Diabetes: Tension from having diabetes can cause diabetes
Stress causes the body to release hormones that may raise blood sugar levels. Diabetes patients may experience negative symptoms from this, although they may be controlled. Your body responds when you're under stress or feel threatened. The fight-or-flight response is what is meant by this.
Your body sends cortisol and adrenaline into the bloodstream during this reaction, and your breathing rate rises. If the body is unable to properly metabolise it, this may cause blood glucose levels to rise.
You can become psychologically and physically exhausted from ongoing stress caused by blood glucose issues that have persisted over time. This could make controlling your diabetes challenging. In this article, we discuss how your stress levels are linked to your blood sugar levels.
What is stress?
Stress is the physical and mental response to unfamiliar or challenging circumstances. It can be something immediate, like stressing out about a presentation you have to give the following day at work. or attending a party over the weekend when you don't know many people. It might also be a physical occurrence, like an accident or illness.
Or you might worry about issues like money, a relationship, or adjusting to the loss of a loved one on a less urgent but more persistent basis. You can have physical, emotional, and mental effects from stress.
How are the two linked?
People respond to stress in different ways. Your body's reaction to stress can vary depending on the kind you experience.
People with type 2 diabetes typically notice a rise in their blood glucose levels when they are under emotional stress. People with type 1 diabetes could react differently. This indicates that their blood glucose levels may either rise or fall.
Your blood sugar can rise as a result of physical stress. This may occur as a result of an illness or accident. Both type 1 and type 2 diabetics may be impacted by this.
The body produces stress hormones like adrenaline and cortisol when you're under stress. This should offer you more energy to respond to "fight or flight." Insulin resistance is a result of hormones, which makes it more difficult for insulin to function as it should. Your blood sugar levels increase because your cells are unable to receive energy.
Going hyper means having too high blood sugar levels. More knowledge regarding hypers, their prevention, and treatment is available.
Stress can make your levels of blood sugar high and increase your risk of developing diabetic problems if it doesn't go away. Your emotional health may also be impacted by how you feel and how you care for yourself.
Can diabetes cause stress?
Stress is a common side effect of diabetes, especially in the early stages after diagnosis. It might be challenging to have a lot of new things to learn and remember while also having to pay close attention to what you eat. It can entail that you must now frequently monitor your blood sugar levels or inject yourself. It can be quite unpleasant to worry about the outcome or experience needle anxiety.
Some diabetics are also concerned about hypos, or episodes of dangerously low blood sugar. Trying to manage them when they do occur while wondering when they could happen can be difficult. There are steps you can do to regulate these sensations, which are sometimes referred to as hypo anxiety.
Some individuals may have occasional episodes of feeling overloaded by their diabetes, as well as frustration and anxiety as a result of having it. Some people fear developing problems, and others feel terrible if their diabetes management plan deviates from the plan. When you're under a lot of stress and it becomes too much to take care of your diabetes along with everything else, you could experience this overwhelming feeling even more.
If you experience occasional diabetes distress, it's normal. If you don't control this anxiety, things could get worse and eventually result in burnout. Therefore, discuss it with your medical staff and seek their guidance.
Seeking correct guidance and professional help can help you better deal with and manage these emotions as well as diabetes.
Disclaimer: This content including advice provides generic information only. It is in no way a substitute for a qualified medical opinion. Always consult a specialist or your own doctor for more information. NDTV does not claim responsibility for this information.