Don’t Let A Diabetes Diagnosis Hold You Back
No one ever wants to be diagnosed with a life-changing medical condition, but some are completely unavoidable. They might require you to be on medication for the rest of your life, and could drastically alter how you live your life on a day to day basis. For instance, diabetes is a disease that really changes how patients’ live their lives. They may need to carefully restrict their diet and take insulin shots every day for the rest of their lives. As you can probably tell, this can be quite a stressful diagnosis to deal with, especially as you go through the initial phases of changing your daily routine to accommodate your new set of needs.
Thankfully, though, there are some ways you can make living with diabetes a lot easier to manage. The following tips should help newly diagnosed patients get used to their new lifestyle.
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Know The Different Types Of Carbs
All diabetics know that their diet is very important. They need to ensure that stick to healthy foods that won’t cause their blood-sugar levels to spike too much. When it comes to come foods, such as chocolate and candies, it is obvious that they need to be avoided. However, some other ingredients are not so obvious. One of the most problematic foods is carbohydrates. There are different kinds, namely refined and unrefined, and it is crucial to know which you can eat as they are such a staple part of all diets. Refined carbs, such as white bread and white pasta, can spike your blood-sugar level sharply. However, unrefined carbs are released into the blood slower and don’t cause too many issues with blood-sugar levels as long as they are consumed in moderation.
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Keep Your Glucose Meter In The Same Place
Your glucose meter will become your new best friend. It helps you monitor your blood glucose levels and lets you know if you need to act in any way to prevent feeling ill or falling sick. Without this little device, there is no way you would be able to manage your diabetes effectively. So, as you can probably tell, it is always key to keep your glucose meter nearby at all times. Ideally, you should leave it in the same place in your home. Then you know where to look for it whenever you need to leave the house and take it with you.
Change Your Socks
Lots of diabetics have problems in their calves because of poor blood flow to their extremities. There is a simple solution to this, though – you just need to take a look at the types of compression socks that you can buy from www.sockwellsocks.com or other sock specialists. These are usually worn on long-haul flights as they minimize the risk of developing blood clots and deep vein thrombosis. These socks are also important for diabetics as well as they ensure good blood flow and minimize the pressure on the calf muscles. Diabetes increases the chance of developing foot ulcers too, which compression socks can prevent.
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Focus On Eye Health
As a diabetic, you will also need to ensure that you keep on top of your eye health and get your peepers checked out on a regular basis. When you develop diabetes, you will be at a higher risk of developing certain eye diseases and conditions. For instance, many diabetic patients suffer from small bulges in the blood vessels in the eyes. These are known as background retinopathy. Even though these don’t affect your vision, they can still bleed sometimes. Other diabetic-related eye conditions include proliferative retinopathy. The best way to slow down the development of these conditions is to get your eyes checked out by an eye doctor at least once a year. He or she will inform you of what you can do to improve your overall eye health.
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Watch Stress Levels
Stress is bad for anyone, but it can be particularly dangerous for those who suffer from diabetes. That’s because your blood sugar levels will raise as soon as your stress levels do. So, all diabetic patients need to have some good stress-management steps that they can use whenever they need them. One of the best ways you can minimize your stress if to practice breathing techniques. Closing your eyes and thinking of a happy place can also help.
Sleep Well
As a diabetic, you will need to make sure that you get plenty of beauty sleep! Not only will this help you look good, but it will also help you keep a better check on your diabetes. If you ever get tired and fatigued, you will find that your body craves quite a bit of food. As a result, you are a lot more likely to eat more, which will cause your blood sugar levels to spike. So, to help you stay on top of your diet and diabetes management, you need to always aim for at least seven hours of sleep every night.
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Join Support Groups
You might find that being diagnosed with diabetes can be quite alienating, especially if you don’t know anyone else who has the health condition. Because of this, you might feel like you don’t have anyone who you can talk to. So, it’s always a good idea to look for your nearest diabetes support group. There are lots of these dotted around the country in most towns and cities, so I am sure that you will be able to find one close to you. When you attend the groups, you will find that there are lots of people who are in the same situation as you, and you can all chat about your shared experiences. You’ll certainly make a lot of new friends! Plus, most support groups have lots of leaflets and information for the attendees, so you can pick up lots of literature that you can take home and read in your own time.
Hopefully, all of these tips above help you to lead a normal life with diabetes!
