When we talk about living with diabetes, most people don’t picture a life of yummy food, less stress, and joy-filled purpose. But, what if you learned a new way to approach diabetes that provided all of these? It is completely possible to enjoy tasty and delicious foods (including carbs!), have a comfortable understanding of how food impacts your blood sugar levels, know how to confidently adapt your diabetes care to the situations around you, and all the while maintain your mental health.
Living with diabetes certainly has its challenges, but thanks to modern day medicine and our always increasing knowledge of how our bodies function and thrive, it is possible to live a relatively normal and happy life with diabetes.
Living with diabetes involves paying attention to the food we eat, how and when we take medication, how we move our bodies, and how we handle stress. All of these things can impact blood sugar levels.
Eating for diabetes can be tough and at times may seem impossible. But, eating the right foods for diabetes is actually easier than you think. You just need to know what to look for and how to properly evaluate a nutrition label.
Even though blood sugar balance may seem like the unattainable unicorn, there are actually three key nutrients that make it much easier to achieve than you’d think. Many diabetes resources focus on what to take out of your diet, but I want you to focus on what to ADD to your diet to achieve blood sugar balance:
I go into more detail on all of these nutrients and offer up to 60 exclusive recipes highlighting all three of these nutrients in my book The Easy Diabetes Cookbook!
We know from research that exercise helps almost any chronic health condition and diabetes is no exception. Exercise not only lowers blood sugar levels but also increases your body’s sensitivity to insulin (this means exercise combats insulin resistance).
Supporting someone with diabetes in a caring and empathetic way can be incredibly helpful! Living with diabetes can be overwhelming at times. But, it can also be fine and simple some days too. Each day is different. People living with diabetes should have a core group of people to rely on for support and to help get through those harder to handle times.
Want to learn more about healthy living with diabetes, both mental and physical? Check out some of these related and incredibly helpful articles!
Diabetes is far more than a physical disease and monitoring and taking care of your mental health is just as important as your physical health. Poorly managed blood sugars can impact mental health and mental health conditions can impact blood sugar levels.
People with diabetes are 2-3x more likely to be depressed than someone without diabetes. And unfortunately, due to poor medical care or lack of access to medical care, less than half of people with diabetes who are depressed will get diagnosed and treated.
And due to the stressful nature of managing a life threatening condition day in and day out, people living with diabetes are 20% more likely to suffer from anxiety than the average person.
It is important to discuss your mental health with you health care professional and seek treatment if needed.
For me, taking care of my mental health while living with diabetes can range from something as simple as taking a break to play with my dog, to something more serious like seeking out counseling.
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