On Sunday morning, many west Georgians go to church for worship and fellowship.
Heather Shead of Villa Rica is one of them. For the past seven years, she has attended Villa Rica First United Methodist Church. She knows that going to church has played a big part in her spiritual growth, but it is also helping heal her mind and body, too.
Between taking care of herself and being a caregiver to others, she sometimes gets stressed.
“I currently take blood pressure medicine,” said Shead. “I also do a lot of caregiving with my family because I’m an only child.”
After a fellow church member and friend told her about a class that could help reduce stress, she didn’t hesitate to sign up. She also learned that the meeting location was conveniently across the street from her church.
Overcomers Christian Center in Villa Rica is partnering with Tanner Health System’s Get Healthy, Live Well to offer the Living Well With Chronic Disease program, which helps participants manage symptoms associated with their chronic conditions.
“Learning how to manage your health, emotions and daily activities can help make living with a chronic condition easier,” said Jamie Brandenburg, chronic disease outreach coordinator at Get Healthy, Live Well. “This program provides you with the tools you need to do just that.”
On a Monday night, Shead found herself at Overcomers Christian Center with seven other people who signed up for the evidence-based program, which was developed by Stanford University. The six-session Living Well program helps participants manage any lifelong disease, including arthritis, cancer, depression, diabetes, heart disease and hypertension. Family members and informal caregivers are also encouraged to attend classes.
Over the course of the next six weeks, Shead hopes to learn some techniques that will help reduce stress.
“It would be great if I could get off the blood pressure medicine completely,” Shead said.
During Monday’s class, one of the first things each participant did was share what chronic conditions they were dealing with each day. They also learned relaxation techniques and brainstormed things they could do that would help them get a good night’s sleep. One of the last things they did was create a self-care action plan outlining their healthy lifestyle goal for the week.
The class is led by Overcomers Christian Center Pastor Richard Dobbs and church member Pamela Mims.
“I believe that not just in health, but in every area of your life, you need to make better decisions,” said Dobbs. “My personal philosophy is, if God was to heal you, what are you going to do to stay healthy? We need to take specific actions and do our part to make better decisions.”
Those decisions include going to the doctor’s office for regular checkups.
“There’s an old adage that goes, ‘It’s better to fix the car when it’s something small than to wait for something big to happen and then have to do an overhaul,’” said Dobbs. “I believe in health in the same way. Do small things and hopefully that will take care of the bigger things.”
The class is helping participants make better decisions that can lead to a happier, healthier and longer life.
“They’re taking an active role in their health, which makes everybody’s life better,” said Dobbs. “That makes their family life better. It makes the church better overall.”
He stressed the importance of getting programs like these to the people who need them.
“I want tangible programs we can get to the people, so in turn their lives will be better; and Tanner makes that possible,” said Dobbs.
So what are Shead’s thoughts after the first class?
“I really enjoyed it,” said Shead. “I think starting small goals instead of trying to reach for a really big goal in the beginning has already showed me that maybe that’s what I need to start doing — just take small steps.”
She also learned several good relaxation techniques that she can use on a daily basis. But one of the most valuable things she got out of the class is something she experiences every Sunday morning when she goes to church — fellowship.
“I felt like I was not alone in my situation,” said Shead. “It’s always nice to be with other people who are in the same situation.”
For more information about the Living Well With Chronic Disease program, visit Tanner's classes and events calendar at www.GetHealthyLiveWell.org.