Depression and bad control.

eward123

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Hello,

Six months ago I was diagnosed with depression, and although I was given medication, I actually feel that it is making me feel worse. I've had really quite bad control over the past few years and my HBA1C has not been lower than 9.6 for a long, long time. I'm not stupid, I understand that to get better control I need to be testing my blood sugar levels or I will have complications in the future, but still I just don't feel motivated to do anything about it. Although due to being a university student and living away from my family, they are extremely supportive and I have an amazing boyfriend who lives in my university area. I want to feel better about myself which I believe is probably connected to having better control over my diabetes. There is so much I want to accomplish and I don't want my diabetes to get in the way of that. I am on an insulin pump, so it is easier to almost pretend that I don't have diabetes at all. Has anyone else been through this sort of thing or have any advice at all?
 

GraceK

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eward123 said:
Hello,

Six months ago I was diagnosed with depression, and although I was given medication, I actually feel that it is making me feel worse. I've had really quite bad control over the past few years and my HBA1C has not been lower than 9.6 for a long, long time. I'm not stupid, I understand that to get better control I need to be testing my blood sugar levels or I will have complications in the future, but still I just don't feel motivated to do anything about it. Although due to being a university student and living away from my family, they are extremely supportive and I have an amazing boyfriend who lives in my university area. I want to feel better about myself which I believe is probably connected to having better control over my diabetes. There is so much I want to accomplish and I don't want my diabetes to get in the way of that. I am on an insulin pump, so it is easier to almost pretend that I don't have diabetes at all. Has anyone else been through this sort of thing or have any advice at all?
,

Hi Edward ... sometimes antidepressants take a while to kick in and you can feel a little worse to start with. If you think of the word 'depression' it actually means to push down, to depress, to hold in and I think you're worrying a lot about your diabetes getting in the way of your life. You have a lot going on in your life, you're young, you're a student, you live away from home but you have great supportive friends and the bummer is - you have diabetes and it annoys the hell out of you that you have it.

You willaccomplish everything you want to, just don't push the diabetes down and try to ignore it bring it up, bring it out, talk to it, rant at it, give it a kick up the backside, draw pictures of it, make a punchbag and give it a good going over, then give it a hug - and once you've done that, you'll feel very relieved you let the damned thing out of that little cupboard in your mind where you're holding it captive in case it stops you achieving anything.

Diabetes only has the power that you give it.

How do I know all this? I'm 59 and have worried myself to death for most of my life and it got me absolutely nowhere. When I was deeply depressed I started to talk to myself one day and I found I was my own hardest critic, my own judge, jury and executioner and I really didn't talk to myself very nicely at all. In fact I spoke to others with more respect than I spoke to myself. Talking out loud taught me that - and it raised a few eyebrows here and there, but who cares? Sounds daft but give it a go. :thumbup: