Self-care for Psoriatic Arthritis
Self-care is extremely crucial for individuals with chronic illnesses in order to manage their overall health and well-being. Psoriatic arthritis can impact all areas of your life, and it's important to take care of your whole self – both mind and body. Self-care involves taking proactive steps to maintain your physical and mental health, such as adhering to your medical routine, managing your symptoms, and addressing your daily needs. Did you know that self-care for chronic illness often encompasses four key areas? Let's take a closer look at these four key areas.
Self-Care Maintenance
The first area that self-care includes is what I like to call self-care maintenance. This area includes taking your medications on time, visiting your doctors on a regular basis, managing your symptoms, and following healthy lifestyle choices. When you have a chronic illness like PsA, these tasks can often become daunting. Always remember to talk to your doctors about a health care plan that works best for you, a medication schedule that fits your lifestyle, having in-office visits, or doing virtual visits if you can't physically get to the doctor's office.
Having doctors that are flexible, readily available, and accessible is crucial to managing your symptoms and your treatments. Not only do you want to maintain your own plan, but your doctors should be able to provide you with the support you need to maintain it and carry it out daily. If for whatever reason a symptom comes up, a flare happens, or you are having an allergic reaction to medication, be sure to contact your doctor immediately.
Self-Care Monitoring
The second area that self-care encompasses is self-care monitoring. Monitoring and maintenance go hand in hand. You cannot have one without the other! Self-care monitoring involves regularly observing and recording any changes in your symptoms, anything you notice that triggers a flare, and any lifestyle changes you have made that either help or hinder you from identifying patterns and making adjustments to your needs. I love to keep a journal for this. If you prefer, you can even keep track of this on your phone under notes!
I love to write down and monitor anything that triggers a flare or helps ease it. This helps me to see what has worked in the past and what I can try to adjust in the future to prevent flares. Monitoring yourself can be hard at times, especially if you are in pain, but just jotting down a few notes daily can help you and your doctor determine if you need to make any changes to your medications or treatment plan moving forward.
Self-Care Management
The third area that self-care includes is self-care management. This area is crucial after you monitor your symptoms and triggers and notice any patterns. This area involves taking action in response to any observed changes in your symptoms or conditions, such as adjusting your medication, seeking medical advice, or implementing new coping strategies/lifestyle changes.
You can maintain a routine and monitor your symptoms and triggers, but you must take action! I cannot stress this enough. So many people often suffer in silence and do nothing to change it. You must speak up, be your own health advocate, ask questions, seek answers, and also find doctors that are receptive to your needs/wants and listen to you. In order to maintain, monitor, and manage your medications, treatments, symptoms, triggers, and needs, you must take care of all aspects of life and yourself. No one can do this for us; we have to do it ourselves. It is so important to have the support you need in order for these areas of self-care to happen in the first place.
Self-Care Support
Last, but certainly not least on the self-care train, is self-care support. I tell anyone newly diagnosed with PsA that you must become your own support system and cheerleader daily. You must become your own health advocate and become knowledgeable about your condition, treatment options, and self-care strategies. You must collaborate with your doctors to help you monitor, maintain, and manage your treatment plan and medications. You must connect with others who can support you with this condition.
You can connect with other people through support groups and community organizations, and you can find online resources that can provide valuable support and encouragement. I love to promote self-efficacy: Through social media, I am able to encourage other patients with PsA to believe in themselves and acknowledge how they feel. I can help make them feel less alone and help boost/motivate their ability to take control of and manage their condition. Always remember that PsA does not define who you are. You are so much more, and you are worth it!
Self-Care Tips:
Become your own health advocate.
Join a support group.
Do something you love.
Get moving (exercise is crucial).
Eat a healthy, well-balanced diet.
Talk to a professional.
Find doctors who support you.
Learn about medications.
Follow your treatment plan.
Identify flare triggers.
Decompress and de-stress.
Keep a journal.
Find time to laugh every day.
Talk to a friend or family member.
Get plenty of sleep (or try to).
Be kind to yourself.
Treat yourself. (You deserve it!)
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