Putting it all together
As time passes, life changes, diabetes changes, drugs change, and management requirements change as well. Caring well for diabetes requires persistence, motivation, knowledge, and collaboration with family members, friends, and a team of health-care professionals. But keeping on top of the seemingly endless series of personal tasks associated with diabetes can often lead to frustration, fatigue, distress, and symptoms of depression, all of which can have negative effects on diabetes management, outcomes, and general well-being.
It is important to pay attention to these feelings, to use them as signals to take action, and to address them with your health-care providers. Dealing with diabetes distress and symptoms of depression is as important to your diabetes care as any drug taken or any behavior routinely practiced. Awareness of these issues is an inherent part of good diabetes self-management.
