Mental Well-Being

Mental Well-Being

Mindset Matters: How to Gently Stop the Mental Spirals That Accompany Chronic Illness

It's easy to spiral into negative thought patterns with chronic illness. But with a little self-awareness and reframing, you can start to get your thoughts under control.

Mental Well-Being

6 Tips to Cope With Isolation and Find Community During the Winter Months

Living with a chronic condition can feel isolating, and winter can make that worse. From learning a new hobby to finding a support group, these activities can remind you that you are not alone.

Mental Well-Being

The Mental Toll of Disability Is Inflating — We Have to Do Something

The weight of living in a world that doesn’t consider disabled people’s needs is piling on. Something has to change.

Mental Well-Being

Understanding Grief When It Comes to Your Chronic Condition or Disability

Having a chronic condition or disability can mean living without a lot of things. It’s important to talk about this grief and find ways to cope.

Mental Well-Being

Ask Ardra Anything: How Do You Deal with Anxiety and MS?

Life with MS comes with a lot of uncertainty, and that can be seriously panic-inducing. These are some of my favorite strategies for making sure that anxiety doesn't get the better of me.

Mental Well-Being

Finding Freedom in Saying No

I have days when my MS fatigue means I just can’t accept a new invitation or, worse, have to back out of one I’ve already committed to. I’m learning that's OK.

Mental Well-Being

Ask Ardra Anything: How Do I Grieve the Losses of MS?

Living with multiple sclerosis means facing down a continual series of losses. But you don’t have to get stuck in grief.

Mental Well-Being

I Wasn’t Prepared for the Way Cognitive Issues from MS Would Change My Life

I expected to lose some of my physical abilities, but I never anticipated that cognitive dysfunction would force me to give up my career.

Mental Well-Being

The Pain-Energy Cycle and How to Pace Yourself with Chronic Illness

It can be hard to resist the urge to do everything at once when you have energy between flare-ups. But it’s important to remember to rest.

Mental Well-Being

How I Use Bullet Journaling to Combat Brain Fog from MS

The minimalist layout and limitless customization options help me keep my life on track.

Mental Well-Being

Is It Time to Drop Your Story?

Everyone has a subconscious story they tell themselves about what their life will look like. Is it time to include MS in yours?

Mental Well-Being

I’m an MS Navigator. Here’s What I Want You to Know About Multiple Sclerosis and Suicide

Living with a chronic condition can be overwhelming, but you're not alone.

Mental Well-Being

How I’ve Coped with Chronic Illness Throwing My Life Plans Out of Orbit

Being diagnosed with a chronic condition, like MS, can throw your life plans off course. Grieving the losses and finding ways to move forward is a process.

Mental Well-Being

When You Don’t Live with a Chronic Condition, You Don’t See the Full Picture

Some of the most difficult parts of living with chronic illness are the aspects that others don't see.

Mental Well-Being

How I Created Joy Through Chronic Pain and a Pandemic

This past year taught me that there is a resilience inside me that circumstances, including chronic migraine and the COVID-19 pandemic, cannot touch.

Mental Well-Being

How Therapy Can Help If You’re Living with a Chronic Illness

Finding the right therapist — one who understands life with chronic illness — can make all the difference.

Mental Well-Being

How MS Helped Me Find My Purpose

My diagnosis could have led me into a downward spiral. Instead, I’ve tried to use it to lift others up.

Mental Well-Being

We Need to Talk About Chronic Pain and Suicide

People with chronic pain are at a higher risk of mental health conditions, which can lead to suicidal ideation and suicide. Several factors can heighten this risk, which is why it's important to speak up about it.

Mental Well-Being

How Nature-Based Therapy Can Improve Your Mental Health

Medication isn’t the only way to treat your mental health when you live with a chronic condition. You might be surprised by all the benefits you can find right in the world around you.

Mental Well-Being

How Living with Chronic Illness Has Helped Improve My Relationship with My Body

Whether you live with a chronic illness or not, living in a body is a complex experience.

Mental Well-Being

How to Reimagine What Fulfillment Means to You When Life Doesn’t Go as Planned

Life’s uninvited challenges, like illness and loss, can help us find deeper fulfillment in the present moment.

Mental Well-Being

Your Productivity Doesn’t Determine Your Worth. Here’s How to Let That Sink In

Despite what our culture may lead you to believe, you are so much more than a to-do list.

Mental Well-Being

8 Tips for Coping with ‘Reopening Anxiety’ When You’re Living with a Chronic Condition

Ready or not, the world is reopening around us. Here's how to reengage on your own terms.

Mental Well-Being

How Embracing the Inevitability of Suffering Can Help You Thrive with Chronic Pain

While some things help, for many chronic illness diagnoses, nothing fixes. This is where changing your mindset may help more than changing your treatment.

Mental Well-Being

Confronting Isolation and Self-Doubt When You Live with an Invisible Chronic Condition

Living with a chronic condition comes with a lot of emotions. It’s incredibly isolating, frustrating, and sometimes leaves you questioning your own body and its experiences.

Mental Well-Being

A Flare Does Not Mean You’ve Done Something “Wrong”

When you live with chronic pain, you can’t stop the weather, but you can learn to adjust your sails.

Mental Well-Being

8 Tips for Navigating Difficult Times That I’ve Learned from Living With a Chronic Illness

There's tremendous wisdom to be gained from the experience of living with a chronic condition.

Mental Well-Being

How to Stop Making a Mountain Out of a Molehill with Chronic Illness

Worry and anxiety are common among people with chronic illnesses. These tips can help you slow down and understand your emotions to both improve your mood and your quality of life.

Mental Well-Being

My Mental Health Journey as a Man Living with Multiple Sclerosis

There’s still a lot of stigma around mental health, especially for men. I hope that sharing my experiences will help others to open up and get the help they need.

Mental Well-Being

The Benefits of Gratitude When You’re Living with a Chronic Illness

Shifting to an attitude of gratitude can be the difference between surviving and truly thriving.

Mental Well-Being

Mindset Matters: Moving Through the Strange Feeling of Grieving Your Old Life

Grieving your old self is a little different than grieving a loved one who's passed. Here's how I moved forward.

Mental Well-Being

Uncover These 3 Superpowers to Reduce Pandemic Stress

We can't control the ongoing pandemic, but we can control how we react to the stress it's creating in our lives.

Mental Well-Being

How to Navigate Ongoing Grief with a Chronic Condition

When you're living with a chronic condition, you may never stop grieving the life you had before your diagnosis. Lauren Selfridge, a therapist living with multiple sclerosis, shares how to recognize and live with ongoing grief.