More and more Americans are finding that they must learn to cope with chronic illness. Granted, for some of the 125 million people with chronic illnesses, the problems are minor, but for 60 million others have multiple chronic conditions that can be serious or life-threatening.

The toll(损失) of so much illness is enormous--$510 billionannually. But chronic illness claims an emotional toll as well, and it is in that realm that researchers are increasingly looking to the hard-won wisdom of patients to find ways to help others cope with diseases that might once have engulfed(吞没) them in shame or despair.

One view is that people with chronic illness should be neither pitied nor idealized, either by others or by themselves. Pity can come across as condescending(屈尊的). Turning someone into a hero may not help. Other mental health specialists, such as Ann Webster, take a somewhat different view. Some people with chronic illnesses do want to be seen as normal, she said, but others do seem truly heroic and may appreciate some recognition of that. "a lot of people grow and change" in profound ways, Webster said. Some long ?term survivors in her AIDS group "have changed and grown and turned into some of the most evolved and spiritual people, and they never were that way before." " It's really hard having a chronic illness, and knowing it is changing your life and your future," she said. Some people can throw their energies into beating their disease and returning to normal activities. But others can't beat the disease, no matter how hard they try. Many people can do this on their own, she said, but many also find it helpful to join support groups or see individual counselors. Ultimately, the task is to make meaning in the face of disability or imminent death, to reassess what's still important and what you can still do, when your old goals and dreams can no longer be met.
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