Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

By Elisabeth Altamirano-Smith/ Freelance Writer

Middle Alabama Area Agency on Aging (M4A) is offering a virtual workshop “Living Well” to the community.

Living Well is a free, six-week program that helps individuals living with a chronic condition. According to the Living Well website, 3.2 million Alabamians have a chronic disease. The program helps individuals face their challenges by providing resources and support to those struggling with their disease.

“The workshop helps people that have chronic illnesses such as asthma, cancer or mental illness,” said Living Well Coordinator Breana Mahaffey. “Each week, we will talk about and identify things that each person struggles with and then make an action plan to improve for the coming week. If someone is struggling taking their medicine, we talk about why and work on improving that for the future. Each person struggles with something different.”

Living Well is a world-wide program that was developed at Stanford University and is offered in a number of different group settings including churches, nursing homes, prisons and group homes.  Those that complete the six-week program are proven to feel healthier, more physically active and better at managing their symptoms.

“Every week, there will be different activities during the workshop that help with mindfulness, decision making, how to prioritize and breathing exercises,” Mahaffey said. “This group is about making a plan for your life, having a sense of accountability and group encouragement.”

The program is being provided through a grant by the Department of Health and Human Services to six counties within Alabama, including Chilton County.

“Each online session is in a group setting,” said Mahaffey. “If someone within the group feels bad that they did not accomplish their weekly goal, there are others within the group that usually provide support and understanding. It helps people perceive their health differently, let them know they are not alone and how to communicate better.”

The workshop will be offered on Tuesdays at 11 a.m. from Febr. 2 to March 2. To register for the virtual Living Well workshop call 205-670-5770 or visiting www.livingwellalabama.org. Once registered, participants will receive the program book and resource material in the mail. Participants that complete four out of six sessions will receive a $25 gift card as an incentive.

“We have about 10 people registered for the group so far,” said Mahaffey. “I encourage everyone to give it a try! Come to the first session to see if you like it. If you don’t- you haven’t lost anything. If you do- it will help improve your life physically and mentally, that is something we all need, especially during quarantine.”