3 New Year's Resolutions for People With Diabetes

Let 2023 Be Your Year

“New year, new me.”  That’s the mantra of millions of people across the country right now, and for people with diabetes it’s an incredible opportunity to find fresh motivation in setting new goals in management of the condition and making the changes needed to live life on their own terms.

That being said, too many New Year's resolutions tend to be abandoned far too quickly.  Whether the ambitions are too grand or too meticulous to keep straight, far too often our pledges to ourselves are left on the wayside and we are left wondering where all of the forward momentum we felt at the beginning of the year went. 

In the interest of helping people with diabetes see the positive changes they deserve, here are three simple New Year’s resolutions that can help you have the best year possible.

1. Be Kind to Yourself

Many people with diabetes tend to be pretty hard on themselves.  Whether it comes from personal feelings of regret, social stigma, or latent mental health issues, it’s pretty easy for people to put the weight of the world on their shoulders, especially if they have a chronic health condition like diabetes melitus.

According to the CDC, people with diabetes experience depression at rates 2 to 3 times more than the general population and are less likely to seek treatment.  What’s more is that studies suggest that people with diabetes have a strong prevalence of comorbidity with nearly all mental illnesses, including bipolar disorder, anxiety, and eating disorders.  The causal relationship between diabetes and mental illness isn’t entirely understood, but it’s become increasingly clear that mental health among people with diabetes isn’t talked about enough.

If you have diabetes, make your mental well-being a priority this year.  Make the resolution to invest in the things that bring you joy and rediscover your personal interests.  Whether it’s making art, playing sports, going to concerts, or playing video games with friends, make your joy a priority.  Also, seek treatment for mental illness, whether through therapy, medication, or a confluence of the two.  Make the resolution to be kind to yourself and seek help when you need it.

2. Find a form of exercise that you actually enjoy

It shouldn’t surprise anyone to learn that the vast preponderance of New Year’s resolutions involve going to the gym.  It also shouldn’t come as a surprise that this resolution is commonly abandoned as exercise becomes less of a health conviction and more of a chore.

That’s why we recommend making the resolution to find a form of exercise that you look forward to doing as opposed to simply exercising.  This might take some experimentation on your part, but that can be rewarding in its own way.  A 30 minute walk through the woods or biking to work might fit this resolution.  Playing sports has been demonstrated in studies to be both effective exercise and to have among the highest levels of retention in activity over time.  A study published in BMJ Open showed that people who start playing sports earlier in life were more likely to engage in exercise in middle and old age.

Exercise is an important part of diabetes management, and making the resolution to try different forms of exercise, such as playing sports, hiking, or swimming, might be just the thing you’ve been looking for to make exercise a part of your life.

3. Invest in new equipment

Technology has come a long way in the past decade, and even more over the past 20 or 30 years.  Medical technology around diabetes treatment is no exception.

Continuous glucose monitors, insulin pumps, and even the drugs used for the treatment of type-2 diabetes only continue to advance in exciting new ways.  Long gone are the days where lancets and home glucose monitors were the only source of information for people with diabetes.

Unfortunately, too few people take advantage of this technology that makes diabetes management safer, more convenient, less painful, and more effective. The improvement in quality of life that these technologies can afford shouldn’t be ignored, so make it a resolution in 2023 to talk to your endocrinologist about which options might be right for you.

After you have that information in hand we encourage you to check out the equipment we have available for you and let us help you manage your diabetes safely, effectively, and in a way that makes all of your New Year’s resolutions easier tasks to accomplish.