How glycemic changes affect your mood | What role do emotions play in diabetic burnout | Change is inevitable
The nature of our emotions is diverse. Hormonal changes and changes in blood sugar levels can give rise to emotions that lead people with diabetes to a state of burnout. Let’s talk more about the factors of influence.
In addition to physical changes in the body, you can also experience a number of mental and emotional changes.
Although some of these changes are a natural result of a diagnosis with a life-changing condition, others actually have their roots in the physiological processes that occur when blood sugar levels fluctuate.
How glycemic changes affect your mood
Most cells in your body rely on insulin to utilize glucose, but not the brain. This leads to the fact that the brain is extremely sensitive to changes in glycemia.
When blood sugar is high, the amount of glutamate, a chemical associated with depression, increases in the area of the brain associated with emotional regulation.
When sugar levels are low, it affects the neurotransmitters that control functions such as respiration and heart rate. In cases where glucose levels continue to fall, the brain redirects resources to preserve the most important functions. This can lead to confused consciousness and difficulty in thinking and functioning of memory.
It is not possible to predict or control changes in emotions during high and low blood sugar.
One of the areas that continues to work properly is amygdala (amygdala). This is the oldest part of the brain that is responsible for the “fight or flight” reaction. This is one of the reasons you may feel anxious or angry during hypoglycemia.
It is not possible to predict or control changes in emotions during high and low blood sugar. But you can take steps to reduce the frequency of feeling these uncontrollable emotions. The most important goal is to normalize blood glucose and try to stay longer in the target sugar range.
Your emotions will become more stable as the frequency of sugar fluctuation drops. However, you may experience some long-term emotional changes, especially during moments of hyper- and hypoglycemia.
What role do emotions play in diabetic burnout
Every person with diabetes at some point in their journey experiences a degree of burnout.
Type 1 diabetes is a constant condition that requires almost constant attention and work. At some point, you may want to quit all compensation work and just relax. Unfortunately, willpower is not unlimited, according to cognitive scientists.
But the feeling of “diabetic burnout” can also be caused by the natural chemical reactions that occur in the brain during uncontrolled blood sugar levels. If you are constantly experiencing depression, anxiety, or congestion, such emotional downturns may lead to a desire to completely give up on diabetes control.
Depression may lead to a desire to completely give up on diabetes control.
The feeling of depression tends to worsen only with a prolonged increase in blood sugar, so giving up diabetes treatment will probably worsen these feelings of hopelessness.
If you are overwhelmed by negative feelings, you need to seek help. There are steps you can take to break through a burnout condition. But giving up self-control is the last thing you can do, and you will regret it very much when looking back at a difficult period.
Change is inevitable
When you are diagnosed with diabetes. it can feel like a time when you can sprinkle ash on your head. However, talking with others who have diabetes will show how full the lives of people with diabetes are, maintaining their health and all that they love.
It’s okay to get upset about the changes you have to deal with:
- Adopting specific restrictions and controls to gain long-term health benefits.
- You can gain weight.
- You may experience mood changes from time to time, as well as prolonged psychological conditions.
- By spending time understanding why these changes are occurring, you can better prepare to deal with them in a way that is useful and productive in the long run.