Why Stress Is a Major Factor in Diabetes Management and Care

Everyone experiences stress every once in a while. It is basically unavoidable. Besides, if you see something stressful or you are in a stressful situation, you will definitely experience it. However, you have to remember that if you are a diabetic, stress can have negative impact on your overall well-being. Living with diabetes is stressful enough. But, you need to remember that stress can also have its effects on the body, which can aggravate diabetes.

First of all, you need to understand what stress does to the body in order for you to fully understand why stress can have negative effects in people with diabetes.

Basically, stress is something your body feels when something happens that makes your body feel that it is under attack. The source of stress can be emotional or physical. It can be triggered by stressful events, such as marriage problems, or by someone striking you or hurting you.

When you are in a stressful situation, your body reacts and tends to gear up as if it is waiting to take action. This is when the levels of many hormones found in your body increases. This response from the body is what many people know as the fight or flight response.

Stress can become a problem for people suffering from diabetes as stress triggers a body response that pumps sugar in to the blood. Therefore, stress increases blood sugar levels, which you don’t really need if you are a diabetic. You have to remember that being diabetic means that you don’t have the amount of insulin to use the extra sugar in your blood as energy.

In addition to that, people tend to overeat or drink alcoholic beverage when they feel stressed. This is also something that diabetics should avoid. Because it will play havoc in your blood sugar levels, you will be entering a very dangerous situation when you get stressed.

Stress is a bad thing for diabetics as it increases blood sugar level. It also encourages people to go on binge eating and drinking. This is why stress management is recommended for people suffering from diabetes.

To effectively manage stress, the best thing that you can do is to avoid stressful situations altogether. By not being in a stressful situation, you will be able to prevent stress from affecting you and affecting your already serious condition.

If you think that your work hours are stressful, try to talk to your supervisor about it and get it changed. It is very important that they know about your condition in order for them to assign you to a more suitable work hours.

If you can, go to relaxation therapy. Here, you will be able to learn relaxation techniques that can be very beneficial for you. Exercise is also an excellent stress reliever. Go to the gym, walk, jog, or go cycling or swimming. You will not only help alleviate stress through exercise, but you will also be able to get your body to become healthier. Exercising has other benefits to diabetics too.

Always remember that stress will never go away. Time and time again, you will eventually feel it. The only way to solve this problem is by knowing how to manage stress. If you manage stress effectively, you can be sure that you will be able to manage diabetes.