Living with CHD
What are some of the challenges of living with CHD?
Here is a list of things that young adults with CHD have told us can sometimes be difficult. If you have faced one or more of these challenges, know that you’re not alone!
- Feeling different
- Looking different
- It can sometimes be hard to keep up with friends
- Parents who sometimes seem too involved
- Moving from pediatric to adult care
- Thinking a lot about one's heart
- Having lots of doctor’s visits
- Remembering to take medications
- Dealing with medical info that wasn’t expected
- Getting ready for surgery or a procedure
- Worrying about future health
- Deciding if and when to tell other people about their CHD
- Making decisions about school and work
- Thinking about having a family one day
Is there anything good about having CHD?
Guess what? Some people tell us that having CHD has led to good things like the following:
- Focusing on what people can do and like to do (instead of what they can’t do)
- Feeling strong because they have managed things that other people haven’t
- Knowing what is most important in life
- Being comfortable spending time on their own
- Knowing who their real friends are
- Having a rich imagination (after spending a lot of time in hospital)
- Feeling unique!
Hey! Check out some fun and useful ways to take care of yourself and your feelings in the section of this website called Managing Stress!