Free Your Wings Even While Living with Diabetes

Never Allow Diabetes to Control Your Life

​Many individuals around us suffer from diabetes and we feel sorry for them. But, most of us haven’t thought about this dreadful condition striking us and when it does, it is a gruesome shock for most. The very first question we tend to ask is ‘Why me?’ Once diabetes strikes, people go through emotional disturbances having feelings of shock, disbelief, anger, self-pity, and more. Sadly, many of these emotions don’t go away quickly but take time to heal. The only bright side here is that, you are not alone here and there are aplenty others who feel the same way. But, for some others, diagnosing the disease makes them heave a big sigh of relief as they now have answers to their previous symptoms and disturbances.
 
After a month or so, the reality sets in, we start admitting the presence of the disease, and look out for ways to live in peaceful co-existence with it. It does take time to come to this state, adapt to a diabetes-friendly lifestyle, and make everyday modifications to suit your health needs. It is an energy-consuming process that requires complete effort and ample energy. But, if you are consistent in putting efforts, it is possible to live with diabetes without completely shattering life.
 
Talking to your healthcare professional, meeting with a dietitian/nutritionist to plan everyday foods habits, and seeking guidance can help in simplifying things. Let’s see how to go about leading a life with diabetes:
 
Lifestyle Management
 
There is no choice here but to get going with the humongous task of managing diabetes. The biggest challenge here is to accept and adapt to the everyday lifestyle changes that occur as a result of diabetes. It starts from altering your breakfast timings, portions, and meal content to sleeping schedule, and even the exercise duration and types of exercise allowed. Keep a check on the following pointers to make life better comfortable and easy to lead:
 
Control Blood Sugar Levels: Any number beyond 170-180 mg/dL is high blood pressure (hyperglycemia) and we need the right medications, exercise, food portions, and insulin dose to keep it under control. Another condition called hypoglycemia (below 70 mg/dL) or low blood sugar levels are even more dangerous as the organs are at a risk of being compromised due to insufficient sugar levels. It is always advisable to monitor glucose levels multiple times daily to ensure control over glucose levels.
 
Follow a Disciplined Diet & Exercise Schedule: Food plays an integral role in managing diabetes and watching over your intake is the first recommendation given by any healthy physician. For this, reduce carbohydrates intake, increase the intake of fiber and whole grains, and moderate the consumption of dairy and proteins. Watch over the GI value of various foods before consuming them—a low GI number is good for diabetes while foods with high GI values must be avoided as much as possible. Such high GI-value foods include white grains, baked goods, processed foods, and starchy foods. Keep a tab on alcohol consumption and the standard suggestion includes avoiding the intake of alcoholic beverages as much as possible. There are greater chances of hypoglycemia a few hours after alcohol consumption. Hence, monitor blood sugar levels before and after consuming alcohol.
 
Exercising regularly must be an indispensable part of your daily routine as this helps to control glucose levels well. Practise any physical activity that interests you—it might be a sport, hitting the gym, going for a walk, or even swimming. But, before taking up any of them, consult with the healthcare professional and get a green signal for practicing the same as a daily routine.
 
Get Sufficient Sleep
 
Our body needs energy to pull us through the day efficiently. A good night’s sleep is the tonic for overcoming tiredness, staying calm, and being successful at what you do. Create an everyday sleep routine by going to bed and waking up at the same time daily, avoid taking naps during the say, try to limit caffeine consumption after 5 PM, and create the right setting for a peaceful sleep surrounding.
 
Avoid Stress
 
Stress is bad especially for people with diabetes as it brings changes in blood glucose levels. Being informed about the disease is a definite cause of stress but going on with such anxiety and stress is not going to lead you anywhere. Practice mindful exercising techniques such as breathing, meditation, and yoga to keep stress under control.
 
Choose to Be with People
 
Unity is power and never try fighting the disease alone if you have the luxury of including family and friends in this battle against diabetes. Make them understand your situation and how you would like their participation and support in this process. There are some who provide practical ways to control the disease by providing healthy food choices, give a shoulder to lean upon during emotional turmoil, and accompanying you for your everyday exercise routine. Choose the right person and be benefitted in the long run.
 
Plan Meticulously
 
Before doing any of the above, it is indispensable that you make a plan to manage diabetes in a smooth and efficient way. Bring about small changes and combine them to unravel a big change. Make regular appointments with your doctor and never miss out on them. Discuss, raise concerns, and get answers to queries with the physician. Build a relationship upon trust with some family members and friends about your condition and don’t miss to connect with other people with diabetes to relax your mind. Don’t miss out on social activities—having fun is never out of picture even when you are suffering from diabetes. The metabolic disorder is only one part of your life. Don’t ruin your whole life by letting diabetes control and overtake you.
 
The Bottomline
 
Adapting to a diabetes-friendly routine needs implementing mental, behavioral, and emotional changes to lead a normal and peaceful life. Besides taking care of the above, individuals also need to attend to skin, foot, and tooth care routines to avoid long-term complications. Diabetes can also have effect on the organs such as the liver, kidneys, heart, lungs, and feet if not kept under control. To avoid all these, it is necessary to maintain blood glucose levels in the right range and get an eye and foot test once a year.
 
Every person with diabetes is entitled to leading a normal life by making few changes in everyday routine. Make a plan that satisfies both physical and emotional health in order to succeed in your diabetes-friendly lifestyle. While doctors and family members are always there to shoulder support, sometimes they might not always have the time to do so. Hence, joining a peer group is very helpful as it has like-minded people who are undergoing your similar emotional turmoil and physical changes. Hence, they easily relate to your worries and come up with suggestions to overcome them. Peer support helps individuals share their knowledge and skills, experiences, and concerns over living with diabetes.