How to Console a Patient With Diabetes

If you know a friend, patient or loved one who has been diagnosed with diabetes, you may feel the responsibility to console them as they face a great new challenge. This person's life will be forever changed, but all is not lost; there are several ways you can comfort a patient with diabetes.

Instructions

• 1

  Tell the patient how common diabetes is. He is not suffering from a rare, untreatable disease; a new person is diagnosed with diabetes every 20 seconds. Although diabetes is a very serious condition, he is not alone.

• 2

  Talk about the many ways that diabetes can be treated. With regular exercise, proper diet, and steady insulin injections, diabetes can be controlled. Although it requires care and vigilance, inform the patient that diabetes is not a death sentence. She may even be able to wear an insulin pouch, a fairly modern device that regularly and automatically injects insulin. This technology makes diabetes a very manageable condition.

• 3

  Remind the patient that there is a wide network of diabetes support groups available. Many diabetes patients are able to live with their disease thanks to the constant, reaffirming support of peer groups. There are support groups and resource centers in all 50 states.

• 4

  Separate fact from fiction. By dispelling myths about diabetes, you can help the patient face the facts of his disease. For instance, it's commonly thought that diabetics can only eat a handful of special diabetic foods. This is untrue; diabetics can create diverse, delicious diets that are low in sugar and fat. Even sweets can be enjoyed in moderation. Some believe that diabetics have weaker immune systems and are thereby prone to catching infections or other diseases; this is a myth. Remind the patient that his diabetes does not make them more likely to, say, catch a common cold.