Dealing with change

There is no doubt that having a life limiting illness changes your life and has a massive impact on the lives of family members and carers. As your health deteriorates you may find your role within the family changes and you may have to cope with giving up work, loss of independence and financial worries amongst a lot of other things.

There are often practical issues to deal with and major decisions to make. Here are a few examples – you can probably think of more:

• Do I need to move my bed downstairs?
• Who can take the dog out?
• How will I manage the shopping?
• My son/daughter has asked me to move in with them – should I go?
• Should I move into a care home or nursing home?

Often it’s the emotional impact of approaching the end of your life that is the most difficult to deal with. You will probably experience a wide range of emotions including shock, disbelief, denial, fear, anger, grief, anxiety, depression, hopelessness, despair, sadness and guilt. You may be surprised at how quickly your feelings can change – from day to day, hour to hour and even minute to minute. All these feelings can be normal reactions to what is happening to you.