Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients (age 35-70) and asthma patients (age 20-60) referred to a 4 weeks inpatient rehabilitation program - who agree to participate in the project - are randomly assigned to one of three conditions:
* Writing about emotional consequences of their disease before the program starts
* Writing about physical consequences of their disease before the program starts
* Not writing
All patients are measured (completing questionnaires at home) on: perceived quality of life, perceived health status and trait anxiety - 2 weeks before the program, 2 weeks after the program and 6 months after the program. FEV1 and 6 min walking distance are measured at the beginning and by the end of the program.
In addition to questionnaires, all patients are asked to:
* Write in their own words ( 2 weeks after) to evaluate their stay at the rehabilitation clinic; and
* Write in their own words (6 months after) about how the disease affects their life at that point.
Both quantitative and qualitative data will be used for analysis purposes.
