BlogDiabetes5 Ways to Manage Your Diabetes and Mental Health

5 Ways to Manage Your Diabetes and Mental Health

Having a chronic disease can be overwhelming, with all you have to think about and remember, and the lifestyle changes you’ve had to make. Here’s how to manage your stress and your blood sugar.
Doctor consulting with patient about good results
Published
Share

Diabetes is a chronic disease that complicates life with its daily demands. Tracking your blood sugar, going to medical appointments, changing how you eat and exercise … it’s a lot. 

As part of your diabetes treatment plan, your doctor also may have prescribed semaglutide, a type of medication that helps regulate your blood sugar and supports weight loss. But even with the extra support of a semaglutide, managing all the aspects of diabetes can take a mental and emotional toll.

Add to this the fact that simply having diabetes puts you at a higher risk for mental health conditions. For example, research shows that an estimated three out of every 10 people with diabetes in the United States also experience depression. In any 18-month period, a third to a half of people with diabetes experience diabetes distress—a state of feeling overwhelmed, frustrated, discouraged, worried, or tired of dealing with daily diabetes care.

Untreated mental health issues can even make your diabetes worse. But when one of these improves, the other tends to also, and that’s good news. To help, read on for some mental health strategies when you’re on semaglutide that can help you manage both your diabetes and your mind’s well-being.

Mental health strategy #1: Get educated 

“The first step is education,” says Rachel Goldberg, a therapist based in Studio City, California, who works with clients who have type 2 diabetes and take semaglutide. The more you know about diabetes and your treatment, the more in control and less anxious you may feel. The American Diabetes Association has a directory of diabetes education programs.

Related: Living With Diabetes? How Semaglutide Can Help Your Health

For example, before you start taking semaglutide, it helps to be aware of potential side effects, such as nausea and constipation, and ways to alleviate them, such as eating smaller meals and staying hydrated. “Side effects can be intense,” says Goldberg. Knowing that they tend to subside over time can help you persevere through the initial period, she adds. 

Mental health strategy #2: Reach out to your healthcare team

Look to your team as a go-to resource for support as well as information. Be honest with your doctor if you’re struggling emotionally. Up to half of people with diabetes who have depression don’t get diagnosed and treated, research indicates. 

If you’re depressed, anxious, or overwhelmed, it’s more difficult to do the things that help keep you healthy, like exercising, taking your meds, and tracking your blood sugar. Your doctor may refer you to a mental health professional for help. The American Diabetes Association provides a directory of mental health providers

Your doctor might also help you tap into other resources for support. For example, if you’re on semaglutide and having trouble figuring out healthy foods that work for you, a dietitian may be able to simplify meal planning and make it less frustrating and overwhelming.

Happy healthy woman dancing
Ready to get started?

Safe, effective GLP-1 medications. Results you can see and feel. Better health starts today!

Mental health strategy #3: Establish a routine

Consistency can help you follow diet, exercise, and medication recommendations more easily and with less stress (try these exercise tips if you’re just getting started).

“Think of it as a lifestyle,” Goldberg says. “I always recommend starting out very structured until things begin to become second nature and part of a daily routine without needing much forethought.” That can help lower the sense of being overwhelmed by the disease, according to the American Diabetes Association.

For example, use calendar reminders for semaglutide injections. And think ahead when it comes to eating well: “Write down a meal plan for the next day, instead of just kind of winging it,” Goldberg says. 

Mental health strategy #4: Find new ways to ease tension

You may experience stress as a physical sensation, such as a racing heart, or emotionally as anxiety. People with diabetes are 20% more likely to feel anxious than those without diabetes. Stress hormones can make your blood sugar rise and make it harder for you to take care of yourself. Here are some ideas to reduce stress:

  • Go out and move. “If you go for a walk, you’ll feel better about yourself,” Goldberg says. That feeling of accomplishment may then carry over into other areas of your life, such as healthy eating. In addition to improving your mood, walking for at least 10 minutes can also help lower blood sugar levels.
  • Write it out. When you’re feeling big emotions, Goldberg recommends putting pen to paper and writing free-form in a journal. “[My clients] always say they feel so much more relieved after,” she says. “That it’s really helped them to figure things out for themselves.”
  • Join a support group. If you have type 2 diabetes and are taking semaglutide, Goldberg recommends seeking out a community of people sharing the same experience. Your healthcare team may be able to refer you to local resources or you can look online for groups. There’s great relief talking to others who are having similar experiences, and a joy in helping each other through it.

If you think a diabetes medication like semaglutide might be right for you, talk to your doctor or chat with a ReflexMD Wellness Advisor.

Diabetes and Mental Health. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. May 15, 2024.

Ease Diabetic Stress. American Diabetes Association.

Find a Diabetes Education Program. American Diabetes Association.

Koyama AK et al. State-Specific Prevalence of Depression Among Adults with and Without Diabetes — United States, 2011–2019. Preventing Chronic Disease. August 10, 2023.

Mental Health. American Diabetes Association.

Mental Health Directory. American Diabetes Association.

Related

Published
Share
Happy healthy woman dancing
Ready to get started?

Safe, effective GLP-1 medications. Results you can see and feel. Better health starts today!

The latest

Find out if semaglutide is right for you.

Weight loss medicine Ozempic® is in short supply. Get matched with a doctor who can prescribe semaglutide if it’s right for you.