Coping with diabetes burnout
Managing your diabetes day to day is key to living a full, active life. But having to pay attention to the many details of diabetes management every day is not always easy.
Many people who have had diabetes for a long time have a condition called “burnout.” Psychologist and certified diabetes educator William H. Polonsky defines burnout as “what happens when you feel overwhelmed by diabetes and by the frustrating burden of diabetes self-care.”
It’s likely that you are in the throes of burnout if:
- You’re feeling burdened by diabetes
- You’re angry and filled with negative feelings
- You feel that diabetes controls your life
- You’re thinking of quitting your diabetes care
If you’re feeling defeated by diabetes, if you’re angry and filled with negative feelings, if you feel that diabetes controls your life, if you’re thinking of quitting your diabetes care, it is likely that you are in the throes of burnout.
Diabetes burnout:
- Is very common among people who have diabetes
- Reduces your energy and interest in taking care of yourself
- Can be defeated
You may need professional help to overcome your feelings of diabetes burnout. Talk with your diabetes care team about how you are feeling. They can refer you to other specialists as needed.
You can also work on changing your response to diabetes and its challenges. Instead of reacting from a feeling approach, try a thinking approach. For instance, let’s say your blood sugar level went up. When you react by feeling, you might respond with, “Oh no, I’ve failed again!” With a thinking approach to the same event, you might focus instead on, “Okay, my level is up. Now what can I do to bring that number down?”
You’ll find other tips on the rest of this page that can help you cope with some common areas of diabetes burnout.
Coping with meal plan changes
One of the key things you can do to manage your diabetes is to eat for good health. But following a healthy meal plan can be hard.
Here are some steps that may make it easier to follow a healthy meal plan:
- Learn more about how to eat for good health
Get help from a registered dietitian. Ask your diabetes care team for a referral. Or contact the American Dietetic Association at 1-800-877-1600 or at eatright.org to find a registered dietitian near you. - Adopt a realistic healthy meal plan
No one can eat right all of the time. So don’t expect to be perfect. You will probably give in to temptation now and then. If you do, get back on track as quickly as you can. - Try some new menus and recipes
Healthy eating doesn’t have to be boring. Try the Changing Life With Diabetes online Menu Planner to plan a seven-day menu, complete with delicious diabetes-friendly recipes and a grocery list!
Coping with a lack of motivation to stay active
Staying active can help you keep your blood sugar level as close to normal as possible. You may find it hard to stick with an activity plan over the long term. But if you do stick with it, you’ll improve both your mental and physical health. Your hard work will be worth it!
Sometimes the barriers to staying active seem to outweigh the benefits. If this is true for you, these tips may help you stay more active. Be sure to talk with your diabetes care team before beginning or changing your physical activity program.
- Make it fun
Find fun ways of being active that fit into your daily routine and match your present physical condition. Be sure to start out slowly. If that means moving around or walking for only a couple of minutes at a time in the early stages, that’s okay. Over time, you’ll be able to increase what you can do. - Keep it safe and comfortable
Check your blood sugar before being physically active. Also, be sure to keep sugar tablets or a sugary snack handy in case your blood sugar drops too low.
Coping with the demands of checking your blood sugar
Keeping track of blood sugar today is fairly quick and easy. But many people fail to check as often as they should or stop checking at some point. If you do stick with it, you’ll be able to manage your diabetes in a much more effective way. You can see how your eating and activity plans and the medicines you take all affect your blood sugar.
One reason people struggle with checking their blood sugar is that the “hassles” of checking seem to outweigh the possible benefits of knowing the results. Often that’s because they don’t know what to do with the information. Talking with your diabetes care team is the best way to get over that barrier.
Here are a few more tips to help you stay on track:
- Remember that it’s not a test
Your blood sugar readings are just information, not a pass/fail grade. Your meter is not your enemy, and it does not judge you. It is just a tool that can help you identify patterns in your blood sugar that will help you manage your diabetes. - Remind yourself
Make it as easy as possible to remember and do your blood sugar checks. If you find that you forget to check, try setting alarms or writing yourself notes to remind you when it is time to check. - Get an extra meter or two
If you find that you forget to take your meter with you, think about getting extra meters that you can leave in the places where you spend most of your time.
In summary
Your diabetes care plan is the key to managing your diabetes. Mastering the challenges will greatly benefit your health. There is a lot you have to do when you have diabetes, but you can do it. If you stick with it, you’ll find that you can live a full, active life with diabetes.
