar rises, but the vision goes back to normal after the blood sugar stabilizes.
8. Do you have hypertension?
I am lucky that that am among the few diabetics who do not suffer from high blood pressure. I know am a high risk of having it, so I always keep my blood pressure in check at all times.
9. Do you suffer from any other disease associated with diabetes?
I suffer from fluctuating vision and foot problems caused by nerve damage.
10. What type of treatment did your doctor recommend?
The doctor recommended a combination of medication, monitoring my blood sugar, exercising regularly and having a healthy lifestyle. Leading a healthy lifestyle and regular physical activities have not been enough for, and the doctor recommended that I start taking medications. I take sulfonylureas pills aimed at helping the body to produce more insulin.
11. How often do you test your blood glucose levels?
I take the blood sugar tests every morning, evening and before meals using my personal blood sugar meter.
12. How did your family take the news of your diagnosis and how have they helped you in any way to control the disease?
Diabetes being a chronic illness, it was tough for my family to accept that I would be living with diabetes for the rest of my life. However, they have come to accept my condition with time and have been supportive. The family has had to make several changes to their lifestyles and diet to accommodate lifestyle and diet needs. My family has also helped me in meeting the medical expenses and insurance premiums.
Analysis
The patient together with his family has accepted the diagnosis and the patient is doing well to take the necessary measures to control the disease as directed by his doctor. The patient has made significant lifestyle changes, which have contributed to keeping the disease in control and avoiding complications associated with diabetes. For instance, the only complications related to diabetes the client suffers from a blurry vision and foot problems cause by nerve damage. One impact on the family is the changes that the patient had to make concerning lifestyle and diet. The family also had to make some changes to their lifestyles and diet to accommodate the needs of the patient. The other impact on the household includes helping the patient in meeting the medical expenses of the patient, in particular with the medications. The family has also been affected by the patient’s need to urinate severally during the day. This causes interruptions to family functions and activities and having to leave him behind when traveling for long distances.
Healthy coping, which is the response to mental and bodily challenges by using the available resources to enhance the occurrence of positive results later in life, is paramount in the diabetes management (Kent, et al. 2010). The interviewed client performs well in his healthy coping which has helped him to be in good health despite living with diabetes for ten years. In addition, the control of diabetes is to a considerable degree the obligation of the patient (Collins, Bradley, O’Sulliva, & Perry, 2009). This patient has taken this responsibility well, which have enhanced his management of the illness.
People with diabetes need to be supported psychologically throughout their lives from the day of the diagnosis (Chew, Shariff-Ghazali, & Fernandez, 2014). The support plays a significant role in self-management practices of the patient. The client has received massive support from both family and friends, which have encouraged him to stick to adherence to the doctor’s recommendations on managing the ailment.
The patient has been very committed to undertaking his treatment requirements of taking medications, practicing healthy lifestyles, healthy eating, and exercising regularly.
Interpretation of how the analysis will affect planning care for diabetics
This report provides the stakeholders with the necessary information on how well to support people living with diabetes. For instance, the analysis has revealed that the patient holds the significant responsibility for managing the disease. The care plan development should include mechanisms of educating the diabetes patients on the need to maintain a primary duty to managing the disease.
The analysis has also revealed the need of support in the management of illness to the patient. The stakeholders responsible for developing the care plan should include training of a patient’s family members on the best way to offer social and psychological support to the patient. For instance, the changes and sacrifices the family of the interviewed client has made have significantly helped the patient to undertake all treatments requirements effectively.
References Chew, B.-H., Shariff-Ghazali, S., & Fernandez, A. (2014). Psychological aspects of diabetes care: Effecting behavioral change in patients. World Journal of Diabetes, 796-808. Collins, M. M., Bradley, C. P., O’Sulliva, T., & Perry, I. J. (2009). Self-care coping strategies in people with diabetes: a qualitative exploratory study. BMC Endocrine Disorders. Kent, D. (2010). Healthy Coping: Issues and Implications in Diabetes Education and Care. Population Health Management, 227-233.
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