Effective Ways to overcome Guilt as a type 2 diabetes patient

You just got diagnosed with type 2 diabetes by your healthcare provider and then there is this feeling of “how did it come about”?. Trying to investigate how the illness has come about from your doctor will result in findings like obesity, inactivity, or hereditary. Now you know the reason, you feel sad and guilty that you have brought this upon yourself especially if the cause was obesity or inactivity. Day after day, you wish you hadn’t eaten too much or you had exercised your way to health. Guilt may also come from the fact that you aren’t managing the disease well.

A study done by Nancy F.Liu et al on the topic of stigma in people with type 1 or type 2 Diabetes 2017 shows that 52% of people living with type 2 diabetes are stigmatized

It is normal to feel guilty following your diabetes diagnosis but feeling guilty for too long may be detrimental to your health. Prolonged guilt may lead to depression, mental health issues, diabetes complications, slow response to treatment, and exposure to other health-related issues. Excessive guilt may deteriorate your diabetes condition which may lead to death. As a type 2 diabetes patient, you shouldn’t feel guilty for too long as doing so will not help your condition.

Richard I.G.Holt et al on Diabetes and Depression, 2015 says “Depressive symptoms affect up to one-third of people with diabetes which not only impairs their quality of life but also makes it difficult to manage their diabetes well”.

Here are ways to let go of the guilt feelings to ensure effective diabetes management.

1. Come to terms with diabetes facts

Understanding the facts about diabetes can help relieve the guilt. Knowing how the disease can affect you over time can help you prepare to better manage it. Know that type 2 diabetes is a progressive disease, that may deteriorate with time. That is to say, the preventive measures you take now may not be effective till the end, you will have to make changes in your diabetes management plan. For example, sometimes during your illness, you may not respond well to oral doses, so the injection of insulin would have to come in handy. You don’t have to feel bad when it comes to that, it only shows you are doing your best to get your blood sugar level to the normal range.

In addition, knowing the fact that you didn’t bring the illness upon yourself is another way to get rid of the guilt. The cause of your illness may be from genetics and biological factors. And if the cause was a sedentary lifestyle, you should be rest assured that with the right diabetes management you can live healthily.

2. Set accomplishable goals

Being a type 2 diabetes patient comes with adjusting your lifestyle. You can’t live a sedentary lifestyle if you are diabetic. Adjustments you have to make include changes in food and physical activity, and sometimes when you don’t meet the goals of these changes, guilt sets in. As a diabetic patient, set goals you can accomplish, for example, rather than running half an hour every day if you are just starting, you can take 10 minutes to walk instead, with time your momentum will be built up to do the half an hour run. Starting on a diabetes journey may not be easy at first, but setting realistic goals may help give a sense of accomplishment that you are managing your condition well.

3. Practice mindfulness

Wilson L et al on effects of mindfulness on diabetes, 2017 says “Mindfulness-based interventions can be a preventive intervention in diabetes Mellitus concerning depression and anxiety”.

Mindfulness has always been a way to focus on the present. So practicing mindfulness as a diabetic patient will help you steer away from that guilt-trapping. You don’t need much to do this practice as it takes a quiet place, a still posture, and your ruminating thoughts with no judgments. Research from 2011Trusted Source shows that people with disorders that involve excessive shame and guilt can benefit from mindfulness, especially when it emphasizes self-compassion and acceptance.

4. Grow a positive mindset

A positive mindset births accomplishment and happiness. As a diabetes patient, following your diagnosis, you may tend to feel negative most of the time concerning your condition and this harbors guilt. Positivity is what you need, as this may help you feel good about yourself and manage your condition in the best possible ways. Saying affirmations to yourself daily can help you stay positive and relieve guilt. Affirmations like;

• I am healthy
• I can do this
• This is going to be easy for me
• I enjoy exercising
• I believe I can succeed
• I can take care of myself

These simple positive affirmative can help change your mindset about your condition and make you feel good about yourself, ensuring you live a normal carefree life.

5. Work with a therapist

Diabetes care, 2016 says “American Diabetes Association (ADA) made a statement on the importance of psychosocial care for people with diabetes which shows the importance of mental health services for diabetic patients”.

Along the line, you may need the help of a psychologist or mental health doctor to put you through your journey of letting go of diabetes guilt. Your mental health doctors will help you plan and set accomplishable strategies that will see you don’t suffer from guilt. As a diabetic patient you should know that diabetes is a chronic disease and at one time or the other, you are going to feel stressed about it. So whether you are suffering from guilt or not, you need to have a psychologist by your side.

Takeaway

It is likely for guilt to present, especially when you are just diagnosed with diabetes. However, you need to alleviate or manage this guilt for an effective diabetes management. Ways to manage this guilt may include; Acknowledgement of the disease, set accomplished goals, practice mindfulness, have a positive mindset, and work with a therapist.