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Dealing with anxiety with type 1

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LisaBType1

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Good Afternoon everyone 🙂 I am new here and wanted to say Hello and maybe ask for any advice.

I have had a lot going on recently, buying a new house in a new area, daughter starting high school and Husband working away at the minute. My anxiety is through the roof and as you will all know... has sky rocketed my levels.

Just wanted to know that I'm not alone really and see if anyone has advice to bring my levels down and start to eat normally again (without feeling sick).

Thankyou if you made it this far 🙂
 
Hi @LisaBType1 wellcome to the forum. you are/ have gone thou some of the stressfull things u can possibly go thou. Feel free to post away ask questions none to silly or to small They are a great bunch of people on here and will always offer help you. Have fun , have a good look round and look forward to getting to know you
gail
 
LisaBType1 said:
Good Afternoon everyone 🙂 I am new here and wanted to say Hello and maybe ask for any advice.

I have had a lot going on recently, buying a new house in a new area, daughter starting high school and Husband working away at the minute. My anxiety is through the roof and as you will all know... has sky rocketed my levels.

Just wanted to know that I'm not alone really and see if anyone has advice to bring my levels down and start to eat normally again (without feeling sick).

Thankyou if you made it this far 🙂
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It may be worth asking your GP or diabetes team to refer you to your local NHS service for psychological therapy (sometimes called 'talking therapy'): there's usually a long waiting list, so the sooner you can get onto that waiting list the better.
 
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Hi @LisaBType1 and welcome to the forum - as you know anxiety can play havoc with your BG Levels - you've been through a lot recently so it's understandable - I'd start by making some time for you and doing something you enjoy whilst trying not to worry about others - some light exercise may help such as a walk (as @nonethewiser has already suggested) - I've always found a brisk walk brings my levels down - talking to people on here also helps - or getting more specialised help via your healthcare team to talk through your worries
 
Welcome @LisaBType1 🙂 When I was in a period of extreme stress, I found mindfulness and breathing exercises worked very well. Even a minute or two out to do some breathing cycles really calmed me. I felt more in control too.

I also found Tai Chi excellent if you have the time to find a class. The effect was far more impressive than I was expecting.
 
Welcome @LisaBType1
Wow! That is certainly a cocktail of anxiety inducing circumstances. No wonder your BG is higher.

I find that when my BG is high, stress, illness, etc are exaggerated. So, I am I experience enough anxiety to push my BG up, I will even more anxious until I get my BG down again. It becomes a spiral - anxious, BG rises - BG rises, more anxious, more anxious, BG rises further, etc. Therefore, I find it very important to use my insulin to lower my BG with both a bolus to lower it for now and an increase to my basal to keep it lower while the anxiety continues.

How do you manage your diabetes? If you have a pump, this is easier because the basal increase is more instant. But it still works with MDI.

Combining this with the mindfulness, relaxing things mentioned above, I hope you start to feel "normal" soon.
 
LisaBType1 said:
Good Afternoon everyone 🙂 I am new here and wanted to say Hello and maybe ask for any advice.

I have had a lot going on recently, buying a new house in a new area, daughter starting high school and Husband working away at the minute. My anxiety is through the roof and as you will all know... has sky rocketed my levels.

Just wanted to know that I'm not alone really and see if anyone has advice to bring my levels down and start to eat normally again (without feeling sick).

Thankyou if you made it this far 🙂
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Hello, good evening & welcome. I feel if I was in a new house, I’d get a few close friends round and maybe throw a Soiree? Does anxiety affect your appetite or the high BGs? I know I can’t eat with high bloods. I just can’t swallow.
 
Thankyou all so much for your kind words and your advice sorry, ul have to bare with me until I get used to this thing lol. I have started walking in thr mornings which helps a bit. I currently inject, not sure whether to attempt the pump or not tbh. @Satan’s little helper I think that its the anxiety that's making me sick (the constant knot in my stomach).
 
It's my house that's making me so anxious at the minute as we recently had a mouse and I have no idea where it came from. I don't think it's the mouse that was the problem... it's left me with a feeling of unease in my own house. So sorry for ranting... I just don't know where to turn.
 
LisaBType1 said:
It's my house that's making me so anxious at the minute as we recently had a mouse and I have no idea where it came from. I don't think it's the mouse that was the problem... it's left me with a feeling of unease in my own house. So sorry for ranting... I just don't know where to turn.
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Are you in close contact with your husband whilst he is away? Occasionally I have to leave my wife on buisness & we text or video chat like teenagers. Are you able to source a mousetrap & put it down where you either saw it run or suspect it does?
 
LisaBType1 said:
Yes, we videocall everyday thankfully. I have had pest control out and everything lol... I think this situation has just brought out all of the anxiety over the last few months tbh. Straw that broke the camels back if you will.
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lol, I message my wife for a laugh if she’s sat across the table. I get a bemused look & then she texts me back? You say you have a child. What about some quality time putting on an age appropriate “feel good” film & chilling with some nibbles together?
 
brilliant! I do try and be as 'normal' around my daughter as possible as I don't want to freak her out. I just can't focus on much tbh but thankyou for your recommendations
 
LisaBType1 said:
It's my house that's making me so anxious at the minute as we recently had a mouse and I have no idea where it came from. I don't think it's the mouse that was the problem... it's left me with a feeling of unease in my own house. So sorry for ranting... I just don't know where to turn.
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That’s good that you’ve identified a part of the anxiety. If you can identify exactly what’s stressing you - and I mean in detail - then that can help you look for answers, and it can also help you rationalise your worries.

Writing a list of what’s stressing you can help ‘tidy’ your mind. It can be therapeutic. As I said, the description has to be detailed, eg you mention your husband being away, so that might be one point. You then build on that “I’m anxious about X being away because I don’t know the neighbourhood and feel scared at night/I have so much to unpack and he’s not here to help me, etc etc. Those are just examples, but putting your worries into words is the first step towards reducing them @LisaBType1
 
I’d also add that moving house is incredibly stressful all by itself! I’ve done it far too many times and it never gets easier. So, feeling stressed and tired is normal. It took me some time to recover both physically and mentally from the whole thing!

Be kind to yourself. Rest, look after yourself like you’d look after somebody else (we tend to neglect ourselves) and treat yourself - to time, to relaxation, to little treats.
 
Inka said:
That’s good that you’ve identified a part of the anxiety. If you can identify exactly what’s stressing you - and I mean in detail - then that can help you look for answers, and it can also help you rationalise your worries.

Writing a list of what’s stressing you can help ‘tidy’ your mind. It can be therapeutic. As I said, the description has to be detailed, eg you mention your husband being away, so that might be one point. You then build on that “I’m anxious about X being away because I don’t know the neighbourhood and feel scared at night/I have so much to unpack and he’s not here to help me, etc etc. Those are just examples, but putting your worries into words is the first step towards reducing them @LisaBType1
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Thankyou @Inka i have been trying to break it down for the last week or so, just to try and sort my own thoughts out and challenge them. Writing them down is a great idea 🙂 I'm definitely going to do this!! I have never suffered with anxiety/panic attacks before so just trying figure it all out. Thankyou for the advice!
 
Inka said:
I’d also add that moving house is incredibly stressful all by itself! I’ve done it far too many times and it never gets easier. So, feeling stressed and tired is normal. It took me some time to recover both physically and mentally from the whole thing!

Be kind to yourself. Rest, look after yourself like you’d look after somebody else (we tend to neglect ourselves) and treat yourself - to time, to relaxation, to little treats.
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Thanks @Inka, I will try! Yes, incredibly stressful... thankfully haven't had to do it too many times like yourself! I totally get the neglecting yourself thing, life just gets so busy at times eh?
 
Hello @LisaBType1 and welcome to the forum. A lot of people post if they have anxiety, stress or concerns. It's a safe place to vent and forum members are very supportive. Even a straightforward house move can be stressful. I hope you find it helpful to get some fresh insights on how to cope and manage your diabetes while you are struggling with anxiety.

When I moved 2 years ago I was very stressed and wrongly attributed my undiagnosed diabetes symptoms to stress and hot weather. It's very easy to get caught up in the stress/anxiety spiral.
I hope things get better as you settle in to the new house and area. Take care of yourself and do something you enjoy as often as possible.
 
Thankyou @silver minion everyone has been so lovely and it's just nice to know that I'm not alone. I've taken some great tips so far and hope that I start to feel a bit more like myself soon. The house move definitely was stressful! Glad you managed to get the diagnosis to make things clear for you too. Thanks again for your kind words!
 
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