For many people, daily life is challenged by persistent pain or symptoms of a disease that will not be going away: they are living with chronic pain or chronic disease, and it's not easy.
The term "chronic" refers to conditions that persist over long periods, even lifetimes. Traditionally, the distinction between "acute" and "chronic" pain has relied on an arbitrary definition based on time. If a pain does not go away for three or six months, it becomes chronic. Alternately, a chronic disease is one that can be managed, but not cured.
Examples of chronic health problems include diabetes, asthma, cystic fibrosis, hypertension, cancer, osteoporosis, multiple sclerosis, migraines and many more.
We have all experienced pain - imagine it never going away.
People with chronic conditions also experience a multitude of secondary symptoms or problems. They face fatigue, pain, sleeping problems, depression, anxiety, loss of energy the list is lengthy.
Research on managing chronic pain and disease that began at Stanford University in California about 20 years ago has come up with a way for people to deal with the problem. Called self-management, the approach is to teach people how to control and minimize symptoms and the effects of their chronic condition. And it works.
In British Columbia, the University of Victoria's Center on Aging created and tested a Chronic Disease Self-Management Program (CDSMP) during 2003 to 2006. Funded by the BC Ministry of Health, the Center on Aging implemented the program. They trained 706 leaders to deliver 386 workshops/courses to 4,368 participants. And it worked.
Participants learned how to manage their symptoms, plan and implement exercise and healthy eating plans. They found ways to manage the fear, anger and frustration that comes with pain or disease that will not go away. They reported feeling in better health, being in more control of their symptoms and having more energy.
The CDSM program is now available across BC. It is run by the Center on Aging and offered through the Health Authorities. Free and open to adults with chronic conditions or pain, the workshops come in two versions: one for chronic pain, and another for chronic disease. Family members and caregivers are equally welcome in the courses.
The programs come as a series of weekly workshops that run about two hours for six weeks. They are taught by leaders trained by the Center on Aging in a separate four-day program. There is a leaders' training program for chronic pain coming up in Powell River on June 11 to 14. Contact Robert Toews at 1-866-902-3767 if you are interested. The next CDSMP (for diabetes) comes up in Madeira Park May 26 to June 30. Register by calling the same number.
More programs will be scheduled around the region for the fall. To learn more about CDSMP, including scheduled courses and leader training, visit the UVic Center on Aging at www.coag.uvic.ca/cdsmp. And pass the information around - it will be appreciated.
Dr. Paul Martiquet is the Medical Health Officer for the Sea to Sky.
