Released on: July 7, 2008, 12:14 pm

Press Release Author: Cherry Communications

Industry: Healthcare

Press Release Summary: Rosalind Joffe, president of cicoach.com, provides tips and
survival skills
for professionals with chronic illnesses

Press Release Body: BOSTON - JULY 9, 2007 - Most professionals who live with a
chronic illness are challenged to balance three equally competing demands: career,
personal life and disease symptoms. But what happens when a person's body decides
that work in no longer an option but the mind and soul are not in agreement?

There are several options, says Rosalind Joffe, president of cicoach.com and the
author of the new book Women, Work and Autoimmune Disease: Keep Working, Girlfriend!
(Demos Health, May 2008). "Just because you can't do the work you have always done
in the way you have always done it, it doesn't mean you can no longer work at all or
forever."

Joffe has lived with several chronic illnesses for almost 30 years. She helps
professionals, like herself, who are passionate about continuing to work because
they know it's good for their state of being. But, as she explains it, the key is
to find the right work in the right environment rather than staying stressed and
trapped in a miserable job or giving up and leaving work altogether.

"While millions of p people continue to work every day with disabilities, the fact
is that most people only see one alternative, to leave the workplace altogether.
It's true that some may have to stop working for a short period - and for a few, it
can be indefinite. But if you have the motivation, you can expand your options
rather than only focusing on what you've lost," says Joffe.

She explains that one of the biggest issues many professionals face is self-pity.
"Work for any person, regardless if they have a chronicle illness, is important to
self-esteem," says the certified coach. "But this is particularly true when you've
devoted time and resources to building a career. When your body, as you've known it,
"quits" on you, you can find ways to keep working, in whatever capacity possible,
so you can stay engaged, continue to feel vibrant and most importantly, to be more
than just this sick body."

Some ideas to help include:
. Determining if this is temporary
. Finding out if a new job could accommodate one's needs better
. Seeking out support from professionals and friends
. Creating opportunities for volunteering and contributing elsewhere
Additional resources are available at cicoach.com, including The Keep Working with
Chronic Illness Workbook. This workbook is a companion piece to her recently
published book, Women, Work, and Autoimmune Disease: Keep Working, Girlfriend!
Visit http://www.cicoach.com/workbookpromo.html for more information.


About Rosalind Joffe, M. Ed
Rosalind Joffe is the founder and president of cicoach.com, an executive career
coaching firm dedicated to providing the services, resources and products that high
achievers living with chronic illness need to succeed in their careers.

She has been interviewed in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Boston
Globe, ABC Radio, National Public Radio as well as a variety of regional and
national media outlets. In addition, Joffe is published in dozens of disease
organization and health journals.

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Web Site: http://cicoach.com

Contact Details: Shannon Cherry
PR for Rosalind Joffe
518.632.6212
news@cherrycommunications.com