How to Live With Confidence After a Difficult Diagnosis
Beginning any new chapter in life can be scary, but being diagnosed with an incurable disease or chronic condition can be especially hard.
“What is my new life going to look like?”
“What daily activities will be hindered, and how will I navigate the new challenges that lie ahead?”
These are just a few of the many questions that might run through your head. Here’s the thing: You can position yourself to thrive despite your condition. You can do it by strategizing and incorporating simple, everyday habits. If you’re ready to enter the next chapter in your life with newfound confidence, check out these practical tips from Bottoms Up! Yoga!
Learn About Your Condition
First of all, educate yourself about the disease or condition for which you were just diagnosed. This will help you to restructure your life to set yourself up to be as healthy and happy as possible. However, try not to spend too much time looking into and worrying about your condition because you don’t want it to consume you. Resist the temptation to be defined by your diagnosis, and just learn enough to make smart, informed decisions going forward.
Take a Look at Your Finances
The pandemic has caused stress for most Americans, and finances have been one of the biggest sources. Throw a difficult diagnosis into the mix, and you have a recipe for overwhelming stress and anxiety! Take time to evaluate your budget so that you can make any necessary modifications. Set financial goals that will help to keep you motivated in the hard times, and dedicate yourself to learning how to save money.
For instance, you could restructure your budget so that you can put 10% of each paycheck into savings. You can keep a glass jar in your bedroom for any time you have extra cash. And you can even refinance your home, which essentially decreases your home equity and either lowers your mortgage payment or frees up cash for you to use as needed.
Refocus Your Priorities
Your priorities will naturally shift after a serious diagnosis. But you should still take time to think through your life and determine what is and is not important to you. For instance, will you prioritize family over everything else going forward? Will you make sure that you practice the self-care necessary to foster your mental, emotional, and physical health? Will it be better for your family if you find more work, or should you cut down on work to spend more time at home? Think through everything that is important, and make a list of your priorities.
Hit the Gym
Exercise is the single most stress-busting habit you can incorporate into your life. No matter what physical activity you choose, anything that gets your blood pumping will get your endorphins flowing, boost your confidence, benefit your physical health, enhance your mood, alleviate depression symptoms, and so much more.
Discuss your exercise options with your doctor and find an activity you enjoy enough to stick to for the long haul. Whether it is cycling, swimming, running, lifting weights, HIIT, or anything else, try to do it consistently for at least 20 minutes a day, five days a week.
Tailor Your Diet
Your diet is right up there with exercise when it comes to maintaining your health and wellbeing. This is another discussion to have with your doctor, as they should be able to recommend any necessary changes in your diet. Though your specific diagnosis will play a critical role in what you should be eating, clean eating can be a good place to start. It not only can reduce inflammation and help you maintain a healthy weight but can also do wonders for increasing your energy, self-confidence, and overall sense of wellbeing.
No one likes being diagnosed with an incurable disease or chronic condition. But you can resolve today that you will get the most out of life going forward, and taking steps like those above can arm you with the habits necessary to make it happen. Keep learning about your condition and researching other strategies for improving your all-around health and wellbeing!
— Kim Thomas
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