Diabetic Living - Fall 2010

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Polonsky says it helps to realize
that we are all motivated to live
a long and healthy life—but
distractions may slow us down.
“Rather than look for motivation,
look at what’s in your way,” he says.

Removing barriers
Polonsky sees three common
barriers to diabetes self-care:
depression, misconceptions, and
a sense of deprivation.

Depression: This condition can get in the way of taking care of your diabetes. Depression contributes to other factors that can affect blood glucose, such as overeating, failing to get adequate sleep, or the inability to coax yourself into going for a walk. Get help for depression and you will be better able to take care of diabetes.

Misconceptions: If you believe that you need not worry about your diabetes until you get older, you’re likely to wait too long to take control. That may make it dif;cult to achieve healthful blood glucose, blood pressure, and blood lipid levels, putting you at risk for complications. Likewise, if you think there’s nothing you can do to control diabetes, then you’re likely to do nothing at all. Diabetes is a complex condition. But small changes can improve your health and how you feel.

Deprivation: It seems like
everyone has strong opinions
Finding what works

Your initial reasons to make changes may not get to the heart of the matter. At ;rst you may say, “My doctor told me to,” or “I’m scared.” Those reasons may not convince you to put enough work into change. To

Completing a small change for the better—
something as simple as choosing a healthful
beverage—encourages other good behaviors.

about what you can and cannot eat with diabetes. If you’ve been told too often what not to eat, you may constantly feel deprived. Get the facts—talk to a registered dietitian or diabetes educator and learn how to work your favorite foods into a nutritious meal;plan.

dig deeper, consider writing your thoughts, with the understanding that no one else will read them. Invest in a few minutes, or even a few hours, to consider what’s meaningful to you. Then, as Polonsky suggests below, prioritize the changes and the steps you want to make.

Experts agree that it’s best to make changes in small steps rather than all at one time. Completing a small step builds the con;dence to take others. And that’s a true change for the better.

Joy Pape of EnJOY Life! Health Consulting coauthored Real-Life Guide to Diabetes (American Diabetes Association, 2009).

Big-bang changes

William Polonsky, Ph.D., CDE, suggests making a list and prioritizing the behaviors you want to change. Then, he adds, don’t try to tackle them all at once. First work on changes that deliver the “biggest bang for your buck,” he says. For example, if you are not taking blood glucose-lowering pills as prescribed, you may decide to change that by putting your medications near your toothbrush as a daily reminder. Quitting smoking, which reduces the risk of complications, is another big-bang change that can impressively improve your health.