Support and Diabetes

 

Having diabetes comes with great responsibility. Support goes a long way when you are dealing with any a chronic disease. It makes all the difference to know someone has your back. It is important to have someone to talk to about all the stress that comes with a chronic disease.  

  

A person with diabetes should be doing the following:

 - Count carbohydrates with each meal and snack

 -Blood sugar tests (sometimes, several times daily)

- Recording blood sugar in the logbook

- Quarterly doctor appointments

-Diabetes educator/Dietitian appointments

-Blood tests at the doctors office

-Annual eye exam

-Almost daily exercise

-Daily foot care

-Take medications(either pills or injections)

-Financially pay for testing supplies, medications, appointments

All of this stuff adds up financially, physically, and mentally. The average cost for diabetes care is over $5,000 annually. That price climbs when complications are present.  It is easy to get "tired" of doing and paying for all these activities. The constant worry about blood sugar day and night gets old. It gets really old. I had one patient tell me "No thank you, I don't want diabetes anymore. You can take it back".
 Everyone gets tired of having diabetes at one point or another. In fact, I would even go as far as saying it is normal to get tired of diabetes. There are so many daily tasks to perform. Who wouldn't get tired of it.
I would be concerned if a patient told me they haven't been "sick of having diabetes".
I expect people to get tired of it especially in the first few months of diagnosis. It generally sets in later on every now and then.
The important thing is....You continue to do all of those very tasks you are tired of doing. I had one gentlemen (who was about 70 years old)tell me "I got diabetes 20 years ago. And I am pissed off. I 'm still pissed off about it but I do all the things I am supposed to be doing".
Make sure you have someone to talk to.  It could be anyone. A good friend, someone in your church, or a sibling.
An unknown author said "The difficulties in life are intended to make us better, not bitter". If you don't feel like you have someone to confide in, find someone right away.