DIABETES AND BEHAVIORAL HEALTH Agenda Diabetes and Emotional

DIABETES AND BEHAVIORAL HEALTH

Agenda • Diabetes and Emotional Health • Diabetes and Stress • Stress Management • Diabetes and Depression • Setting and Achieving Your Goals • SMART goal-setting • Overcoming obstacles • Strategies to boost your success

DIABETES AND EMOTIONAL HEALTH

What is Stress? • Your mind and body’s way of reacting to challenges. • Affects your emotions, behaviors, thoughts, and physiology • The “fight or flight” response

Stress Affects Your Diabetes • Stress hormones can INCREASE blood glucose levels! • Stress may also: • Make it harder to remember medications • Lead to over- or under-eating • Make you want to avoid exercise • Decrease your motivation to stay healthy

Diabetes Can Cause Stress • Living with a chronic medical condition is a challenge and can lead to stress. • Blood sugar levels can affect your emotional health: • High blood sugar can make you feel: cranky, tired, lethargic • Low blood sugar can make you feel: nervous, irritable; make it hard to think straight

Stress Management • What helps you relax and manage stress? • Things to consider: • Exercise / physical activity • Social support • Religious or spiritual practice • Hobbies, meaningful activities • Relaxation techniques • Problem-solve • Set boundaries • Pets

Diabetes and Depression • Depression increases risk for diabetes and diabetes increases risk for depression • Symptoms of depression: ─ Feeling sad or blue most of the time ─ Loss of interest or enjoyment ─ Isolating your self from others ─ Eating more or less than is typical for you ─ Sleeping more or less than is typical for you ─ Trouble focusing or concentrating ─ Low energy and motivation ─ Feeling hopeless and helpless ─ Feeling bad about yourself ─ Thinking about death or suicide

Treatment Options • Medication and talk therapy are about equally effective treatments for depression. • Meeting with a mental health provider for an evaluation will help you pick the best treatment approach for your symptoms and circumstances.

Accessing MH Treatment • 2 Same-Day Mental Health Clinics in Albuquerque • Beacon: medication evaluations, MH crises, urgent mental health concerns. • Primary Care Mental Health Integration (PCMHI): psychotherapy and medication management • Both available Mon-Fri, 8: 00 – 15: 30 • Check-in at Beacon Desk – Main Hospital – 1 st Floor in between the ER and Open Pharmacy. • Not sure which clinic you need? No problem – check in and a triage nurse will get you to the most appropriate clinic. • CBOCS: • Talk with your nurse / PCP – MH resource vary from CBOC to CBOC.

SETTING AND ACHIEVING YOUR GOALS

Make your goals S. M. A. R. T. ! • Specific • Measurable • Achievable • Relevant • Time-framed

Let’s Practice! • Use the worksheet to select an area of diabetes care that you would like to set a goal in and then set a SMART goal.

Identifying and Overcoming Obstacles • Ask yourself: • What has gotten in the way of making health changes in the past? • What makes it difficult for you to do what your doctor recommends? • Problem-solve solutions • Brainstorm as many solutions as possible • Select 1 -2 solutions to address the obstacle

Strategies to Boost Your Success! • Tracking progress • Social support • It’s got to be important to you! – Maintaining motivation • Reminders • Healthy rewards • Others?

Dealing with Setbacks • Don’t beat yourself up! Setbacks do not make you a failure – they make you human. • Evaluate what got in the way. • Problem-solve new strategies to address these unforeseen obstacles and try again. • Re-evaluate the goal • Did you set too big of a goal to start with? Do you need to set a more achievable goal? Did you make too many goals at once? • Ask for help! • Your care team wants you to be successful – reach out for assistance if you aren’t meeting your goals.

THANK YOU!