If you’re adjusting to living with a chronic illness, then exercising is probably the last thing on your list. Whether we’re talking about pain, exhaustion, or even a bad day, motivating yourself to get moving might turn out to be a challenge.
Even more, there have been studies that confirmed how living with a chronic disease might represent a negative shift in the quality of our lives. So it shouldn’t come as a surprise that chronic illnesses are one of the most expensive health conditions in America.
Not to mention that nearly half of the population experiences at least one type of disease, and the risk increases the more we age. As Erika Schwartz, MD, a recognized internist that’s specialized in disease prevention explained, “chronic illnesses last longer than a year, requiring ongoing medical treatment that might affect daily activities or limit exercise tolerance.
The most at risk for such diseases are people over 65 years old, obese individuals, tobacco users, those with poor nutrition, lack of exercise, but also genetic predisposition.” Some of the examples might include type 2 diabetes, arthritis, autoimmune disease (like Hashimoto’s disease or even lupus), but also asthma, and heart disease, as Laura DeCesaric, DC, MSACN, IFMCP, a functional medicine-trained health strategist, explained.
Besides some of the most obvious symptoms, Dr. DeCesaris recommended looking out for invisible symptoms, too, like fatigue and pain.
