Subforums for particular chronic conditions/illnesses

The_Conductor

Good morning all,

The moderators have been thinking of generating subfora under the 'Long Term Illness' umbrella to allow posters focus on specific aspects of their illnesses and how they pertain to them (and perhaps allow a slightly more understanding atmosphere where all posts in a sub fora would be relevant to a particular illness/disease/condition.

I'm going to do a little poll here- to get an idea from members as to what the interest level might be for specific subfora.

If you have any comments or suggestions- feel free to post them here, and we'll sit down and discuss them.

Keep in mind- this forum is what its members make it- this is your opportunity to have a say in how the future of the forum may develop.

I am aware that I am listing a lot of different options- if you have other suggestions please post them here, or if you feel a particular suggestion is inappropriate- please post here explaining why.

The intention of this information gathering exercise is to gauge the interest in subfora- it is not a declaration of intent, and you should not infer that changes will automatically be made as a result of apparent trends in the attached poll.

Folks- please use this opportunity to let us know your thoughts.

Shane

LilMrsDahamsta

I'd just like to suggest that perhaps the proposed "clinical depression" subforum could be expanded slightly to include other major mental disorders (Bipolar, Schizophrenia, etc). Though they are very different diagnoses, posters would probably share common experiences of the psychiatric services, and the social issues around a mental health diagnosis and treatment.

star-pants

I think Arthritis / RA / FMS type things are fairly common too.
(mother's got rheumatoid arthritis with some fibro in her chest) I have FMS.

Just they're hard to diagnose too, and some alternative medicines work for some and not for others. And just the different treatments you can be put on.

I think this is all a good idea btw LTI is a very helpful forum

DrIndy

LilMrsDahamsta wrote: »

I'd just like to suggest that perhaps the proposed "clinical depression" subforum could be expanded slightly to include other major mental disorders (Bipolar, Schizophrenia, etc). Though they are very different diagnoses, posters would probably share common experiences of the psychiatric services, and the social issues around a mental health diagnosis and treatment.

Mood Disorders could be a good title for a subforum - there is shared stigma and shared experiences.

Bidd

Chronic Pain?

Arthritis/RA/Fibromyalgia/Neuropathic pain/ME (and more) are all types of CP. One in seven adults will be partially or permanently disabled due to pain.

CP not only affects people physically but can also lead to depression. It impinges on all areas of life.

New medicines and procedures are becoming available all the time and people need to be educated on this condition and what treatment choices are available to them.

More info here http://www.paineurope.com/ Note the "Pain in Europe Survey"

B

SeaSide

Does the volume of posts indicate that sub-forums are needed?

There is a tremendous amount of overlap between peoples experiences with different illnesses and I do regularly read what others speak of.

I would also seem that there are many visitors to this forum who suffer from more than one illness.

robinph

Is there actually enough traffic for any of the potential sub-forum topics at this stage that they get in the way of other topics?

mike65

Thats what I'm thinking, also its no bad thing to browse others conditions. Sub forums will Balkanise the LTI "community"

The_Conductor

All feedback is good feedback.

The intention with this is not to Balkanise LTI by any means.
If you feel that subforums would possibly do this- do you have any other suggestions on how you might like to see the forum develop?

gordon_gekko

Bidd wrote: »

Chronic Pain?

Arthritis/RA/Fibromyalgia/Neuropathic pain/ME (and more) are all types of CP. One in seven adults will be partially or permanently disabled due to pain.

CP not only affects people physically but can also lead to depression. It impinges on all areas of life.

New medicines and procedures are becoming available all the time and people need to be educated on this condition and what treatment choices are available to them.

More info here http://www.paineurope.com/ Note the "Pain in Europe Survey"

B

+1 , thier is more than enough focus on those with depression , ive had both mental pain in my life and now physical , physical is far worse

Lollipops23

I'd love a forum for asthma sufferers. Like all conditions, it can range from extremely mild to chronic. Unfortunately I fall in the latter category and it can be debilitating. Any chance?I see it's not listed in the poll though.

tbh

I wouldn't be in favour of this, tbh. there aren't enough threads per illness to support subforums. We'd have a bunch of forums with a small number of threads in each, and we'd miss the cross-pollination of knowledge and support from having them all in one forum. imo, of course.

as for having the forum develop - I personally think there are no major problems with it the way it is. It'd be nice to increase visibility so that more people could take advantage of it, but are people complaining at the moment because they are looking for something they can't get? If not, I think we should let it develop organically, rather than try to plan it out.

SeaSide

I feel that a change of name for the forum might be appropriate - though despite thinking about it for several days I can't come up with a better one. Suggestions on a postcard.

I also think that a move out of "science" and into "soc" might bring more eyeballs

As a question though - how do most people navigate to this forum?

tbh

a name change would be a good idea I think - when people are afraid to joke about a forum, it's too serious in my book

not sure how they navigate at the mo SS, think it may be as a result of searches, or the right thread being on the front page at the right time for the right person...

_Whimsical_

tbh wrote: »

I wouldn't be in favour of this, tbh. there aren't enough threads per illness to support subforums. We'd have a bunch of forums with a small number of threads in each, and we'd miss the cross-pollination of knowledge and support from having them all in one forum. imo, of course.

I think that's an excellent point. At present no illness in particular seems to be hogging this forum. Also as there isn't a huge amount of traffic here every thread hangs around long enough to be seen and get a reply if one is likely to be forthcoming.

I agree too that subforums could hugely reduce the level of support and knowledge that would be shared here. Most people would not tend to bother looking at, or feel that have anything to offer to a subforum that doesn't relate directly to their own experience. I know that on reading through this forum I'm often surprised to find I can identify with the experiences of sufferers of a wide variety of conditions despite my own illness being quite different to theirs in terms of symptoms. In itself I often find realising that other people are going through the same kind of issues to be supportive.

In the future if the forum recieves more traffic subforums may be worth looking at but right now I think it's a case of little to be gained and quite a bit to be lost.

SeaSide wrote: »

I also think that a move out of "science" and into "soc" might bring more eyeballs

This is also a very good idea. It's not intuitive at all to go looking for a support forum in the middle of a Science category. It's much more suited to Soc in my opinion. I think the point is born out by the fact that illness related posts crop up in PI from time to time.

mood

Lollipops23 wrote: »

I'd love a forum for asthma sufferers. Like all conditions, it can range from extremely mild to chronic. Unfortunately I fall in the latter category and it can be debilitating. Any chance?I see it's not listed in the poll though.

I would like an asthma forum as well.

I think a Heart Disease forum would be great too - it is one of the biggest killers in the western world after all!

Also there could be forums that cover a few diseases ie heart disease rather the heart attacks.

nesf

Sorry, didn't spot this. Clinical Depression but no Bipolar or Schizophrenia?

nesf

DrIndy wrote: »

Mood Disorders could be a good title for a subforum - there is shared stigma and shared experiences.

Ish. Honestly I've never found that much in common with people with depression. Different worlds we live in really.

The_Conductor

On a slightly related note- I posted an article from today's Sunday Times in LTI- which discusses a proposition by the NHS in the UK to test all LTI/Chronic Illness sufferers for clinical depression- as it appears to be rife.

Obviously this is very different to bi-polar, schizophrenia or other related disorders- I suppose its easiest to say they have more in common with each other, than with any other conditions (despite being very different).

I think we've pretty much shelved the idea of subfora for different medical conditions for the moment, pending other developments- but I do think a strong case could be made for grouping disorders such as these together and making a seperate venue for people to discuss matters as they pertain to them-but as a subfora of the LTI.

S.

nesf

smccarrick wrote: »

On a slightly related note- I posted an article from today's Sunday Times in LTI- which discusses a proposition by the NHS in the UK to test all LTI/Chronic Illness sufferers for clinical depression- as it appears to be rife.

Yeah, LTI triggered depression versus someone who inherited the condition is just going to be so different isn't it? I mean, the LTI is the reason, it's there, it's tangible. Someone with genetic had it appear out of nowhere potentially. I don't know, just seems fundamentally different to me (inherited bipolar, had it appear out of nowhere when I was 13 or so). It could be different for others though.

The_Conductor

I understand the difference- but unless you decide to classify related illnesses together- where do you draw the line?

We try to put all the IBS, IBD, Crohn's and Colitis related posts together- despite the fact that they are wholly different conditions- with wholly different diagnosis, treatment and outlooks. Some are curable, others are not. Some are chronic- some are simply recurrent. Some trigger side effects many times worse than the original condition- others are very manageable. If you split them 4 or 6 ways- chaos would ensue......

I do appreciate what you're saying- and would have no problem whatsoever with a bipolar thread in the main LTI forum- which could be updated with articles on current research or of interest to sufferers on a regular basis, along with providing a relevant venue for people to discuss matters among themselves- thats a better route to go- imho, than a seperate subfora.

nesf

smccarrick wrote: »

I do appreciate what you're saying- and would have no problem whatsoever with a bipolar thread in the main LTI forum- which could be updated with articles on current research or of interest to sufferers on a regular basis, along with providing a relevant venue for people to discuss matters among themselves- thats a better route to go- imho, than a seperate subfora.

Oh, completely agreed with you there. A bipolar sub-forum would be a ghost forum with tumbleweed gathering in corners.