Managing Stress When You Have Diabetes

Diabetes is hard to manage on its own but when you increase the amount of stress you have in your life, it will be even harder for you to keep your blood sugar under control. How does stress impact diabetes?

Stress and diabetes

When a person is under stress, they suffer from multiple things:

• Lack of sleep
• Skipping meals
• Forgetting to take medications

Since you know the dangers of stress, it is even more important for you to fight back against it so you don’t throw off your blood sugar and run the risk of severe health consequences.

Exercise
One of the best ways to combat stress is to hit the gym. You need to get plenty of exercise as it helps to reduce your stress level and it also helps to manage your glucose levels. Exercise releases endorphins, which help you fell better. Speak with your doctor about a healthy exercise program that fits your body’s needs and doesn’t cause your blood sugar to experience lows. Here are some great exercises to try out for diabetic patients:

• Swimming and water aerobics. Water helps to pad the joints so your exercise routine may not seem nearly as painful if you are elderly. The great thing about water is that it has it’s own level of resistance, which forces the muscles to work hard.
  
  
• Biking. If you don’t like the hardcore impact of running, consider biking. This is a great exercise for diabetic patients as it reduces the amount of pressure and stress of the feet. You don’t have to worry as much about your feet rubbing inside your shoes and leaving you with painful sores.
  
  
• Toning cords. Another great exercise routine for diabetic patients is to use toning cords. These resistant bands help to tone the muscles without the extra tension and pressure on the joints that you experience with free weights. For elderly patients, toning cords are one of the best ways to strengthen the muscles around the joints and preventing osteoporosis.

Diet, Exercise and Control

Sleep
When you are under a great deal of stress, you need to rest. Your body needs adequate rest every night. Try to get at least 8-10 hours of rest per day. If you are unable to get this much rest at night, take a couple short naps during the day. This is a great way to manage your stress levels. Even a short nap will rejuvenate the muscles and joints and it also helps to regulate your blood sugar.

Eat healthy
If you are under stress, you may be tempted to grab for a soda or a quick snack to get by for a few more hours. Since you are diabetic, you know how important it is to control your diet. Keep some healthy nutritional supplements with you and grab them when you need to eat as they help to maintain a healthy blood sugar level. Here are some wonderful drinks to use instead of soda if you need to fix your blood sugar levels: http://caregiverpartnership.com/category/31/.

Slow down
You must put your health before everything else. If you are taking on more stress at work, ask your boss to cut back your workload. Take some time off work if you are finishing a project that has had you stressed out for a long time. You need to take care of your body so do not let your stress load overtake you. Ask a loved one to help you stay focused on healthy eating habits if you know you are under stress and you usually grab for candy bars and comfort foods when you are stressed.


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About The CareGiver Partnership. The CareGiver Partnership helps caregivers and their loved ones with answers to their caregiving questions, including information about home health care products and supplies, from our Wisconsin-based team of Product Specialists who are all current or former caregivers. The company’s Web site provides the largest online library of resources on subjects most important to caregivers — from arthritis to assisted living, and Parkinson’s to prostate cancer — as well as access to more than 3,000 home care products for incontinence, skin care, mobility, home safety and daily living aids. The CareGiver Partnership was founded in 2004 by Lynn Wilson of Neenah, Wisc. Visit http://www.caregiverpartnership.com to learn more or call 1-800-985-1353.