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Diabetes Diagnosis: The Emotions

One thing that is a constant in life, is change. But understanding this does not necessarily prepare us for the flood of thoughts and feelings that can arise when something unexpected happens, such as a diabetes diagnosis. There is a lot to take in and the brain can be awash with feelings ranging from shock, confusion, anger, denial and stress to sadness and hopelessness.¹

If you’ve recently been diagnosed with diabetes, how you react and feel will partly depend on your personality and past experiences. What this means is that your own characteristics and history will affect how you absorb and adjust to the news, and how you handle difficult emotions if and when they crop up.²

But whatever your reaction, with the right support and information, be assured that you'll soon enough find your ‘new normal’. In this article, we focus on the many common and understandable emotions that can surface following a diabetes diagnosis, as well as the impact your news may have on loved ones and carers.

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What might change

To better understand the impact a diabetes diagnosis might have on your emotional state, it can be useful to be aware of some of the changes you may have to make. Unlike a transient condition, diabetes is a chronic illness that needs continual medical care and self-management to help you to stay well and avoid complications.^1,3

This can spill into many areas of life beyond glucose monitoring such as work, travel, driving and sex life; diet and exercise become important considerations too. But whilst it may seem like a lot to cope with, you will find your way and there is a lot of support available to help you to do this. Indeed, change is achievable and can lead to a healthier and fulfilling life.

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Grieving and adjustment

Receiving news that significantly changes your life will typically trigger a form of grieving. If you think about it, most of us tend to move through life with an attitude of invincibility and so a diabetes diagnosis is bound to shatter that illusion. All of a sudden you may feel that life is not without its limits and this can be shocking and frightening, and illicit feelings of grief, some of which may be shared by your family.

But grieving is a natural and normal process that helps you to adjust. It may take a bit of time, but you will come out of the other side and be okay. Whilst everyone grieves in their own way, most people transition through five different stages. How long each stage lasts, and the order in which they occur can vary – after all, everybody is different. If you received your diagnosis some time ago, and have already worked through a lot of your emotions, you may have already reached the final stage – acceptance. It’s still, however, worth familiarising yourself with the different phases, if only to reassure yourself that you’ve fully processed everything.¹

Kübler-Ross Grief Cycle

Figure 1: The Kubler-Ross Change Curve, plotting the five main stages onto a graph. Time is captured on the horizontal axis and energy levels on the vertical. The stages of grief are listed along the curve in bold, with some of corresponding feeling listed below them.

The big emotions^4,5

Denial – A typical first stage of grief, denial is a common response to a restrictive or uncomfortable situation. You may be unable to believe in your diagnosis; an absence of physical symptoms does not help.
Anger – Another stage of grief, anger is a logical reaction to something unwelcome happening to us. There is resentment and anguish that such an unexpected situation should be happening.
Bargaining – Sometimes you cannot help but think “what if...?”. Bargaining is commonly experienced alongside feelings of guilt and regret surrounding lifestyle choices.
Depression and sadness – The feelings of loss that accompany a diagnosis of diabetes are often accompanied by depression.
Acceptance – All adjustments can take time, but this final stage of grief will allow you to let go of the internal fight, to accept the way things are and to start living alongside it. Once you arrive in a place of acceptance, contentment and happiness await.

Family Members

The emotions discussed here may also resonate with you if you are a carer or loved-one of someone living with diabetes. When you care about someone, you want them to be happy and shield them from difficult situations or circumstances, and so the challenges brought by a new diagnosis will understandably trigger a lot of difficult feelings for you too.⁴

In addition to feelings of grief, you may feel frustration and stress as your loved-one adapts to his or her new diagnosis. For example, you may feel powerless to help in a meaningful way, so try to remember that just showing support and understanding can be tremendously important.

You may also have to adapt your own lifestyle and adjust the plans you had for yourself, which could affect you emotionally.

Becoming more informed about the condition can help you feel less stressed, as well as making you more able to care for your loved one.⁶

Family Members

Final thoughts

Difficult emotions may come and go when you are newly diagnosed with diabetes or if you love or care about someone who is living with the condition. But as you get used to the idea and new ways of living, you will be more able to cope with the demands that diabetes can present. Your confidence in managing your condition will grow and your emotions will settle. That is not to say that difficult emotions will not reappear at times but feeling positive all the time is probably an unrealistic expectation, with or without a chronic illness.

The information provided is not intended to be used for medical diagnosis or treatment or as a substitute for professional medical advice. Please consult your physician or qualified health provider regarding your condition and appropriate medical treatment. Individual symptoms, situations and circumstances may vary.

Stress and Glucose
Levels

HbA1c Conversion
Chart

References & Disclaimers

Images are for illustrative purposes only. Not real patients or data.

1. Kalra, S et al., 2018. Emotional and Psychological Needs of People with Diabetes. Indian J Endocrinol Metab., p. 696–704.
2. Beeny, J et al., 1996. Patient psychological and information needs when the diagnosis is diabetes. Patient Education and Counseling, 29(1), pp. 109-116.
3. Ferrara, L et al., 2018. Grieving the Loss of Self: Challenges in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Self-Management. Journal of Doctoral Nursing Practice, 11(1):25-34.
4. Nash, J., 2015. Dealing with diagnosis of diabetes. Practical Diabetes, 32(1): 19–23
5. Bateman, J, 2018. When diabetes is diagnosed: How to use the grief cycle to provide emotional support. Diabetes & Primary Care, Volume 20, p. 189–92.
6. diaTribe Learn, 2021. When Someone You Love Is Diagnosed with Diabetes. [Online] Available at: https://diatribe.org/when-someone-you-love-diagnosed-diabetes [Accessed 10 May 2021].

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Diabetes Diagnosis: The Emotions

What might change

Grieving and adjustment

Kübler-Ross Grief Cycle

The big emotions^4,5

Family Members

Final thoughts

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Now is the time to move to the FreeStyle Libre 2 Plus sensor

Need help with your sensor? Fill in our quick Online Sensor Support form.

Diabetes Diagnosis: The Emotions

What might change

Grieving and adjustment

Kübler-Ross Grief Cycle

The big emotions4,5

Family Members

Final thoughts

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The big emotions^4,5