Depressed with this disease Hi I am Connie!

My eating habits our out of control .I have been a diabetic for a long time and my life right now seems a little out of control . Most of the time I’m a good eater but , a lot of times I do cheat . I want to do the right thing and take care of myself but, it seems like my up and downs are more than what I can handle. I’m a mother and wife ,i have four boys 28,27,19,13 and my life is pretty busy. I,m a nail tech for a well known Spa in Philly and business is really slow right now with this economy. So can someone give me advice on how I can handle the stress of this crazy world and take care of myself !!!

Welcome to the community Connie. I am glad that you have found us.
Diabetes is a condition that is manageable…but to be successful…we have to work on it. I’m also a type 2…I have my moments of success , failures and weaknesses…hey, we are humans… However, I make it a point I try to get “back on track”. If it is diet we need…if its exercise we need…then so be it. I can give you 4 wonderful reasons why you should get back on track…how about your boys of 28, 27, 19, and 13? I am pretty sure they love and care for you so much.
Stress and higher blood sugar are very much interconnected. When we are under stress,our body works overtime to help us cope. Unfortunately…stress is a part of our lives. Since it is inevitable…we learn to cope with it. There are a few ways I do myself to handle it:
Breathing exercises - Breathing through your nose deeply…holding it for about 5 sec…then breathing out through your mouth.
Relaxing and flexing. Try tensing parts of your muscles, count 10 sec…then relax it. Try doing it in different parts of the body.
Exercise - aerobic activity (running, walking, dancing, cycling, water exercise, swimming, , etc.) that you enjoy and participate in it regularly. Exercise is one of the best ways to release tension and keep your blood sugar in control
You can also consider “re charging” yourself physically and emotionally. Like walking in nature, spending time and talking with close friends, get a massage, read a good book…Do something that you really find enjoyable!

Hope this helps. Wish you the best =)

CONDITIONING OF MIND

Most of our behavior comes as a result of conditioning, it is habitual. If we want to do anything well, it must become automatic. If we have to consciously think about doing the right thing we will never be able to do it well. That means we must make it a habit.
We are all being conditioned continuously by the environment and the media, and we start behaving like robots. It is our responsibility to condition ourselves in a positive manner.
Think of the mighty elephant who can lift in excess of a ton of weight with just its trunk. How do they condition the elephant to stay in one place with a weak rope and a stake? The elephant, when it was a baby, is tied to a strong chain and a strong tree. The baby was weak but the chain and tree are strong. The baby was not used to being tied. So it keeps tugging and pulling the chain, all in vain. A day comes when it realizes that all the tugging and pulling will not help. It stops and stands still. Now it is conditioned.

And when the baby elephant becomes the mighty giant elephant, he is tied with a weak rope and a small stake. The elephant could, with one tug, walk away free, but it goes nowhere, because it has been conditioned.

Human beings are constantly being conditioned, consciously or unconsciously, by exposure to:

  • The kind of books we read.
  • The kind of movies and TV programs we watch.
  • The kind of music we listen to.
  • The kind of company we keep.

While driving to work, if we listen to the same music every day for several days, and if the tape deck breaks down, guess what tune we will be humming?
*

Insanity is defined as doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. If you keep doing what you have been doing, you will keep getting what you have gotten. The most difficult thing about changing a habit is unlearning what is not working and learning positive habits.

  • Negativity in; Negativity out.
  • Positivity in; Positivity out
  • Good in; Good out.

like you ,i also feel depress at any time of day,this is part of life , but friend accept it , the other name of life is problem ,don’t try to run away , with your family memebers , think how you can fight together with the uphill task , just try ,try and try ,no other way , …i am feeling low this time ,sorry i have to stop and time to eat some thing , this is also a problem.

Connie, you sound alot like most of us. If you live in the Philly area, your winter’s can be dark and cloudy. Ever notice how your customers are a bit happier and more peppy when the sun is shining. I didn’t think much about that theory until I was journaling my own moods. I suffer with severe chronic depression… have since before I was diagnosed with diabetes…and now it’s not much better. I try to flow with the go…so to speak. Depression can be worked through, maybe you need a medication for a short term, to get through the rough spots. If you are raising four young men, you have the stress of having two sons who are on their way to adulthood…and two teens who are well, probably wonderful but still teens. Now that’s not stress, nope, it’s BIG time stress and depression. Check with your doc about a short term antidepressant, a serotonin blocker…or even vitamin D which will help also.

Do you have time to yourself, that you can get out and walk (even if it’s inside rather than in the snow?) Or another activity that you can do that won’t cost money or at least not too much. Start with a day…make a list of things that you haven’t been doing for your health, and tackle one a day maybe take your blood sugars, and then make sure you take your meds or insulin, then conqueror the eating healthy, enlist the help of your sons to help plan meals. If they are like my sons were, they aren’t home a lot, but a little bit of help is better than none.
Go back and get renewed by your CDE or dietician on what foods would help you the best. I try and go every quarter, by it’s a plan with the grant we have at the clinic. Yet if your doc recommends it, insurance or Medicaid will pay for it. It never hurts to bone up on what we thought we knew.

And then Connie, do what you can do…and don’t beat yourself up for not being able to handle the world…you can do this, and when you can’t or can, you come here…these guys are great support.

Wow Cathy - I am the same as you! I am happiest when the sun is shining - even if I’m stuck inside like I am now - working - I feel good.

Connie - like others have said here - don’t beat yourself up. I know for myself it’s easy to give out this advise, but do I follow it… hmm, not always. We PWD’s (people with diabetes) have alot to cope with, and sometimes it just gets to out of hands. Trying to have something that you know will make you feel better (for me - it’s picking up a good book … when I have time - sigh) - or whatever will get you out of the rutt. I personally have never taken meds, I was told to at one point during a rough time in my 30’s (separated, moved to a new town, yadda, yadda) - but I couldn’t bring myself to pop the pills, I was afraid. So, I just dug myself out, but that’s how I sorted myself out, as every is different with how they get thru’ their lows.

I do know tho’, that with places like this diabetic community and others (I belong to a few - they all have their pros/cons ) - that it helps me alot with dealing with stuff in my life. Just rattling off my thoughts like I do here, makes me feel better, and hopefully it will for you as well. Just know, you’re not alone!!!

I know how you feel sweetie. Although i’m only 20 going on 21. I am a full time student, working part time, while trying to keep up with my cake business on the side. It’s crazy, and all the time I feel like I wanna pull my hair out. And although my mom is used to my brother being diabetic for about 16 years, she expects me to have my life and my diabetes under control. I’m so stressed and so depressed about 90% of the time. I want control more than anything. But there are those times, when no one knows or I’m just telling people about diabetes, that I feel like I have a purpose. To talk about diabetes and how scary real it is. (i live in the valley where, to mexicans, it’s very common and people see diabetes as no big deal). And my friends, lucky for me, are very supportive and want to know as much as possible. So what I do, is try to keep my head up and look foward to everyday.
I’m still a newbie. but if you need to talk or let some steam off, I’m a good listener. If not, I wish you luck and hope you feel better.