The site also includes links to psychological help and support three out of five people with diabetes living with diabetes experience emotional or mental health problems as a result of their condition.

Among other things, we wanted to find out whether people found what they were looking for, whether the information encouraged people to learn more about their diabetes and if the information provided on the site could avoid unnecessary contact with health professionals.

Ultimately we hope this resource and the corresponding upskilling will lead to a reduction in emergency admissions as well as unnecessary GP appointments.

Professor Partha Kar is National Specialty Advisor, Diabetes with NHS England and co-author of the national Diabetes GIRFT report. He has been a Consultant in Diabetes and Endocrinology at Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust since and pioneer of the Super Six Diabetes Model which is recognised as one of the good examples of integrated care.

He has helped to expand use of technology in Type 1 Diabetes- namely use of Flash Glucose in Type 1 Diabetes and CGM in Type 1Diabetes pregnancy along with online digital self-management platforms- while recently leading on real world data collection on Closed Loops for subsequent NICE review.

He has worked subsequently with NICE on updating relevant guidelines in non-invasive glucose monitoring access in Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetes. Recent work has focussed on transitional care models- as well as tackling inequalities in technology access based on deprivation and ethnicity.

He is one of the leading users of social media in diabetes care — and writes a monthly blog for the British Medical Journal.

Beyond diabetes, he also recently taken a role in tackling issues of racial disparity in the medical workforce as the Medical Workforce Race Equality Standard lead for NHS England. He has also been named as one of the most influential BAME individuals in healthcare in , and Home News Publications Statistics Blogs Events Contact us.

Professor Partha Kar Professor Partha Kar is National Specialty Advisor, Diabetes with NHS England and co-author of the national Diabetes GIRFT report. He has also been: Co-creator of TAD Talking About Diabetes — TED talks from those with T1Diabetes Co- creator of Type 1 Diabetes comic Volume 1 to 4 Co-creator of DEVICES Virtual Reality educational modules in diabetes Beyond diabetes, he also recently taken a role in tackling issues of racial disparity in the medical workforce as the Medical Workforce Race Equality Standard lead for NHS England.

Follow Partha on Twitter: parthaskar. Date published : 15 August, The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between self-care behaviors in people with diabetes and stress coping behaviors in people with type II diabetes.

A facility-based cross-sectional study was undertaken in the North Shoa zone from March 2 to 29, The study involved types II diabetic patients who were chosen at random from eight public hospitals. Eight item stress coping techniques tools was used to measure stress management behavior.

Data were entered into Epi Data V. Data for continuous variables were reported as means and standard deviations and percentages for categorical variables.

Descriptive statistic was used to summarize study variables. Binary logistic regression models were used to assess associations between sociodemographic variables, stress-coping behaviors, and self-care behaviors. Binary logistic regression model was used investigate the association between diabetic self-care behaviors and stress-coping behaviors.

the study showed that stress management behavior was observed in more than half of the patients The study found that stress management behavior was associated with diabetic self-care practice X2, This study shows that stress management behaviors and coping techniques are associated with self-care behavior and lead to significant improvements in diabetes self-care practices.

Diabetes care practitioners should consider these factors when discussing diabetes self-management during consultations.

Peer Review reports. Ethiopia has the highest prevalence of diabetes, ranging from 2. This rapid increase in diabetes requires self-management behaviors, especially in areas with inadequate medical care [ 4 , 5 ]. People with good diabetes self-management have a positive impact on glycemic control [ 6 ].

The goal of diabetes treatment is to maintain a better quality of life. Nevertheless, in many countries, including Ethiopia, diabetes self-care remains the most challenging aspect of diabetes care and management [ 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 ]. Stress management behaviors are skills that help individuals cope successfully with the demands and challenges of life [ 12 ].

Mental illness are known to exacerbate diabetes in many people and lead to poor management [ 13 , 14 ]. People who do not have proper stress management skills may not behave appropriately. Studies have shown that stressful life events can make diabetes treatment and management less effective [ 15 , 16 ].

Stressful life events in patients can negatively affect problem-solving skills and lead to poor self-management behavior [ 17 ]. Therefore, adaptive coping strategies are important for people with diabetes. There is evidence that diabetics experiencing stress and depression have negative effects on self-care behaviors, affecting health status [ 18 , 19 ].

Self-managing behavior requires problem-solving skills at all levels. There is evidence that diabetes management is significantly associated with perceived stress and problem-focused coping styles [ 20 ]. Applying stress management techniques is effective in improving diabetes management and behavioral control [ 15 , 21 ].

Stress management plays an important role in the self-care of chronically ill patients [ 22 ]. Emotional support is associated with better diabetes self-care, and people with diabetes need help finding the optimal adaptive strategies to improve their quality of life.

Stress management plays an important role in self-care for chronically ill patients [ 22 ]. Emotional support is associated with better diabetes self-care, and people with diabetes need help finding the optimal adaptive strategies to improve their quality of life [ 23 ].

Additionally, managing diabetic stress is important for people with diabetes as it can lead to improved self-care. Stress management techniques should be integrated into diabetes care and delivered at all levels of the healthcare system.

There is evidence that stress management programs promote stress management strategies and self-efficacy [ 24 ]. To our knowledge, no studies have investigated the association between stress management behaviors and diabetes self-care practices in Ethiopia. Therefore, the aim of this study was to examine the association between stress management behaviors and self-care practices.

In addition, this study provides relevant information for evidence-based decision-making and design of appropriate community interventions, as well as planning and design of future behavioral promotion strategies and interventions. Additionally, the results of this study will help people with diabetes and their healthcare providers plan appropriate interventions to ensure optimal health.

The facility-based cross-sectional study design was employed at public hospitals in the North Shoa Zone from March 2 to 29, North Shoa is one of the thirteenth zones of the Amhara region located in northern Ethiopia.

There are 24 districts, 3 municipalities, and 13 hospitals. All public hospitals have diabetes care and follow-up services. The sample size was determined using single population proportion formula that considers a proportion of self-care practice of This study included consenting patients between the ages of 20 and 70, while patients those who were unable to participate in the study based on physician judgment e.

Eight out of 13 hospitals were randomly selected to participate in the study. Sampling frames were created for each selected hospital using registration log book. Study participants were recruited after being proportionally allocated to each hospital. Study participants were selected using a simple random sampling method.

Since each patient had at least one appointment within a month, we waited up to a month for a selected study participant. A total of four nursing bachelor data collectors participated in the data collection process. Data collectors and supervisors are trained in the data collection process, including research objectives, questionnaire content, and maintaining confidentiality and privacy during data collection.

All authors and supervisors are checked daily for completeness, accuracy, and consistency of the data. The questionnaire was tested for content validity and reliability. To validate the content of the tool, all survey questions were reviewed by two public health experts and physician from Debre Berhan University.

Questions were evaluated for readability, understandability and content validity and recommendations were made. Each collected questionnaire was checked on daily basis for completeness.

Additionally, the internal consistency of the tool was checked using the Cronbach alpha test for self-care and stress coping behaviors in diabetes. The main outcome of this study was diabetic self-care practice.

Diabetes self-care practices are measured using the Diabetes Self-Care Activity Summary tool, which includes four areas: diet, foot care, exercise, and blood glucose self-monitoring [ 25 , 26 ]. Respondents marked the number of days the specified behavior occurred on an 8-point Likert scale ranging from 0 to 7 days.

An overall average score was calculated and the above averages indicate better self-care practices in people with diabetes. Stress coping behavior was measured using eight items adapted from stress coping techniques and tools [ 27 , 28 ].

An overall average score is calculated, with scores above the average indicating better stress management behaviors. Data were entered into Epi Data version 3. Descriptive analysis was used to describe the frequency distribution of each variable in the study.

Associations between independent and outcome variables were analyzed using a binary logistic regression model. More than half of the respondents The majority of respondents Additionally, the majority of participants received formal education. Overall, more than half of the patients demonstrated stress management behaviors, As shown in Table 2 , the most common reported actions taken by patients were take some time for relaxation each day In the study, the overall self-management behavior of patients with type 2 diabetes was The mean diabetes self-management behavior score was The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between stress management behavior and diabetes self-care in the North Shao Zone.

This study found that stress management behaviors were associated with diabetes self-care X 2 , Previous studies [ 14 , 29 ], support this finding and suggest that adequate stress management improves self-care in people with diabetes.

On the other hand, improving diabetes self-care habits can effectively reduce stress in people with type 2 diabetes [ 30 ].

Therefore, educational programs and usual care services as stress management techniques should be considered as usual therapeutic services. In this study, stress management led to significant improvements in self-care practices.

Patients with good stress management skills were twice more to exercise diabetic self-care. Diabetes self-care necessitates a high level of stress-coping skills as well as problem-solving ability.

Therefore, stress-coping behaviors are important for patients with type 2 diabetes. Even if stress management activity had a positive effect on diabetic self-care, over half of the patients in this study To enhance self-care behaviors and stress management, it is necessary to implement stress coping strategies and problem-solving skills.

The most common stress reduction measures used in this study were getting enough sleep, focusing on happy thoughts in bed, and relaxing daily after the activity.

The adoption and implementation of different stress management approaches is a priority as stress management techniques improve self-care behaviors of diabetics [ 15 , 21 ]. In this current study, patients with good perceptions are more likely to practice diabetic self-care. One reason could be that when patients have good insight, it can help them understand their health status and avoid confusion when taking diabetes self-care measures.

In this study, patients with good family support were more likely to have self-management behavior. Diabetes self-management behavior can be significantly improved with increased family support. Studies have shown that diabetes-specific supportive and family behaviors have a positive impact on individual self-management behaviors [ 31 , 32 , 33 ].

Therefore, to improve the health of adults with diabetes, it is important to support families who are committed to self-management of their diabetes.

We need to build proper support and foster healthy relationships among all family members. The current study has some limitations, including the possibility that self-reported measures may be biased in response and overestimate behavioral performance.

This tool also needs more attention for accurate and reliable data. Practicing stress management and coping skills is the preferred strategy for improving diabetes management behavior. This has been demonstrated in previous studies [ 15 , 21 , 22 , 24 ] and in this study.

Since stress management behaviors and coping skills are associated with diabetes self-management, diabetes professionals should consider these aspects when discussing diabetes self-management.

In addition, the results indicate that stress management programs may have significant clinical benefits for patients with type II diabetes. Therefore, routine care and education programs should address diabetes self-care activities and coping skills that influence health-related behaviors and decision-making.

In summary, the following key program areas attract the attention of policymakers and service providers; 1 As a routine therapeutic or therapeutic service, stress management strategies and coping skills should be integrated into existing systems.

The study results showed that stress management behavior significantly improved diabetes self-management behavior and had a positive association with it. Patients with good stress management behaviors are more likely to engage in diabetes self-management activities.

In addition, patients with good awareness and patients with family support were more likely to have diabetes self-care. All data generated in this study are included in the manuscript. Datasets are available upon reasonable request from the corresponding author. World Health Organization. Diagnosis and management of type 2 diabetes HEARTS-D.

Geneva]: World Health Organization; Licence: CC BY-NC-SA 3. Google Scholar. International Diabetes Federation. IDF Diabetes Atlas, 9th Edition International Diabetes Federation, Bishu KG, Jenkins C, Yebyo HG, Atsbha M, Wubayehu T, Gebregziabher M. Diabetes in Ethiopia: a systematic review of prevalence, risk factors, complications, and cost.

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Fund Answers. End Kidney Disease. Skip to main content. You are here Home » A to Z » Diabetes: Ten Tips for Self-Management. Diabetes: Ten Tips for Self-Management.

English Español. Make healthy food choices. You can choose what, when, and how much to eat. Healthy meal planning is an important part of your diabetes treatment plan. Decide to be physically active. This helps you keep your cholesterol, blood pressure, and blood sugar under control.

Take your medications. You can all take your medications as instructed by your healthcare team, and keep track of your blood sugar levels on your own. Keep a log book. You can learn which numbers are important for telling you how well you are doing and then watch them improve over time by keeping a log book of your A1C, blood pressure, cholesterol, and so on.

Take the book along to your appointments so you can discuss changes or new instructions with your healthcare team. Watch for symptoms or changes in your health. You can learn which symptoms or changes are important for you to watch out for and tell your doctor about. Talk with your healthcare team if you feel overwhelmed or unable to manage one or more aspects of your diabetes management.

Ask questions when you are not sure about something. Talk with others who are living well with diabetes and kidney disease. They can understand your situation in a special way and give you support. Get tested for kidney disease. Having diabetes puts you at risk for developing kidney disease.

HbA1C Hemoglobin A1C is a simple blood test to measure our average blood sugar levels that shows how diabetes is managed over time. It is important to get this test done either twice a year or once in three months, depending on how well your diabetes is controlled.

Adhering to the prescribed medication at the recommended amount and schedule is important for having good diabetic control. Missing medication can increase the risk of suffering from several diabetes-related health complications.

Common complication of diabetes is known as diabetic dyslipidemia, where good cholesterol or HDL levels decrease and increase triglyceride and bad cholesterol or LDL levels.

This increases the risk for heart disease and stroke. Therefore, avoid a diet high in saturated and trans fats such as fast food – burgers, pizza, fried snacks as these raise our LDL cholesterol level.

Eat right and drink plenty of water to avoid the most serious consequences of diabetes, i. Obesity is the main problem for type 2 DM patients that escalates other complications. Dietary intervention and exercise are key elements for weight reduction in the management and treatment of obesity.

Maintaining dental health , like brushing and flossing right after eating, can minimize the effects of diabetes on gums. If gum diseases develop, they have the potential to contribute to blood glucose irregularity. Visiting a dentist twice a year can help catch early symptoms. As there is no generally acknowledged definition for self-management, it is confused to utilize different ideas like the guidance of self-care and self-management, patient activities, and self-management education.

Self-management education conveyed as a short plea, enables the patient to recollect and have a better blend of information that enhances control of Type2 DM.

A multidisciplinary team involving educational supporters from hospitals and clinics, and the direct involvement of healthcare professionals is essential for the education program.

Self-care support system also includes family and friends to provide practical or emotional support. Family and friends play a crucial role in encouraging diabetic patients to adapt to the devastating situation, perform self-care activities and manage diabetes. Peer and parental support can decrease the stress and encourage young people with Type2 DM to perform self-care practices and adapt according to the diabetes diagnosis.

Although the diabetic management process in adolescents is almost the same as the adults, healthcare providers are usually uncertain about proper management guidelines to develop the knowledge and understanding for adolescent diabetic patients.

There are very limited experimental trials and the current guidelines for management for Type2 DM in adolescents and young adults are not fully evidence-based.

Successful outcomes have been noticed for both Type 1 and T2DM in all age groups through a supportive team that recognizes the importance of social support to encourage diabetes self-care behaviors to lessen the burden of long-term complications.

Sreeja Dutta. Self-Care Practices in Diabetes Management. Feb 14, accessed Feb 14, Anita Ramesh. Stroop Effect. Apr 21, accessed Apr 21, Follow MedIndia. Self-Care Practices in Diabetes Management Diabetes Mellitus Self-Care Practices Support System FAQs Glossary.

Written by Dr. Sreeja Dutta, M. Medically Reviewed by Hannah Joy, M. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Linkedin. What is Diabetes Mellitus?

There are three main types of diabetes: Type 1 diabetes - The body does not make insulin and needs to take the sugar glucose from the foods we eat and turn it into energy for our body. Type 2 diabetes - The body does not make or use insulin well.

We need to take pills or insulin to help control your diabetes. It is the most common type of diabetes. Gestational diabetes - Some women get this kind of diabetes when they are pregnant. Though it goes away after pregnancy, they have a greater chance of getting diabetes later in life. Published on Aug 14, Last Updated on Aug 14, i Sources Cite this Article.

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