Receiving a medical diagnosis can be overwhelming and you might struggle to see the path ahead or it might be obscured by worry and fear. To make sure that you can navigate this next stage of your life and stay confident throughout, here are some top tips that will allow you to know what to expect and to properly advocate for your health.
· Write Down Information
The amount of information that you are given at the start of your medical journey can be overwhelming and you might struggle to retain it all, especially when you are being consumed by your own emotion and the shock and upset of the diagnosis. This means that you should write down as much information as you can, or take along a family member, partner, or friend who can do this for you. You might also ask your doctor whether they have any printouts of vital information that you can refer back to. By doing this, you will be able to read back over your diagnosis and what the next steps are when you are ready.
· Acknowledge Your Emotions
There might be many different emotions buzzing through your head at the moment, and you might be tempted to shut these off and ignore them. However, this will not do you any good, and might come back to bite you later on. Instead, you should take the time to sit down and acknowledge how you are truly feeling about your diagnosis and what is happening to you, however ugly these emotions might be. If you are struggling to keep up with the emotional weight of your diagnosis, you should consider speaking to a therapist who will be able to get to the root of your feelings, give you a chance to express them, and help you to develop coping mechanisms.
· Look at Certain Specialist Clinics
After you have received a diagnosis, you should not settle for sub-par care. Instead, you should look around for clinics that specialize in your illness and whose staff have years of experience in the field. By doing this, you will be able to feel as if you are well looked after. You might even be able to try out new therapies and alternative options that you might not be able to try elsewhere. This will allow you to receive the best and most modern care possible. For instance, if you have been diagnosed with cancer, you might decide to head to moffitt.org for more information about your condition and to see how they can help you.
· Conduct Research
When you are first trying to navigate your medical journey, you might also consider conducting a little bit of research into your condition. However, you should be aware that not all of the information that you read online will be true. This means that you should only use medical websites that come highly acclaimed and that give factual information about health conditions only. This will ensure that you get the right information to help you manage your mental health and realize the options that you now have, rather than information that will only make any anxiety that you have worse.
