A Dozen Deadly Delays

1.  “It doesn’t feel like pain.  It’s just a mild pressure, so it can’t be too urgent.”

1. “You won’t catch me in an emergency room—they’re for sick people.”

1. “If I just wait a while, these symptoms will go away.”

1. “I would be so embarrassed to have an ambulance come screaming to my door when it turned out to be heartburn!”

1. “I can tough this out.”

1. “911 is for people who are really in trouble.”

1. “I’m probably having signs of stress.”

1. “I don’t want to worry my family.”

1. “This pain comes and goes—I’ll deal with it later.”

1. “I wish everybody would quit bugging me about this numbness—it’s nothing.”

1. “I don’t have time for this.”

1. “I don’t want to bother anybody about this complaint or about driving me for help.”

At this moment, someone, somewhere, is using one of the dozen deadly delays.  They do not understand that heart attacks and strokes have beginnings.  They will not respond fast enough to the early signals. You can avoid this mistake!

Better Choices, Better Health

Limited Time Offer: Register Today

This article may be reprinted in your local newsletter.

NCOA has announced that Better Choices, Better Health is now available in all 50 states for a limited time. Online registration is available now. The program is a Free Online Workshop for People with Chronic Conditions. Nearly half of all adults live with one or more chronic health conditions, such as arthritis, asthma, diabetes, lung disease, heart disease, stroke, and osteoporosis. But millions struggle to find ways to manage

their condition. NCOAs Better Choices, Better Health program helps.

Better Choices, Better Health is the online version of the internationally recognized Chronic Disease Self Management Program (CDSMP), developed and tested at the Stanford University Patient Education Center. With support from Sanofi-Aventis and Atlantic Philanthropies, NCOA can make Better Choices, Better Health available to individuals in all 50 states for a limited time.

The program teaches self-care techniques online through a six-week online workshop which helps participants reduce their pain and anxiety and manage their symptoms. Led by trained facilitators, many of whom live with chronic conditions themselves, participants discuss:

Reducing stress

Dealing with stressful emotions

Planning for the future

Locating and using community resources

Building communication skills

Asking for help - Participants can log onto the free sessions from any computer with an Internet connection, including dial-up, at any time.

At their own convenience, they can:

Complete exercises

Read posted materials

Interact with others who are also coping with a chronic condition

There are materials available to use to promote the program online at http://www.ncoa.org/improvinghealth/chronic-disease/better-choices-better-health.html?utm_source=NC. It may also be possible to hold an in-person workshop in your area, as NCOA's Center for Healthy Aging is bringing in-person, community-based CDSMP workshops to individuals across the country. Through funding from the U.S. Administration on Aging, these offerings are currently promoted to thousands of people in 45 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. There is a link to request more information about in-person, community-based CDSMP programs in your area on the NCOA webpage under the Improving Health drop down menu. See www.ncoa.org