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Diabetes and Mental Health Issues: Why They Affect Each Other

It’s not often discussed as the topic is emotionally charged. Relationships become strained as couples adapt to health issues associated to living with diabetes. This additional stress needs to be addressed. I hope knowing health issues and emotions are connected may be a source of understanding and hope.

Two primary chronic forms of diabetes are type 1 and type 2.

Both types of diabetes affect mental health.

Mental health challenges like depression can impact diabetes.

Depression, for example, depletes people of energy and decreases motivation. This makes adherence to diabetes treatment plans difficult, potentially worsening diabetes.

Other effects of depression that affect diabetes include:

• Overeating (can cause weight gain, which is linked to type 2 diabetes)
• Inactivity (increases blood sugar and makes management more difficult)
• Fatigue and a sense of worthlessness (can make people ignore diabetes treatment)
• Psychiatric medications can interact with diabetes medications

Likewise, diabetes can worsen depression and other mental health challenges for various reasons:

• The stress of managing diabetes contributes to anxiety (“Diabetes and Anxiety: There’s Plenty to Be Anxious About“)
• A sense of hopelessness can contribute to depression (“Diabetes and Depression: Two Difficult Conditions to Manage“)
• Blood sugar levels that are too high, too low, or fluctuating have negative effects on the brain that can lead to mental health disorders

The mutual risk factor and the worsening of each other’s symptoms that arise from the connection between diabetes and mental health creates a vicious cycle. The stress of living with diabetes as well as its impact on the brain can cause mental health issues. These, in turn, make managing diabetes more difficult and can increase the severity of the disease or contribute to the development of the disease. This cycle can create additional problems (“Uncontrolled Diabetes and Mental Health Complications“).

There are various Problems Associated with the Diabetes and Mental Health Link

Living with diabetes and a mental health condition is challenging and has multiple consequences:

• Decreased quality of life
• Poor adherence to treatment for diabetes and mental health, which increases illness severity 
• Increased cost of care
• Higher number of visits to the emergency room
• More admissions to the hospital
• Greater absenteeism from school or work, sometimes resulting in school failure or unemployment

While extra problems and challenges can arise when someone has both diabetes and a mental health condition, the situation isn’t all bad. How does diabetes affect your mental health? It can be very positive. When you’re aware of the challenges, you can use your insight to develop and adhere to a treatment plan as well as seek support. Addressing diabetes and mental health together can enhance wellness.

www.healthyplace.com/diabetes/mental-health/diabetes-and-mental-health-how-one-affects-the-other

Why many with diabetes develop depression and how to treat depression associated with diabetes.

“At some point, over 50% of people with diabetes will have clinical depression. Currently, one-third of my patients are on antidepressants.” 

– Dr. Andrew Ahmann, Endocrinologist and Director of the Harold Schnitzer Diabetes Health Center at Oregon Health and Science University

It’s well researched that those with diabetes are two times more likely to be depressed than the general population. It’s not completely clear why people with diabetes develop depression. It’s the common chicken and the egg situation that is often present when mental health is involved. This leads to the questions:

1. Does diabetes cause physiological depression due to hormonal changes involving insulin and neurotransmitters?
2. Or does the diagnosis of a serious and chronic illness lead to feelings of helplessness, sadness and a lack of interest in life that then turns into depression?

According to numerous studies, it’s both. A person with diabetes may be more physiologically susceptible to depression though the connection is not clear, but there is a definite connection for many people regarding what’s called reactive depression. In this case, depression is a reaction to the diabetes diagnosis.