New study
I don't have time to write a lot about this, but I've been reading about a new study that links diabetes and depression in some new and interesting ways.
Did I write about this already? Since I've been dealing with this latest bout of anxiety or depression or whatever it is, my morning glucose readings have consistently been 10-20 points higher than usual. True, I'm also not exercising as much as I was before, and I have gained back about eight of the pounds I lost last year (@*&#$). But now, rather than blaming myself for being a loser and a jerk and a terrible weak loser of a jerk, etc., I'm entertaining the possibility that hmm, maybe my body (not just my reprehensible character) really does have something to do with it – all on its own – and maybe it might be possible to NOT beat myself up so much when things like this start to happen.
This is not to say that I'm letting myself off the hook for losing more weight and getting my numbers back down where they should be. Just because there's a "real, verifiable reason" why I tend toward depression, weight gain, high blood glucose, etc. – that doesn't mean it's okay to just give up and let it take over my life.
It does mean it might be harder for me to control these things than it is for the average person who doesn't have this condition. It also means ... well, I can't say it makes me happy to see my morning glucose numbers rising, but it is somehow validating to have this bit of "proof" that the way I've been feeling is not just all in my head. Knowing that it's not all my own fault somehow makes it easier to keep trying.
As one of my favorite rabble-rousers said lo these many years ago: "The victory is in the struggle."
Keep on keeping on!
... Golden, an endocrinologist, suspects that depression might cause physiological changes that predispose people to diabetes. Depression raises levels of stress hormones such as cortisol as well as other molecules that lead to inflammation; these chemicals in turn contribute to diabetes.
Depression plays a role in several chronic physical conditions besides diabetes. For years, scientists have known that depression is associated with higher rates of heart disease, stroke, osteoporosis and perhaps dementia. Stress hormones and inflammatory molecules play a role in all of those diseases. (more...)
Did I write about this already? Since I've been dealing with this latest bout of anxiety or depression or whatever it is, my morning glucose readings have consistently been 10-20 points higher than usual. True, I'm also not exercising as much as I was before, and I have gained back about eight of the pounds I lost last year (@*&#$). But now, rather than blaming myself for being a loser and a jerk and a terrible weak loser of a jerk, etc., I'm entertaining the possibility that hmm, maybe my body (not just my reprehensible character) really does have something to do with it – all on its own – and maybe it might be possible to NOT beat myself up so much when things like this start to happen.
This is not to say that I'm letting myself off the hook for losing more weight and getting my numbers back down where they should be. Just because there's a "real, verifiable reason" why I tend toward depression, weight gain, high blood glucose, etc. – that doesn't mean it's okay to just give up and let it take over my life.
It does mean it might be harder for me to control these things than it is for the average person who doesn't have this condition. It also means ... well, I can't say it makes me happy to see my morning glucose numbers rising, but it is somehow validating to have this bit of "proof" that the way I've been feeling is not just all in my head. Knowing that it's not all my own fault somehow makes it easier to keep trying.
As one of my favorite rabble-rousers said lo these many years ago: "The victory is in the struggle."
Keep on keeping on!
Labels: diabetes
1 Comments:
i always find information to be very empowering. and i think you are right to take this research seriously and like you said, not be yourself up for something that is really out of your control to some extent.
for what it's worth, when i think of you i always think of someone who is strong and capable and very positive, not depressed. i n fact, when you write about your depression, i'm always surprised; i always have to be reminded that that's a part of your life, too. (did that come out right?)
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