Diabetes Distress and Diabetes Burnout

Having a diagnosis of Type 2 Diabetes can be a stressful and overwhelming time, especially in the beginning. It is important that you seek help and support for this.

Having diabetes can cause a condition called diabetes distress which shares some of its traits with stress, depression and anxiety. But unlike depression and anxiety, diabetes distress can be related to casual factors related to diabetes and cannot be treated with medication.

It is estimated that 33-50% of people with diabetes will experience diabetes distress at some point, especially when they are first diagnosed. On average, women report more depressive symptoms and more diabetes distress than men and it is more prevalent in younger middle-aged adults than older adults.

The symptoms of diabetes distress can present as:

• Feeling angry about diabetes and frustrated with the demands of managing it
• Worried about not taking enough care of your diabetes but not feeling motivated to change
• Avoiding going to appointments or checking your blood sugars
• Making unhealthy food choices regularly
• Feeling alone or isolated

Diabetes distress can happen to a lot of people with diabetes itself can be difficult to manage and comes with many challenges. You should always consult a healthcare professional if you start to feel like this, it is completely normal to feel overwhelmed and they will be able to support you through it.

If you do not handle diabetes distress, this can lead to diabetes burnout, which can be present differently person to person. You may avoid taking medication and your appointments, as well as reaching the point of feeling like you want to give up.

It is really important to recognise the signs of both diabetes distress and diabetes burnout and seek help to manage these. Your diabetes and how it is managed does not define you as a person, it is just a small part of who you are and you can live a full and exciting life.

If you would like support in managing your type 2 diabetes. MySugarWatch can help. We are a needle-free continuous glucose monitor that helps you to see your blood glucose score for a 14 hour period to help you manage your blood glucose spikes throughput the day. We also have our diabetes specialist coaches to help support you to make changes to control your diabetes.

References

Berry E, Lockhart S, Davies M, Lindsay JR, Dempster M (2015) ‘Diabetes distress: understanding the hidden struggles of living with diabetes and exploring intervention strategies’, Postgraduate Medical Journal, 91, pp. 278-283.

Dennick K, Sturt J and Speight J (2017) ‘What is diabetes distress and how can we measure it? A narrative review and conceptual model’, Journal of diabetes and it’s complications, 31(5), pp. 898- 911.