MANAGING YOU MENTAL HEALTH AND YOUR DIABETES
The way we view health has changed over the years and there has been a shift to more holistic approaches to health and wellness. Health professional recognize now how if a person is diagnosed with a physical disease, their mental health will very likely be impacted. The same is true for the reverse, when an individual’s mental health is suffering, their physical health is likely not doing much better. This two way link is clearly demonstrated in those diagnosed with diabetes.
A diagnosis of diabetes is life altering news, and it means that you are going to have to drastically change your life style whether you are ready to or not. This is true for both type 1 diabetes, where your body does not many any insulin and for type 2 diabetes, when the pancreas makes some insulin but not enough. A diagnosis of either form essentially means that you are going to need to make some major life changes that will impact you in every area of your life, altering your day-to-day routine. You are going to need to alter your diet, restricting certain food options, decreasing alcohol consumption, along with keeping track of your glucose and insulin levels. Doctors appointments become much more frequent and take away from time at work and other responsibilities you already have. These changes impact a person’s emotional wellbeing and they can feel overwhelmed with the added responsibilities, which if they aren’t able to manage may lead to negative consequences in their overall health. People living with type 1 or type 2 diabetes are at an increased for depression, anxiety and eating disorders. The presence of major depressive disorder in people with diabetes is estimated to be almost three times more common than in the general population. They are also at greater risk for developing disordered eating, and women in particular are at an increased risk of developing bulimia.
In particular there is an increase in worries related directly to diabetes, which is known formally as diabetes distress. Diabetes distress is different from depression in that the worries and concerns the individual has are related directly to the lived experience of having diabetes. For example a person may feel powerless over their blood sugar number and feel that no matter how hard they try it will never be good enough or that they are not doing all they can to manage their diabetes. Diabetes distress can also be impacted by external factors such as family support and health care services.
These conditions are often overlooked and under diagnosed in people with diabetes. As we are becoming more aware of the mind-body connection, treatment needs to focus on caring for the person as a whole. Mental health conditions are treatable, just like diabetes, and just because someone is diagnosed with both does not mean that there is no hope. Managing the two conditions is very much possible and treatment teams are becoming increasingly better at including both in the treatment plan for the patient. Psychotherapy has shown to effective in supporting individual with diabetes and mental health concerns and has been reported to lead to improvements in mood and overall diabetes management. The key is to recognize that you are not doing well and making note of the symptoms you are experiencing and making your doctor and treatment team aware so that they are able to support you in working through your distress.
