Concierge & Internal Medicine | Rheumatology Expert to Get to the bottom of your diseases.
Gain invaluable insights and resources for managing chronic health conditions with confidence and resilience. From autoimmune disorders to diabetes, learn practical strategies, coping mechanisms, and community support to thrive despite health challenges.
Title: Navigating Chronic Conditions for Better Health
By Dr. Susan Baker | Rheumatologist in Beverly Hills
Managing a chronic condition — whether it’s lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, fibromyalgia, or Hashimoto’s thyroiditis — requires more than medication. It demands a daily recalibration of energy, expectations, and mindset. For many patients, the true challenge lies in learning how to live well while living with a diagnosis.
Dr. Susan Baker understands that chronic conditions are not just about lab values or symptom checklists. They’re about navigating life: work, relationships, parenting, and identity — all while trying to manage unpredictable flares and persistent fatigue.
Chronic autoimmune and inflammatory diseases involve multiple systems: musculoskeletal, neurological, gastrointestinal, endocrine, and more. A one-size-fits-all treatment rarely works. Patients benefit most from care that is integrative, longitudinal, and patient-centered — all core pillars of Dr. Baker’s approach in Beverly Hills.
Research from the Journal of Multidisciplinary Healthcare confirms that coordinated care across disciplines improves quality of life and reduces hospitalization in patients with complex chronic conditions1.
In autoimmune conditions like lupus or scleroderma, patients may see a range of specialists — from dermatologists to nephrologists to neurologists. Without central coordination, this can lead to fragmented care and conflicting medication regimens. A 360° approach means aligning treatment goals, reducing polypharmacy risk, and ensuring the patient remains at the center of every decision.
Moreover, many autoimmune conditions are episodic — meaning they flare and remit in unpredictable cycles. This requires a care plan that’s dynamic and adaptive, not just reactive. Dr. Baker designs these personalized roadmaps to include both conventional treatment and supportive therapies that evolve as the patient’s needs change.
Many autoimmune patients live with what researchers call "invisible illness" — conditions that aren’t outwardly apparent but deeply affect day-to-day function. Fatigue, joint pain, and brain fog may come and go without warning, making it hard to plan ahead or meet others’ expectations.
This can lead to isolation, guilt, and anxiety, especially when patients feel pressured to “push through” symptoms. According to a study in BMJ Open, over 70% of patients with autoimmune diseases report feeling misunderstood by colleagues, family, and even healthcare providers2.
Patients can reclaim agency with tools that align both with their biology and their lifestyle. Here’s a structured plan that Dr. Baker often shares:
Chronic Condition Management Plan:
Many patients struggle with the decision to start or continue immunomodulating therapies, like biologics or corticosteroids. Dr. Baker helps patients weigh risk vs. benefit in an informed, compassionate setting. Sometimes a well-managed treatment plan with medication can reduce flares enough to allow for more lifestyle flexibility and symptom relief.
Importantly, medication does not mean you’ve failed. It’s a tool — one of many — that can help patients regain control over their health journey.
Chronic disease isn’t something to manage alone. Social support is one of the most powerful predictors of health outcomes in people with inflammatory disease. Patients who engage in community — whether it’s group therapy, online forums, or family support — experience lower rates of depression and improved physical function3
Dr. Baker encourages patients to build a “health team” that includes not just doctors, but friends, family, mental health professionals, and peers who understand the road they’re on.
Resilience doesn’t mean being unaffected — it means learning how to bounce back and adapt. Studies from the Journal of Psychosomatic Research show that patients who cultivate emotional resilience have better adherence to treatment, lower perceived pain levels, and even improved immune markers4. These traits aren’t inborn — they can be strengthened over time through supportive environments.
One powerful tool is narrative reframing — helping patients reframe their illness not as a limitation, but as a lived experience with lessons, growth, and purpose. Peer support groups and therapy can be instrumental in developing this resilience mindset, and Dr. Baker often recommends integrative mental health professionals as part of her whole-person care model.
Healing with a chronic condition isn’t linear. You’ll have days where everything flows — and others where everything feels like a setback. That’s normal. What matters most is not perfection, but progress — in self-awareness, in how you respond to your body, and in how you care for your whole self.
Dr. Susan Baker’s practice is built around empowering patients to find their personal rhythm for long-term health. With medical guidance and whole-person care, better health is not only possible — it’s sustainable.
Sources: Footnotes
