#lene andersen

With the energy limitations that chronic conditions often impose, sometimes you have to make tough choices about where your efforts go.

Giving your body the best fuel possible is important, especially when living with chronic illness. The kind of good fuel that’s contained in a healthy balanced diet full of nutritious and tasty foods. Well, that’s the ideal, anyway.

The reality is that with the energy limitations that chronic conditions often impose, sometimes you have to make tough choices about where your efforts go. Occasionally that means shortcuts when it comes to food. Enter meals that are fast, processed, and ready-made, usually not known for being healthy or balanced.

But it doesn’t have to be this way. Good nutritious food doesn’t have to be complicated. Here are some of the ways you can make it easier to get the good-for-you fuel your body needs.

 Create a delicious library. I’m a hopeless geek, so I always start with what the research says. Instead of spending hours watching videos of cats — or is that just me? — try spending some of your online time to find recipes for quick and easy meals. This could include The Pioneer Woman’s 16-minute meals, rice bowls, crockpot dinners, and make-ahead breakfasts. Scour Pinterest, and if you prefer to have recipes come to you, sign up for email notifications from recipe sites that you like.

Think about what you would do with the time you’d get back if you had a rice cooker (not just for rice anymore), crockpot, or food processor.

Get equipment. Machinery and doodads can save you time and energy in the kitchen. Think about what you would do with the time you’d get back if you had a rice cooker (not just for rice anymore), crockpot, or food processor. Other time-and energy-saving tools to consider include a salad chopper bowl, palm peeler, and jar opener. Spend some time in your favorite search engine, and check in with others in the chronic illness community for tips.

 Make friends with your freezer. When I cook, I always make enough for several days -- whether it’s creating leftovers for tomorrow’s lunch, or cooking double portions of tomato sauce, soups, and stews. Making more can make life easier for you in the future. Stock up on containers, and clear out your freezer so there is room for a bunch of easy meals.

 Plan ahead. When you cook, take a bit of extra time up front to make the experience easier for yourself. Review the recipe and get out everything you need ahead of time, perhaps imagining that you are a French chef doing mise en place. Having all the ingredients and equipment right in front of you makes cooking a snap.

Spending time to plan ahead and to invest in different types of equipment can give you the support you need to eat well -- without compromising your energy.

Know your backups. There will be days when the thought of spending even a minute in the kitchen makes you want to weep. Those are the days that call for a ready-made meal -- they aren’t all bad. Just as you did research to find fast, easy, and healthy recipes, check out prepared meals at your grocery store.

Read labels to find out which brands and dishes primarily use the ingredients and flavors you’d cook for yourself. Try to avoid anything with hidden sugars (like glucose or fructose) and a long list of scary-sounding chemical ingredients. Most of all, don’t feel guilty about taking the occasional shortcut, even when it involves a drive-through.

It can be easy to get sucked into feeling guilty in the kitchen. Maybe you get down about not cooking the way you used to, or worrying about whether you and your family are getting proper nutrition.

Remember that you can make food as complicated or as easy as you’d like, both when you prepare meals and when you’re just thinking about it. Spending time to plan ahead and to invest in different types of equipment can give you the support you need to eat well -- without compromising your energy.

 About the Author Lene is the author of Your Life with Rheumatoid Arthritis: Tools for Managing Treatment, Side Effects and Pain, 7 Facets: A Meditation on Pain, and Chronic Christmas: Surviving the Holidays with a Chronic Illness. She also writes the award-winning blog, The Seated View.

 If you liked this post, you might also like: - 5 Healthy Kitchen Shortcuts You Need to Know - Why Your Weight is Creeping Up: 5 Common Mistakes - 3 Signs That "Healthy” Food Is Anything But

Your doctor spent a lot of time and money to acquire highly specialized knowledge in medical school. Respect that they are an expert in their field and treat them as such.

If I asked you to list the important relationships in your life, would you include your doctor? Most of us wouldn’t think to expand this definition beyond our closest family and friends.

But if any health complications arise, doctors play an essential role in getting us the right treatment as quickly as possible. Speaking from experience, I can assure you that building a good relationship with your doctor definitely improves your experience of living with chronic illness.

My two favorite doctors I moved to downtown Toronto from the suburbs a couple of decades ago, and it quickly became clear that I needed new doctors. When your chronic illness calls for frequent trips to your physician’s office, proximity matters.

After a bit of searching, I first found a family doctor, who happened to be associated with a teaching hospital. She referred me to my rheumatologist. Seventeen years later, both of these women are still my doctors.

Consider that if you use alternative remedies, it’s important to find a doctor who is will accept and respect your decision to pursue these therapies.

They have seen me through every kind of health challenge, commiserating and laughing with me through flares both big and small. They’ve also helped me to be as strong as possible when life events required my all. On one recent occasion, they were even part of the team that saved my life.

I can’t imagine my life without them.

Building a good relationship with your doctor takes time, patience, and effort from both people involved. Here are some steps you can take on your side:

Know what you need People have different ideas about what they need from a doctor. Some people prefer a doctor who runs the show, while others want a partner on their team. Spend some time thinking about who you are, how you approach chronic illness, and what you need.

If you prefer to be as non-interventionist as possible, for instance, a doctor who is very medically aggressive will not be right for you. Also consider that if you use alternative remedies, it’s important to find a doctor who is will accept and respect your decision to pursue these therapies.

Be honest If you minimize your symptoms and reactions — as many of us tend to do in medical situations — your doctor will not be able to help you as effectively as they otherwise might. This is particularly important if you use drugs or alcohol, or if you feel suicidal. Likewise, it’s important to tell your doctor if you use alternative remedies, such as naturopathy, acupuncture, or supplements.

Come prepared with a list of what you want to discuss, and keep it to a maximum of 3-5 issues. This can help organize the appointment to make it more efficient while giving you the care you need.

To provide your doctor with a detailed and accurate account of how you’ve been doing, it can help to record your symptoms, mood and medication side effects in the Record Mood section of the Mango Health app, then share this record at your next appointment. 

Respect their expertise Your doctor spent a lot of time and money to acquire highly specialized knowledge in medical school. Respect that they are an expert in their field and treat them as such. This means being polite and not taking your frustration out on them, even when they have to deliver unfortunate news. It also means not contesting — instead collaborating with them on your treatment plan.

Value their time Be on time for your appointment. You might argue that many doctors keep you waiting, sometimes for quite a while. This may be a sign of a good doctor, someone who takes the time that patients need. However, when patients are late, it throws the schedule off even more.

Come prepared with a list of what you want to discuss, and keep it to a maximum of 3-5 issues. This can help organize the appointment to make it more efficient while giving you the care you need. It respects the time of other patients that are waiting to see the doctor as well.

When all else fails Doctors are people, too. And sometimes, no matter what you do, you just won’t be able to get along. In those circumstances, the best thing you can do to have a good relationship with your doctor is to find a new one.

About the Author Lene is the author of Your Life with Rheumatoid Arthritis: Tools for Managing Treatment, Side Effects and Pain, 7 Facets: A Meditation on Pain, and Chronic Christmas: Surviving the Holidays with a Chronic Illness. She also writes the award-winning blog, The Seated View.

If you liked this post, you might also like:  • Is It Time to Find a New Doctor? 5 Red Flags to Watch For  • What Your Doctor Wishes You Knew  • To Have or Not To Have A PCP, That Is The Question

“These days, I see my body as my best friend, rather than an obstacle... like any friend, it deserves care.”

I’ve always been really bad at taking care of myself. My body might have had opinions about limits, but I was firmly of the belief that transcending them was just a matter of applying some elbow grease and willpower.

Perhaps not surprisingly, my body regularly took revenge. I lost track of how many times it forced me to stay very still for a week or more, while it healed the damage caused by my stubbornness. But still I persisted...until a big flare of my rheumatoid arthritis. This flare made me so weak that I couldn’t do much more than just get through the day. Only after looking into the abyss did I begin to think about changing my approach.

These days, I see my body as my best friend, rather than an obstacle. After all, my body gets me through each day, helping me to live my life to the best of my ability. And like any friend, it deserves care.

When you live with chronic illness, you have to face a very important fact: it is likely you’re not able to do everything you used to do. Trying to live up to past expectations will make you exhausted and cranky. And that’s no way to live. It increases your pain and other symptoms, and it gets in the way of your ability to enjoy life.

The following are some of the ways I practice self-care and which serve as the underlying principles for my new book, Chronic Christmas: Surviving the Holidays with a Chronic Illness.

“Starting in childhood, we are taught that putting ourselves first is selfish. But self-care isn’t selfish. It will ensure you have the resources you need.”

Help is not a four letter word The word ’help’ does have four letters. But contrary to popular opinion, that doesn’t mean it’s a bad word. Though we may try to do it all ourselves, no one can. And when you live with chronic illness, it’s a surefire recipe for exhaustion. Asking for help gets things done that otherwise would have been difficult or impossible for you to do.

Help frees up valuable energy that you need for other tasks in your life, and there is an added benefit. Allowing someone to help you can be a gift to them. The people who love you may feel helpless in the face of your illness. Giving them something practical and tangible to do allows them to show how much they love you.

 Make choices, be ruthless Thinking about what deserves your time, attention, and energy is also a part of self-care. Are what you see as terribly essential tasks really that important? If you feel the world will end if you don’t do X, Y, and Z, try again. You can also imagine that you’re helping someone you love very much with the same exercise: this can give you a better perspective about what you really need versus what you just want to do.

 Self-care isn’t selfish Starting in childhood, we are taught that putting ourselves first is selfish. But self-care isn’t selfish. It will ensure you have the resources you need. I call it the yellow oxygen mask rule. If you fly with someone who is dependent upon you, you are told that should the yellow oxygen masks come down from the ceiling, you should put yours on first. If you’re unconscious, you’ll be no use to the person you need to help. It is likewise essential that you can take care of your life, your work, your family. 

 The gifts of chronic illness Chronic illness can erode big swaths of your life. But it also provides you with gifts. One such gift is the slowing down we do as a necessary part of living with chronic illness. Spend that time practicing self-care — with a warm bath, meditation, gentle exercise, cooking something yummy and nutritious, or spending time with people who nourish you. Downsizing your schedule and your expectations of yourself can give you some much-needed space to enjoy everyday life.

 About the Author Lene Andersen’s new book is Chronic Christmas: Surviving the Holidays with a Chronic Illness. She’s also the author of Your Life with Rheumatoid Arthritis: Tools for Managing Treatment, Side Effects and Pain, 7 Facets: A Meditation on Pain, and the award-winning blog The Seated View. Lene is the Community Leader of HealthCentral’s rheumatoid arthritis site.

 If you liked this post, you may also like: - Why It's Not Selfish to Make Your Health a Priority - 4 Ways to Recover from Chronic Illness Burnout - Being Scent-Sensitive in a Fragranced World