Hi. I've been T1 for over 20 years and recently, have got fed up with the whole BG management. Diabetes seems to have taken over my life and my DNS reckons that I'm well on the way to diabetes burnout. I didn't know such a thing existed, but would be interested to know of anyone else suffering mentally and what you do to cope.
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Looking for help with Diabetes Burnout
- Thread starter Kevin61
- Start date
Hello @Kevin61 so sorry you feel overwhelmed at the moment. You’ve been courageous managing it all this while and I must commend you for that. This is to reassure you that there is support on here and someone will share their ideas with you. If you need extra support, please check here
Diabetes UK Helpline
Get specialist information and advice on all aspects of living with diabetes. Call us for answers, support or just to talk to someone who knows about diabetes. What is the Diabetes UK Helpline? Our helpline number is 0345 123 2399. It is a dedicated diabetes helpline for all people with...
Docb
Moderator
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
And a welcome from me. Being T2, I cannot help much but if you look around the forum you will find T1 burnout is a regular topic of conversation here. As such, you are not alone and I am sure that in the next few days members who have been there will be along to talk about it and offer some coping mechanisms.
Welcome to the forum,
While I have no experienced burnout, after 20 years with Type 1, I definitely want a break.
Others on the forum have suggested making things easier when feeling as you do
- eat food that you know how to bolus for, Maybe have the same thing for breakfast and lunch so you don't have to think as much about it.
- relax your BG target and "allow yourself" to spend less time in range
- take a CGM break and revert to finger pricking for a while. A CGM can be great but it can also be relentless
- be nice to yourself.
There is more information here.
While I have no experienced burnout, after 20 years with Type 1, I definitely want a break.
Others on the forum have suggested making things easier when feeling as you do
- eat food that you know how to bolus for, Maybe have the same thing for breakfast and lunch so you don't have to think as much about it.
- relax your BG target and "allow yourself" to spend less time in range
- take a CGM break and revert to finger pricking for a while. A CGM can be great but it can also be relentless
- be nice to yourself.
There is more information here.
rebrascora
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Hi and welcome from me too.
I am just 6 years down the line and thankfully I haven't experienced "diabetes burnout" myself but it is a well recognised issue and we have a few active members who have gone through it. If I remember rightly @SB2015 and also @Inka have talked about their experiences with it and what helped them so hopefully they will be along soon to say hello and offer their advice.
To be honest I do wonder if just being part of this forum and sharing thoughts and experiences here has helped me avoid it so far. It is hugely comforting to compare notes with others facing the same challenges and whilst diabetes can be surprisingly individual, there are common issues which many of us experience and I have learned many tips and tricks and strategies from others here which really makes things that bit easier or at least less frustrating. I think it is also helpful to know that others have good days and bad days with their diabetes and it isn't just me who finds that things go haywire for no obvious reason, so that I am not blaming myself when I get poorer results than I would like. Since getting Libre I actually treat my diabetes like a long running computer game rather than a serious health condition and that really helps lighten the mental load.
Would you like to share a bit about how you manage your diabetes?
Do you have a pump or MDI?
Which insulin(s) do you use?
Do you have Libre or Dexcom to help you and how do you find using it?
What sort of TIR (Time in Range) do you normally achieve? Just wondering if you might be wearing yourself out trying for perfection or are you struggling to achieve 70%?
Are there particular aspects of your diabetes management that you find most challenging and if so what are they? ie. is it carb counting or frustration with tech not working as you would like or frequent hypos or could it be that the insulin you are using just doesn't suit your body or your lifestyle or that you are too focused and need to take your foot off the pedal a bit?
Have you done a DAFNE course? I know it sounds like you want to think less about your diabetes, but sometimes getting more knowledge and the intensive support that comes with DAFNE type courses, can make it easier to manage going forward.
The more info you can give us about your particular situation, the better we can tailor advice to your particular issues.
I am just 6 years down the line and thankfully I haven't experienced "diabetes burnout" myself but it is a well recognised issue and we have a few active members who have gone through it. If I remember rightly @SB2015 and also @Inka have talked about their experiences with it and what helped them so hopefully they will be along soon to say hello and offer their advice.
To be honest I do wonder if just being part of this forum and sharing thoughts and experiences here has helped me avoid it so far. It is hugely comforting to compare notes with others facing the same challenges and whilst diabetes can be surprisingly individual, there are common issues which many of us experience and I have learned many tips and tricks and strategies from others here which really makes things that bit easier or at least less frustrating. I think it is also helpful to know that others have good days and bad days with their diabetes and it isn't just me who finds that things go haywire for no obvious reason, so that I am not blaming myself when I get poorer results than I would like. Since getting Libre I actually treat my diabetes like a long running computer game rather than a serious health condition and that really helps lighten the mental load.
Would you like to share a bit about how you manage your diabetes?
Do you have a pump or MDI?
Which insulin(s) do you use?
Do you have Libre or Dexcom to help you and how do you find using it?
What sort of TIR (Time in Range) do you normally achieve? Just wondering if you might be wearing yourself out trying for perfection or are you struggling to achieve 70%?
Are there particular aspects of your diabetes management that you find most challenging and if so what are they? ie. is it carb counting or frustration with tech not working as you would like or frequent hypos or could it be that the insulin you are using just doesn't suit your body or your lifestyle or that you are too focused and need to take your foot off the pedal a bit?
Have you done a DAFNE course? I know it sounds like you want to think less about your diabetes, but sometimes getting more knowledge and the intensive support that comes with DAFNE type courses, can make it easier to manage going forward.
The more info you can give us about your particular situation, the better we can tailor advice to your particular issues.
Inka
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
Welcome @Kevin61 🙂 Sorry to hear you’re getting close to burnout. Hopefully you can do a few things now to avert it or at least reduce it.
I suffered from burnout a few years ago and it was a horrible thing. I found lowering my expectations helped. I relaxed my control ever so slightly, and that relieved some of the pressure. A small change but a big effect. I also chose easy meal options where I knew the carbs so there was no counting or worry. I took one day at a time; made sure to not dwell on ‘bad’ results; and reminded myself that I’m not alone ( this forum is great for that).
SB2015
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
Good morning @Kevin61
Sorry to hear that you are feeling so fed up with your diabetes at present. I did go through burnout a while ago and it was the support on here that persuaded me to get help. This is a link to the thread I did on how I got through it.
It includes the ideas that @helli has mentioned and also the vast amount of peer support that is available on here from people that ‘get it’. I hope that it is of some help.
If you are happy to tell us how you manage your diabetes: MDI or pump? sensor? It can help us tailor our responses to help you.
Sorry to hear that you are feeling so fed up with your diabetes at present. I did go through burnout a while ago and it was the support on here that persuaded me to get help. This is a link to the thread I did on how I got through it.
It includes the ideas that @helli has mentioned and also the vast amount of peer support that is available on here from people that ‘get it’. I hope that it is of some help.
If you are happy to tell us how you manage your diabetes: MDI or pump? sensor? It can help us tailor our responses to help you.
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Welcome to the forum @Kevin61
Diabetes Distress and Diabetes Burnout are increasingly recognised as significant challenges to living with diabetes long term.
Diabetes can be well managed, but it can also be a very demanding condition - and at different times of life juggling blood glucose levels, and diabetes management alongside everything else can feel overwhelming. Particularly if your diabetes is being especially fickle and contrary.
A study from a couple of decades ago found that people with T1 can have to make an extra 180 decisions every day to manage their diabetes. That’s about one every 5 minutes during waking hours.
Diabetes UK have this page on burnout which gives an overview.
www.diabetes.org.uk
Diabetes Distress and Diabetes Burnout are increasingly recognised as significant challenges to living with diabetes long term.
Diabetes can be well managed, but it can also be a very demanding condition - and at different times of life juggling blood glucose levels, and diabetes management alongside everything else can feel overwhelming. Particularly if your diabetes is being especially fickle and contrary.
A study from a couple of decades ago found that people with T1 can have to make an extra 180 decisions every day to manage their diabetes. That’s about one every 5 minutes during waking hours.
Diabetes UK have this page on burnout which gives an overview.
What is diabetes distress and burnout?
Diabetes distress is what some people feel when they’re overwhelmed by the relentlessness of diabetes. This can lead to diabetes burnout. The way you react to things and the emotions you feel can vary for different people. You might feel frustrated, guilty, sad or worried. Sometimes you might...
Courtneylauren
New Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
- Pronouns
- She/Her
hi Kevin I’m in a similar situation I’ve been diagnosed for 18 years and have been struggling the last 5, I was referred to a specialist diabetic psychologist that was amazing in helping understand why I was almost giving up and got me talking about issues I never knew I had they really helped open my eyes to the importance to keep going and how precious life is and that with good control and positivity we can live more freely with happiness it’s definitely something I’d recommend
HayleyR
Forum Host
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
Hi @Kevin61 🙂 I've lived with the condition for over 30 years and I must confess there are some days when I just get so fed up with it. However it's here to stay unfortunately so I take each day as it comes and don't allow it to dominate my life. I manage it the best way I can and certainly for me having a CGM has helped enormously. I know many people who do not have the condition just don't understand the complexities and frustrations of living with it so I've found it so useful being a member of this Forum and being able to chat to people who understand. I hope you manage to avoid burnout....