Improving Health: My Way

Improving Health: My Way is a provincially sponsored, free program designed to help people positively manage the daily challenges of living with a chronic condition. Workshops are co-led by trained Leaders who themselves have a chronic condition or have cared for someone living with a chronic condition. Workshops consist of six sessions that are offered for 2.5 hours once a week, over a six-week period. A support person of your choice (friend or family) may accompany you to the training sessions. Workshops are offered throughout the province, in each of the four regional health authorities, including Labrador-Grenfell Health.

Participants do not need to reveal any health information during workshops.

Chronic health conditions can occur at any age, usually begin slowly, proceed slowly, and often have multiple causes. The concerns people have living with a variety of chronic health conditions are similar and can include:

• Impact on quality of life and can limit daily activities in recreation, work, family activities and self-care activities
• Require ongoing actions on a long term basis to manage the condition
• Requires a team to achieve the best results including the individual, healthcare providers and the community.
• Medication usage
• Health care visits

Positive self-management lowers the risk for flare-ups, decreases the number of visits to the emergency department and improves overall quality of life.

The program empowers individuals to become actively involved in their own healthcare by:

• Learning about medication management and healthy eating
• Learning better ways to communicate with their doctor, healthcare team, family and friends
• Discovering exercises to help improve strength, flexibility and energy
• Learning how to deal with fatigue, pain and frustration.
• Learn strategies to improve sleep, mood