What Would You Tell Yourself 10 Years Ago?

The beginning of a new year is always a time for reflection.  You look back, you look ahead and you try to find the big picture.   For patients living with chronic health conditions, a new year can be an opportunity to implement and share lessons learned along the way – about how to cope, manage… Continue reading What Would You Tell Yourself 10 Years Ago?

A Patient Poem for the Modern Age

Can you be friends with someone you’ve never met in person? The members of our online health community – now 300, 000+ patients strong – think so.  In fact, many of them say they depend on other members for support and encouragement, and for the all-important reminder that they are not alone. As evidence, here… Continue reading A Patient Poem for the Modern Age

Not Recognizing the “New Me”

For many newly diagnosed patients, accepting help can be as difficult as accepting the diagnosis itself.  According to some of the members of our Parkinson’s disease community, here are a few signs that you may be struggling with the idea of becoming someone who might need help. Have you found yourself feeling resentful when family,… Continue reading Not Recognizing the “New Me”

Honoring Family Caregivers Everywhere

Is there a caregiver in your family?  For example, someone who looks out for an elderly parent or grandparent – or who cares for a child or spouse with a debilitating illness? November is National Family Caregivers Month, a time for recognizing the important role of family caregivers in our society as well as the… Continue reading Honoring Family Caregivers Everywhere

What’s Positive About Disease?

It may seem counterintuitive, but according to some of our members, there are actually some good things that can come out of being diagnosed with a serious illness.  In the spirit of Thanksgiving – a time when many people are reminded of all the things they have to be grateful for – we thought we… Continue reading What’s Positive About Disease?

What We’re Reading at PatientsLikeMe

Here are some of the media items that grabbed our attention recently. Four Things I Learned from Living with a Chronic Illness Wise advice from a teenager who had to give up competitive gymnastics and find a new perspective on life after being diagnosed with a disease that causes chronic pain. Access to Doctors’ Notes… Continue reading What We’re Reading at PatientsLikeMe

What to Do – and Not Do – When Someone Has a Mental Health Condition

Have you ever wondered how best to interact with someone who is living with depression, bipolar disorder or another mental health condition?  Have you worried that you’re saying or doing the wrong things? Last week we recognized Mental Illness Awareness Week on the blog, and to continue our coverage, today we thought we’d share with… Continue reading What to Do – and Not Do – When Someone Has a Mental Health Condition

PatientsLikeMe Featured on Bloomberg TV

On October 9th, Bloomberg TV aired a four-and-a-half minute “Innovators” segment profiling PatientsLikeMe’s journey as company.  Filmed partially in our office in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the piece features PatientsLikeMe Co-Founder and Chairman Jamie Heywood as well as Ed Sikov, a PatientsLikeMe member with Parkinson’s disease.  Our thanks go to Bloomberg’s Nicole Lapin for her in-depth coverage… Continue reading PatientsLikeMe Featured on Bloomberg TV

Mental Illness Awareness Week 2012: Dismantling the Stigma

Did you know that one in four adults – or approximately 57.7 million Americans – experiences a mental health problem in any given year?  Or that one in 17 lives with a serious, chronic mental illness? Since 1990, National Mental Illness Awareness Week has been recognized by the U.S. Congress as a time for mental… Continue reading Mental Illness Awareness Week 2012: Dismantling the Stigma

Add Your Voice During National Recovery Month

Are you in recovery from an addiction or mental health disorder – or do you know someone who is?  The theme for National Recovery Month 2012, sponsored by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), is “Join the Voices for Recovery: It’s Worth It!” There are several different ways to participate in this… Continue reading Add Your Voice During National Recovery Month