WEBVTT 00:00:00.300 --> 00:00:03.720 Welcome to the Light Keepers Podcast. I'm Clayton 00:00:03.720 --> 00:00:06.280 Vandiver, your Light Keeper, with a show dedicated 00:00:06.280 --> 00:00:09.179 to everyone who wants to get the most quality 00:00:09.179 --> 00:00:12.800 out of life that they can. My co -host, as always, 00:00:13.000 --> 00:00:15.519 is Charlene, our very own licensed clinical social 00:00:15.519 --> 00:00:18.820 worker certified in the state of Florida, who 00:00:18.820 --> 00:00:21.359 is going to be talking with us this week about 00:00:21.359 --> 00:00:26.399 chronic, critical, and terminal. What they mean... 00:00:26.809 --> 00:00:30.010 and so much more on this edition of the Light 00:00:30.010 --> 00:01:01.289 Keepers Podcast. And before we start, as always, 00:01:01.369 --> 00:01:03.369 please leave your questions or comments below. 00:01:03.469 --> 00:01:06.890 We will answer them next week on our next edition, 00:01:07.209 --> 00:01:10.510 which airs every Wednesday evening at 7 p .m. 00:01:10.510 --> 00:01:13.189 Eastern. The Light Keepers podcast is an exclusive 00:01:13.189 --> 00:01:15.549 production of A Guiding Light, and we'll tell 00:01:15.549 --> 00:01:17.409 you more about A Guiding Light at the end of 00:01:17.409 --> 00:01:19.930 the podcast. But right now, we don't have much 00:01:19.930 --> 00:01:22.469 time, so let's get right into this week's discussion 00:01:22.469 --> 00:01:27.549 about chronic, critical, and terminal. What in 00:01:27.549 --> 00:01:31.930 the world do those mean? So those are terms that 00:01:31.930 --> 00:01:35.189 are frequently used in medical conversations, 00:01:35.450 --> 00:01:38.609 and a lot of times people don't have a full understanding 00:01:38.609 --> 00:01:41.489 of the difference between them, and it can be 00:01:41.489 --> 00:01:45.129 a little confusing. I'll say I have absolutely 00:01:45.129 --> 00:01:47.530 no idea how to define those terms. Let's start 00:01:47.530 --> 00:01:49.980 with chronic. What does chronic mean? So chronic 00:01:49.980 --> 00:01:54.219 is a condition that doesn't go away. It lingers 00:01:54.219 --> 00:01:58.840 and it comes back up and it continues on with 00:01:58.840 --> 00:02:01.620 or without treatment. So, for example, arthritis 00:02:01.620 --> 00:02:04.920 is a chronic condition. Oh, I can relate to that 00:02:04.920 --> 00:02:09.580 one. Okay. A lot of people can. Yes. Okay, so 00:02:09.580 --> 00:02:13.180 critical. Critical is when the house cat comes 00:02:13.180 --> 00:02:15.400 up during a taping and decides she wants to be 00:02:15.400 --> 00:02:18.810 part of the show. Yes, thank you. Thank you, 00:02:18.810 --> 00:02:23.090 Izzy. But what is critical? So, therapy cat aside, 00:02:23.430 --> 00:02:27.349 critical is when you have someone who's very, 00:02:27.490 --> 00:02:32.949 very sick. This is someone who is, another term 00:02:32.949 --> 00:02:35.270 that you may hear, acute. Someone who has an 00:02:35.270 --> 00:02:38.349 acute condition, which means critical, which 00:02:38.349 --> 00:02:43.370 means it's a very bad situation that might be 00:02:43.370 --> 00:02:48.039 recoverable. Might not. Okay, I see. Well, then 00:02:48.039 --> 00:02:53.159 what about terminal? So terminal is probably 00:02:53.159 --> 00:02:56.479 the worst one that you want to hear when in a 00:02:56.479 --> 00:02:58.960 conversation with a medical professional because 00:02:58.960 --> 00:03:01.919 terminal means that the illness has progressed 00:03:01.919 --> 00:03:05.000 to the point that there is no recovery and you 00:03:05.000 --> 00:03:08.699 are now looking at a life -limiting situation. 00:03:09.719 --> 00:03:15.259 This is usually when hospice is called in. Okay. 00:03:15.259 --> 00:03:19.099 Well, why is it, I guess it's sort of obvious 00:03:19.099 --> 00:03:21.060 why it's important that these be distinguished 00:03:21.060 --> 00:03:25.840 from one another. A chronic situation, much lighter, 00:03:26.060 --> 00:03:28.680 much something that you can live with, I guess. 00:03:29.080 --> 00:03:33.819 Absolutely. Absolutely. Chronic illnesses, they 00:03:33.819 --> 00:03:37.139 can be bad. I mean, lupus is considered to be 00:03:37.139 --> 00:03:40.400 a chronic illness because it doesn't go away. 00:03:42.990 --> 00:03:45.909 It's not life -ending. You know, it may be a 00:03:45.909 --> 00:03:50.050 nuisance and it may be affecting quality of life, 00:03:50.150 --> 00:03:53.810 but it's not going to end your life in the near 00:03:53.810 --> 00:03:57.509 future. I see. So things like, well, where do 00:03:57.509 --> 00:04:02.189 things like, you know, Parkinson's or that, where 00:04:02.189 --> 00:04:05.639 does that sort of... of an issue fall in the 00:04:05.639 --> 00:04:08.780 chronic, critical, and terminal range? So these 00:04:08.780 --> 00:04:12.719 are things that actually progress. So Parkinson's, 00:04:12.740 --> 00:04:16.459 dementia, Alzheimer's, these are chronic illnesses 00:04:16.459 --> 00:04:22.420 that can reach a terminal stage. So in the beginning, 00:04:22.600 --> 00:04:26.120 when they progress slowly, you're looking at 00:04:26.120 --> 00:04:28.060 a chronic illness. It's not something that can 00:04:28.060 --> 00:04:29.980 be cured. It's not something that's going to 00:04:29.980 --> 00:04:32.600 go away. It's just going to progress over time. 00:04:33.800 --> 00:04:36.819 As these progress and they get worse and they 00:04:36.819 --> 00:04:39.259 get to the point where they're now interfering 00:04:39.259 --> 00:04:43.120 with one's ability to live. For example, with 00:04:43.120 --> 00:04:45.680 dementia, when you have someone who's maybe no 00:04:45.680 --> 00:04:49.160 longer able to swallow. Now you're looking at 00:04:49.160 --> 00:04:53.000 situations that are becoming more critical. They're 00:04:53.000 --> 00:04:55.120 in the critical range. Because they're creating 00:04:55.120 --> 00:04:59.339 scenarios where life could be threatened. I see. 00:04:59.579 --> 00:05:02.399 And when they become unmanageable, I suppose 00:05:02.399 --> 00:05:05.120 that's when they reach the terminal stage? When 00:05:05.120 --> 00:05:11.019 someone is terminal, they've reached a stage 00:05:11.019 --> 00:05:15.660 where their life expectancy... is usually not 00:05:15.660 --> 00:05:18.399 much beyond six months to a year. Like I mentioned 00:05:18.399 --> 00:05:22.480 in a previous episode, someone who is admitted 00:05:22.480 --> 00:05:26.519 to hospice has a life expectancy of six months 00:05:26.519 --> 00:05:29.980 or less, along with a terminal diagnosis. I see. 00:05:30.120 --> 00:05:32.939 This means that they have an illness that's going 00:05:32.939 --> 00:05:35.939 to take their life within the next six months, 00:05:36.019 --> 00:05:38.759 most likely. Like we also talked about during 00:05:38.759 --> 00:05:43.240 that podcast, that's not guaranteed. of us are 00:05:43.240 --> 00:05:46.319 born with an expiration date. Nobody knows for 00:05:46.319 --> 00:05:50.220 sure, but if the disease progresses as it normally 00:05:50.220 --> 00:05:54.120 would, that is the expected timeframe. Right. 00:05:54.199 --> 00:05:56.160 But everyone is different. Everyone is unique. 00:05:56.279 --> 00:05:58.720 And, of course, consult your own health care 00:05:58.720 --> 00:06:03.699 professional that has a much better idea of what 00:06:03.699 --> 00:06:08.339 your individual needs might be, always. But we 00:06:08.339 --> 00:06:10.600 do welcome you to join the conversation and leave 00:06:10.600 --> 00:06:12.439 your comments, leave your thoughts and questions 00:06:12.439 --> 00:06:16.139 down below, and we will see them. We will address 00:06:16.139 --> 00:06:21.120 them in upcoming episodes. What is the important 00:06:21.120 --> 00:06:23.959 takeaway whenever you hear the words chronic 00:06:23.959 --> 00:06:27.019 or critical or terminal from your health care 00:06:27.019 --> 00:06:30.579 professional? So the key takeaway there is to 00:06:30.579 --> 00:06:35.579 keep in mind that these are determining factors 00:06:35.579 --> 00:06:39.420 in terms of the plan of care. And by plan of 00:06:39.420 --> 00:06:42.120 care, I mean the course of medical treatment 00:06:42.120 --> 00:06:44.839 is going to be determined by whether the doctor 00:06:44.839 --> 00:06:48.290 feels you have a chronic illness. a critical 00:06:48.290 --> 00:06:51.730 illness or a terminal illness. Of course, this 00:06:51.730 --> 00:06:54.949 is all a highly personal choice and no conversation 00:06:54.949 --> 00:06:57.709 that we have on the Light Keepers podcast should 00:06:57.709 --> 00:06:59.670 ever take the place of your own medical care 00:06:59.670 --> 00:07:02.509 team or other professional advisor who should 00:07:02.509 --> 00:07:06.910 always be consulted by you on your specific situational 00:07:06.910 --> 00:07:09.230 needs. And it's always good to be willing to 00:07:09.230 --> 00:07:11.629 talk about quality of life because every single 00:07:11.629 --> 00:07:15.009 one of us faces some of these issues some of 00:07:15.009 --> 00:07:18.350 the time. either not prepared at all or very 00:07:18.350 --> 00:07:21.790 well prepared indeed for joining us here every 00:07:21.790 --> 00:07:25.329 Wednesday at 7 p .m. Eastern for the Light Keepers 00:07:25.329 --> 00:07:28.949 podcast. This is an exclusive production of Vanimation 00:07:28.949 --> 00:07:32.029 Studios brought to you by a guiding light, 501c3 00:07:32.029 --> 00:07:35.329 nonprofit organization dedicated to education. 00:07:36.120 --> 00:07:39.220 and information that allows informed preparation 00:07:39.220 --> 00:07:42.980 for living the very best life possible. 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And 00:08:35.950 --> 00:08:38.210 we're so grateful for your support and sincerely 00:08:38.210 --> 00:08:40.470 hope you will join the conversation in coming 00:08:40.470 --> 00:08:43.129 weeks. Add your questions and comments below. 00:08:43.190 --> 00:08:45.490 Speaking of that, hit the like and subscribe 00:08:45.490 --> 00:08:49.080 buttons. It's free. and turn on that notify bell 00:08:49.080 --> 00:08:52.240 so you'll catch every single episode. I'm Clayton 00:08:52.240 --> 00:08:55.220 Vandiver, your Light Keeper. We'll see you next 00:08:55.220 --> 00:08:55.620 time.