Stress and Diabetes: Strategies for Managing

Stress and Diabetes: Strategies for managing you should know.

If you suffer from diabetes, you must have heard that taking care of your emotional health is also part of the treatment. Looking at it like this at first glance, it might even sound strange. However, stress and diabetes do have a direct relationship.

Studies confirm that an individual’s mental health is directly linked to the appearance of other pathologies. And that’s exactly how it happens with diabetes.

Do you know what emotional diabetes is? This may be a new term for you, but know that it is used to refer to the relationship between diabetes and emotional health. And it’s not a type of diabetes as some people might think.

Basically this term emerged when doctors realized that  stress can worsen the clinical picture of diabetes, or even be triggered after the patient receives the diagnosis. However, this does not mean that everyone who has anxiety or stress will develop diabetes, as there are several factors that can help this happen.

What can be said is that feelings, both positive and negative, can unbalance blood sugar levels. And as a consequence, uncontrolled diabetes can occur in people with predisposition or even in those who already suffer from the disease.

This subject is really very interesting. If you want to know more, keep reading and understand the relationship between stress and diabetes.

How can stress affect blood glucose?

In diabetic patients, stress can affect blood glucose in two ways:

• People with a high level of stress do not have the ability to take care of themselves properly. Therefore, they may forget to measure their blood glucose or even end up not eating properly as they should. And they can also abuse the consumption of alcoholic beverages and not perform any physical activity due to lack of time.
• In the other case, stress hormones can affect blood glucose directly. This is because mental stress can greatly raise or lower blood glucose.

Likewise, when the patient receives the diagnosis of diabetes, stress may appear as a reaction to this news.

Stress indicators

When a person begins to suffer stress, the body gives signs that something is not right. Pay attention to the indicators of stress:

• Increased blood pressure or uncontrolled blood pressure;
• Increased heart rate without other apparent causes;
• Elevation or fall of blood glucose without another visible cause;
• Increased muscle tension.

How to combat secondary stress after a diabetes diagnosis

• Diabetes is a chronic disease, that is, it has no cure. Upon receiving the diagnosis, it is necessary to understand that this will not change.
• Accepting the diagnosis at this time is critical. As well as their sensations and frustrations when suffering from the disease. If necessary, be sure to seek psychological help or even participate in groups with other people who also suffer from the disease. Remember, you are not alone in this moment.
• Recognizing can be fundamental! Despite the disease, you can have complete control over your blood glucose. And it’s up to you how you want to face this situation. With a balanced diet, performing physical exercises and taking the indicated medications and insulin, it is possible to have a better quality of life.
• It is important to emphasize that sometimes the stress caused by diabetes can be confused with depression. However, in these conditions, the use of antidepressant drugs does not cause improvement in the patient. What does help is accepting the diagnosis and doing physical activity, among other healthy habits.

What to do to combat mental stress?

As we have seen, stress and diabetes are directly related. In these cases it is essential to know how to fight and thus have a better health management. Here are some strategies:

• First, it is essential to rule out whether the glycemic alteration is due to stress. To do this, write down on a piece of paper the degree of your stress on a scale of 0 to 10 before measuring your blood glucose. This can be done for 10 days in a row. Analyze whether your glucose level has anything to do with your stress level.
• Change some things in your life: Is work stressing you out too much? Ask for a sector transfer or look for another job. Are you fighting on several occasions with a loved one? Look for conversations on the topic. And if traffic stresses you out, look for a solution. If the distance is short, how about taking a walk and enjoying the scenery.
• Practice physical exercises on a regular basis; discover a new hobby; take dance classes or something you like.
• How about learning to relax? Yoga and meditation can be great alternatives to include in your daily routine. This type of practice decreases stress-related hormones.
• Replace bad thoughts with good ones. Whenever that bad thought comes to torment you, mentalize something that is good for you.

Of course, living with diabetes is not easy, but you have the tools to better manage your health and achieve a better quality of life. It’s your choice. Commit and have a happy and healthy life!