Mental health challenges and support for diabetics and families

11 March 1922. What a momentous announcement this was 100 years ago regarding diabetes. According to the International Diabetes Federation, today we have 371 million plus people worldwide affected by diabetes with 187 million unaware that they have the disease. Without these outstanding scientists and the commencement of the insulin discovery journey, it is fair to say that many of the diagnosed diabetics 100 years ago would have had their lives cut dramatically short. 

Much progress has been made since that date with scientific breakthroughs like continuous glucose monitoring, insulin pumps, and islet cell transplantation. July 2022 saw Science News report that Monash University said, “Scientists have discovered a pathway to the regeneration of insulin in pancreatic stem cells, a major breakthrough toward new therapies to treat or even cure Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes.

“Using the pancreas stem cells of a type 1 diabetic donor, researchers were able to effectively reactivate them to become insulin-expressing and functionally resemble beta-like cells through the use of a drug approved by the US Food and Drug Administration but not currently licensed for diabetes treatment.” This is outstanding news and the holy grail that all Diabetics including myself have been longing to hear. 

However, until the cure becomes reality, I wanted to turn a therapist's lens on the correlation between diabetes and mental health. Current research highlights that 42% of Type 1 Diabetics and 36% of Type 2 Diabetics can experience elevated diabetic distress. This can lead to poor diabetic control impacting not just diabetics themselves but their immediate family and friends.

Imagine a newly diagnosed teenager full of the joys of life ready to leap boldly into the future and they hear the Doctors dreaded words: You have Type 1 Diabetes. This is normally met with a reply of “What! How long will I have it for and can you give me some tablets to clear it up?.When the reality hits home that it is daily insulin injections and an adjustment in lifestyle hits people very hard with feelings of anger, denial, and why me resulting in depression and anxiety and in some cases, people refusing point blank to follow an insulin regime.

The wider diabetics family may offer support, but this is hard to accept especially as there's still a stigma attached to diabetes. Self-management of diabetes is critical in the early years of diagnosis and there is a number of reports that identify that psychological support is an imperative ingredient in assisting diabetics to come to terms with their condition. 

Contacting a diabetes aware therapist is essential in allowing diabetics the opportunity to openly share, explore and discuss their condition whether it is a new diagnosis or one that they have lived with for a number of years. Diabetics can feel at ease without peer or family pressure to conform to what sometimes may be viewed as an oppressive regime. Therapy also facilitates an outlet for discouraged family members as a means of understanding more and achieving a balance with the affected person. 

If you feel exasperated as a diabetic or diabetic family member or friend, feel free to contact me.