The Diabetes Support Center

Every person is unique, but when you face a challenge like diabetes, you are never alone. Countless men, women, and children have faced exactly the same diagnosis and have survived and thrived. The following guide is designed to help you navigate your journey with the best information and resources that have helped other survivors when they faced the same challenge.

TSC has scoured the Web to gather together the links to the very best diabetes resources: articles, blogs, forums, and tools that can help you make better decisions and take action to overcome the range of physical, emotional, and other challenges you're facing now.

As you'll see, we always welcome your ideas and suggestions to make this diabetes guide even more helpful to survivors like you.

JUST FOUND OUT

Survivors Say: Best Resources for Diabetes

Survivors say these are the best resources for those who have just gotten a diagnosis of diabetes; check them out to learn more about your options:

• American Diabetes Association The country's leading source of information on diabetes offers help for all things diabetes-related, making the ADA's site an excellent place to start learning more about this condition.
• MedlinePlus: Diabetes This page, from the government's National Institutes for Health, provides links to a wide variety of reliable sites with diabetes information for both type 1 and type 2.
• MyDiabetesCentral.com: Just Diagnosed with Diabetes - The First 48 Hours

The Big Picture

Diabetes is a disease in which your blood glucose, or sugar, levels are too high. Glucose comes from the foods you eat. Insulin is a hormone that helps the glucose get into your cells to give them energy. With Type 1 diabetes your body does not make insulin. With Type 2 diabetes, the more common type, your body does not make or use insulin well. Without enough insulin, the glucose stays in your blood. Some pregnant women also have gestational diabetes and some people who are at high risk of diabetes but who don't technically have the signs are called "pre-diabetic." These sites explain more about the classic signs of diabetes and the tests used to give a diagnosis:

• WebMD: Symptoms of Type 2 Diabetes
• Kidshealth.org: Type 1 Diabetes -- What is it?

Your Diabetes

When diagnosed with diabetes, it's important to understand your type of diabetes, because your treatment will depend greatly on your diagnosis:

National Diabetes Clearinghouse (NIH/NIDDK): Your Guide to Diabetes - Type 1 and Type 2

Questions to Ask Your Doctor:

• Medicine.net.com: Diabetes: Questions to Ask Your Doctor
• WebMD: 10 Questions to Ask Your Doctor About Diabetes

Your World

Because there is no cure for diabetes and it often means significant changes to your life, receiving a diagnosis of diabetes can be devastating. Let yourself feel all the emotions you're bound to be feeling now. Explaining your condition to friends and family will help them understand what you're going through and make it easier for them to provide the support you need now. You may also want to find onilne or in-person support from other diabetics:

• Childrenwithdiabetes.com Online Community
• dLife.com: Diabetes Forum
• Dailystrength.org: Diabetes Type 2 Support Group
• Dailystrength.org: Diabetes Type 1 Support Group

Diabetes Myths

• 10 Myths About Diabetes - American Diabetes Association

Information and Recommended Links for Survivors

Survivors say these are the best guides when you're living with diabetes; check them out to learn more about your options:

• American Diabetes Association The go-to resource for those living with diabetes. Learn about the newest treatments, latest research, and what you can do to help find a cure.
• dLife.com You'll find guidance for managing meals (including a recipe database), expert Q&As, blogs, forums, and even coupons in this A-to-Z site.
• WebMD Diabetes Center Find answers to FAQs in this comprehensive guide. 

Types of Treatment

Medical Treatment

Treatment for diabetes revolves around controlling blood sugar (glucose) levels, which, depending on the type and severity of your diabetes, may be done with insulin (oral or injection) and lifestyle changes like watching what you eat and exercising regularly, or you may be able to keep your blood sugar on an even keel with lifestyle changes alone. Here's a useful site covering different aspects of the medical management of diabetes:

National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse (NIH) - Your guide to diabetes: Type 1 and Type 2

Medications

Over time, high levels of blood glucose can can cause health problems, including heart disease, heart attacks, strokes, kidney disease, nerve damage, digestive problems, eye disease, and tooth and gum problems. You can help prevent health problems by keeping your blood glucose levels on target. Diabetes medicines help keep your blood glucose in your target range. The target range is suggested by diabetes experts and your doctor or diabetes educator. Read on for more about diabetic medications you might be prescribed:

National Institutes of Health - What I need to know about diabetes medicines

Side Effects

All drugs carry a risk for side effects. This 2009 guide from the American Diabetes Association publication Diabetes Forecast is a helpful summary of the pros and cons and various drugs used to treat type 2 diabetes:

Medications for Type 2 (PDF)

Lifestyle Changes & Holistic Treatments

Every diabetes patient needs to stick to a healthy diet; maintain a normal weight; and get regular exercise to keep blood sugar on an even keel and reduce the risk for complications:

• American Diabetes Association: Nutrition and Recipes 
• American Diabetes Association: Weight Loss & Exercise
  

But you may want to also try other non-drug approaches to managing your condition. If so, you may want to consider buying this ADA book, which is written for doctors but offers an in-depth look at using holistic/alternative therapies for diabetes:

Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) Supplement Use in People with Diabetes: A Clinician's Guide 

This ADA forum is devoted just to a discussion of alternative medicine:

Adults Community - Type 2: Alternative Medicine Diabetes

Insurance, Work & Money Matters

Since diabetes is a chronic, lifelong condition, sometimes you may experience a complication or a low-blood-sugar incident that can interfere with work. With that in mind, you may decide you want to tell your employer and fellow employees that you're diabetic and educate them on the disease.

For questions about health insurance, start with the American Diabetes Association's excellent guide, which helps connect you with information about health insurance in your state, and what to do if you're over 65, uninsured, low-income, and more:

Health Insurance Information for People with Diabetes

Do you think you might have been discriminated against at work because you're diabetic? Know your rights:

American Diabetes Association: Employment Discrimination

Health-care Providers Who Can Help

Once you are diagnosed with diabetes, your general care practitioner will be able to help you manage the disease, as well as refer you to specialists to address additional concerns if they arise. You may want to see a nutritionist or a trainer to help encourage you with exercise.  Many diabetics see an eye specialist and a podiatrist (foot specialist) to stay on top of any possible eye or foot complications. A diabetes educator can be a big help in managing your condition - here's how to find one:

American Association of Diabetes Educators 

Dealing with Diabetes: Information for Co-Survivors

How you can help

• Prepare for times when your survivor's blood sugar levels drop too low and they need immediate help.
• Learn to offer an insulin injection for your survivor, if they take injectable insulin and may need help.

What to say

• “I'll help you keep your blood sugar under control any way I can.”
• “Thousands of people are thriving with diabetes -- I know you're going to be one of them.”
• “Are you checking your sugar regularly?”

What not to say

• “A lot of people have serious complications because of diabetes.”
• “I know someone who died when their sugar level crashed.”
•  “You could have avoided diabetes if you would have taken better care of yourself.”

Things you can do for a survivor every day

• Help young kids with insulin injections. 
• Stick to a balanced diet and regular exercise yourself and don't offer sweets to a diabetes survivor.
• Offer to be an exercise partner to your diabetes survivor.

How to build a support network

• Set up your TSC co-survivor profile.
• Create a support group for your friend or family member.
• Interact and provide updates.

How to help a survivor deal with day-to-day challenges

• Work/School – Ensure that the survivor carries their necessary medication with them at all times and if your child is at school, alert the school and the school nurse of your child's condition. The nurse may want to keep orange juice or insulin in the refrigerator, so it's there if needed. If your survivor is an adult, his/her coworkers and boss should know what to do in case of an emergency.
• Family – When one person in the family suffers from diabetes, everyone will feel the effects. Everyone can help a survivor with helpful reminders to manage their disease.

 

Remission / Recovery /Recurrence

Although diabetes will never disappear from your life, with proper management of blood glucose and prompt attention to any possible complications most diabetics live long, mostly healthy lives and are prevented from doing very little by their condition. There are many other diabetes survivors around you every day! But even if you're essentially in recovery and your diabetes is under control, sometimes difficult emotions may crop up. Dealing with these is important to help you thrive as a survivor:

• WebMD: Understanding the Impact of Diabetes on Your Emotions
• American Diabetes Assocation: Dealing with Diabetes - for Parent and Kids

This 2008 article from the American Diabetes Association publication Diabetes Forecast offers good advice about keeping common complications of diabetes away:

Keeping Trouble at Bay: An Overview of What Diabetes Can Do to Your Body and What You Can Do to Prevent It

Diabetes survivors come in all shapes, sizes, colors and ages – stories of survival be very encouraging:

"I Don't Live Like I Have Diabetes"

Give Back

As a diabetes survivor you have a story to tell. Consider sharing your experience, and what's helped you get through from diagnosis to now, with others who are newly diagnosed or struggling. You may find your words are inspiring to someone else!

People do die of complications from diabetes. Blindness, amputation and heart attack are real risks of having diabetes, and the disease can be terminal. Here's a look at complications of diabetes:

• Long-Term Complications

Steps to Take When Facing Death

Planning

The ADA offers this helpful guide to help you and your co-survivors through this very difficult time to ensure your wishes are honored:

• Tough Decisions Made Easier
  

Grief and Loss

• Understanding and Dealing With Grief and the Loss of Life