Getting real about fears

Your own thoughts and feelings are the hidden factors in your diabetes care, according to Dr. Bill Polonsky, diabetes community friend and expert on the emotional side of diabetes.

If you’re feeling blue, fearful or unsure about the future, or so overwhelmed that it interferes with your self-care, these feelings can be as crucial to your care as eating right, taking medications and monitoring your blood sugar.

Ask yourself: What worries me most about diabetes? Do I have all the facts, or am I simply assuming the worst? Do I feel paralysed about making positive changes? Am I pretending my diabetes doesn’t exist? Do I wrestle with feeling bad when my blood sugar readings are out of range or torture myself over needing to be perfect?

If you said yes to any of those questions, join the club. Many people feel the same way. But the truth is, with good care you can live a long, healthy life. Most long-term complications are preventable with regular medical attention and good self-care, including structured blood glucose monitoring.

Not sure where to begin? Open up to your healthcare professional—they’re there to help! Harnessing your fears, defeating denial and saying good-bye to guilt can help you feel more positive and hopeful about the future.

Harness your fears

• Fight fear with knowledge. Learn all you can by talking to your healthcare professional or enrolling in diabetes education.
• Know the real odds. Find out from your healthcare professional what your real chances of developing complications are and what you can do to improve those risks.
• Anxious about hypoglycemia? (Gráinne Flynn on Blood Sugar Trampoline knows what that’s all about.) Talk to your doctor about solutions that might help.
• Stay in charge. You’re the boss. Your own self-care actions can make a big difference in your health.

Defeat denial

• Learn the facts. Attend a diabetes education class or support group. They can help you accept that diabetes is a serious disease and can harm you if not managed appropriately, even if you feel fine.
• Stay informed about your health. See your healthcare professional regularly, complete all the recommended health checks—HbA1C, blood pressure, cholesterol—and know what the results mean.
• Don’t do it alone. Share your thoughts and feelings with a friend. Ask for support in taking a realistic approach to self-care.

Give up the guilt

• You did not give yourself diabetes. Emerging research suggests that for type 2 diabetes there may be a genetic predisposition to develop the disease. If you have type 1 diabetes, there’s nothing you could have done to prevent it. What’s more, carrying guilt over causing your diabetes can cause more harm than good.
• Keep your expectations reasonable. Don’t demand perfection from your eating plan, exercise or blood sugar testing. Set realistic goals and work with your healthcare team to achieve them.

Get some perspective. Give yourself a break if you occasionally get off track. Take credit for all your positive self-care steps instead.