Burnout

[Nicola M]

I’m going through really bad burnout again, I think with all that’s going on in the world and all the changes with covid it’s definitely affected my mental health more and I am struggling. I had a yearly checkup at my doctors recently and they called to ask if I have a hospital appointment as my control is not very good. I do have an appointment with my nurse this Thursday and i am going to bring it up that I am struggling. I think my HBA1C is around 12% I know that that is bad and I would kindly ask for no judgment on that as I am struggling knowing that it is that high. I suppose all I’m asking for is for people who have been through burnout before to give me advice/pointers on what you have done to get through it and do better with your control. I feel like I’m never going to get out of this rut I’m in and need just a little bit of support from people who know what this condition is like.

 

[Jaylee]

Hi,

I feel you're doing the right thing getting appointment with an HCP.
These "pundits" on the consultations can be useful to a point. But they don't walk in our shoes.
Even another diabetic can't see it through your eyes.

These are "interesting times" with stuff happening in the world right now.

On a personal level.
Is there another aspect of your life that may have triggered feelings towards your D managment? (Sometimes that can drive it round in a circle.)

 

[Nicola M]

I can’t think of anything that could have caused it. I do suffer with depression though which I don’t think helps in the grand scheme of things.

 

[Jaylee]

I can’t think of anything that could have caused it. I do suffer with depression though which I don’t think helps in the grand scheme of things.

Are you receiving any help regarding the depression?

 

[EllieM]

I think my HBA1C is around 12% I know that that is bad and I would kindly ask for no judgment on that as I am struggling knowing that it is that high.

Look, that's a high hba1c but I've had worse (50 years T1 and I've only had good control in the last 10 to 15 years). In my experience my hba1c has only improved when I've done more testing.

So, are you doing much testing? Do you have access to a cgm such as a libre or a dexcom? With levels that high you probably need to review your basal dose (am assuming you a basal/bolus regime, happy to be corrected if this is not the case). Once your basal is correct you can tweak your bolus. And honestly, it's a vicious circle. Once your levels go high you feel depressed (and ill) and it's hard to feel motivated to reduce them.

It's never too late to take control of your diabetes and reduce your levels. Most T1s get burnout on occasion, you're not alone. Just know that however bad your levels are you can reduce them by testing and reviewing your insulin doses.

No criticism here, just whatever limited moral support I can give on the internet.

You can do it. Good luck.

 

[Juicyj]

Hi @Nicola M

Sorry to hear that, am sure you know this already but high levels exacerbate depression so things will feel a lot worse, I know there’s a lot going on in the world but we can’t change the state of events around us, we can however control how we respond which means taking it easy and focusing on the day to day stuff, turn the news off, give yourself a break from tech and go for a walk and take some deep breaths. Phone a caring friend, check in others and reach out as you have done here. Sometimes simple solutions are within our grasp. Try to be kind yourself though and do take care of your diabetes as getting your levels down will help improve your mood x

 

[Freema]

some do get depressed alone from a lack of vitamin-D in wintertime where there is far too little sunlight.. so if you don't already take high dose vitamin-D supplement it might help you a bit