Here are articles from our Prepared Patient feature series about promoting your health. These articles are based on interviews with experts and people around the country about some of their experiences making healthy lifestyle choices, getting support to change life-long habits, and living with chronic illness.

In the right column, Prepared Patient 411 offers online, phone and community resources to assist you. And in Related Research, we share the most current scientific research in brief news stories.

We invite you to share your own experiences promoting your health. You can post a reply to any of our featured articles, blogs and news stories.

Reducing Your Risk of Medical Errors Recovering from a knee replacement is difficult under the best of circumstances, but for Herminia Briones, the year following her surgery was filled with unexpected pain, complications and confusion. “There were a couple of times that the [physical] therapist didn’t conduct the therapy because my knee and lower leg were very red and swollen,” Briones recalls. “During those times I was told to see the orthopedic surgeon on top of my usual post-op visits, which I did. At each of those times and my other post-op visits, I complained of the pain and the swelling but the surgeon said that it was normal and that it takes about a year for the knee to completely heal.” She was treated by the surgeon for scar adhesions and then a blood clot. Later, during a routine visit with her primary care doctor, Briones discovered that her knee was badly infected. Her knee implant had to be removed and replaced. “One would think that the [surgeon] should have worked on eliminating the greatest risks of why my knee was in pain and swollen,” she said. “He did not order any tests to rule out infection until my primary physician flagged it down. I even recall telling him in one of my visits that I could have an infection; but he did not follow through with my suspicion.” In pain while still undergoing therapy, follow-up care and observation, Briones knew that something had gone wrong. How could she fix the error and get back on the road to recovery? READ MORE
Responding to Acute Pain Jan Adams, 66, a retired general practitioner who lives in a Minneapolis suburb, has had multiple experiences of acute pain-most of which were managed well but one that was not. While Adams' post-surgical back pain received excellent care, her most traumatic experience with acute pain came during an emergency gastrointestinal procedure. Lys Fulda, a 36-year-old sales and marketing professional from Chicago, also had a terrifying experience with acute pain during a root canal in her 20s, which left her with a fear of dentists that took 10 years "and a very patient dentist" to conquer. Fifty-four-year-old Mike Gaynes, a media consultant, suffered extreme acute pain during an attack of kidney stones. On his way to a hike with his wife, he was suddenly overcome by it. "I've never been shot or stabbed, but talking to people who have, that's the closest thing to it," he says. READ MORE
When Pain Doesn't End Teresa Shaffer, then a 24-year-old stay at home mom of three, thought she was just suffering the aftermath of a rough pregnancy. But when back pain left her unable even to pick up her baby, she began a decades-long journey through chronic pain, eventually receiving a diagnosis of degenerative joint disease. Although she was wheelchair-bound at one point, today, at 47, through water therapy, medication, exercise, counseling and perseverance, Schaffer is able to walk on her own and manage her pain-as well as serving as an advocate for other pain patients at the American Pain Foundation. Kelly Young-known online as the Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) Warrior-has suffered constant pain from her illness for the last five years. A mother of five, 46-year-old Young copes with her illness with a mix of medications, grit and RA advocacy work. READ MORE
Side Effects: When Silence Isn't Golden "I had a wonderful gentleman patient who had resistant blood pressure," recalls Vicki Koenig, M.D., a retired family doctor in Exmore, VA. "When he came for a blood pressure check on the latest new med and it was great, I was ecstatic. Then he said, 'But I notice my urine's a little dark.' His was one of the first cases of fatal liver complications from this medication." Medication side effects are common-but when should you speak up? READ MORE
On Your Own With Multiple Meds People with chronic illness often struggle to manage several prescribed drugs at a time. It's overwhelming when the vials, bottles and inhalers bulge from your medicine cabinet and you're confused about which drug is which, or when to take what. READ MORE
When Depression Is Severe Jessica Bosari has seen the consequences of severe, untreated depression in her own family: it ended in suicide for her father, his father and her maternal grandmother. So when the now-37-year-old freelance writer found that she hadn't outgrown what she'd thought was teen angst by her by her early 20s and became worried about how her moods could affect her new child, she began seeking treatment for depression, starting with psychotherapy and then adding medication. Getting professional help is a huge step toward recovery—but because depression can be so variable, it may take some fine-tuning before you find the treatment that works best for you. READ MORE

 

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