Long term illness has a significant impact on mental and physical health. Enduring constant pain and coping with a battle to find good medical care – most notably the correct diagnosis and treatment – cause anxiety and frustration. These in turn trigger the physiological stress system and can make some physical illnesses worse.
You may find that your illness is so debilitating that you need to stop work or you are unable to go out – many people become very isolated.
The stress in finding a diagnosis and appropriate care can take a heavy toll. Standard tests may miss infections and some are told that their pain is imagined or “in your head”.
- Understand the anxiety and fear you might be experiencing, how the body’s automatic stress response works and how these all interact with each other.
Living with a chronic illness is tough. Kate Middleton, a medic and psychologist who suffered from chronic UTI, has written these essential guides to help support you through the ups and downs of chronic illness. The path to recovery from chronic illness is far from straight. The ups and downs can be emotionally brutal. She writes about acknowledging this, understanding how mental and psychical health are intertwined and adjusting to a new normal.
- How to cope with the challenges of long term illness – from getting the right treatment to dealing with isolation from family and friends to taking care of your mental health.
- Understand what exactly is a chronic illness – why some people get one and how it can affect your life.
- Living and recovering from chronic UTI takes time. Here’s five things you can work on now, from prioritising sleep to calling out your feelings to help stop chronic illness taking over your life.
Get support from others
Find chronic UTI, pain and mental health support groups and chronic UTI campaigns in your part of the world. Get support from others.
Having chronic UTI can feel incredibly isolating, but you are not alone. Men, women and children get UTIs. Read stories of those who have experienced and are now in treatment for their chronic UTI.
Join support groups
Are you in treatment for Chronic UTI? Or are you wondering if your IC diagnosis could be wrong as you have a history of UTIs and want a safe space to find out more? Find a supportive environment for you to understand your infections, seek and discuss treatment and be in contact with fellow sufferers across the world.
Whilst the following Facebook groups can’t give medical advice, they provide a safe space for you to talk to others about how you’re doing and help stop you feeling isolated in all that you are going through.
Please note that opinions expressed in these groups are solely those of each author. Information on these groups is not advice or instruction in a medical, professional or personal capacity & should not be treated as such. Information provided is available in the public domain relating to chronic infections of the urinary tract. You must not rely on the information within these patient support groups as an alternative to medical advice from your doctor or other professional healthcare provider. You should never delay seeking medical advice, disregard medical advice, or discontinue medical treatment because of information on social media groups.
Men and Women’s Chronic UTI Support Group
Women’s Chronic UTI Support Group
Support Group for UTIs in Children
Embedded/Chronic UTI Support Group
For those based in Australia or New Zealand search for the Chronic and Recurrent UTI Chat Group (Australia and New Zealand).