Southern B,
In my post to the newbies I said:
"Don't be surprized if you go through a period of mourning before you finally get a handle on this disease. I have found that most of us go through the grief process before we finally get to the point of accepting and living with our diabetes. There is a website about
coping with a new health concern that I found especially helpful. I understood a lot about
my diabetes, had been educated in nursing school, took nutrition classes and 'learned' a lot of stuff about
the disease. It wasn't until I started on insulin and had to get a medic alert
bracelet for my own safety that the whole thing came home to roost in my brain. I wear the bracelet 24/7 and it's a constant reminder to keep myself in line."
I also have something called Seasonal Affected Disorder (S.A.D.) which makes me more depressed in the short light/winter months. I use a "Happy LITE" which supplements the amount of light I receive during the day. And before I was diagnosed with S.A.D. I was being treated for chronic depression and was placed on SSRI medication.
Although my diabetes diagnosis kind of threw me for a loop, I didn't suffer any long term depression from it. It took me a while to learn all the ins and outs of carbs and blood sugar control then I accepted it along with some of my other chronic conditions as a fact of aging and life. I know that I will probably die of complications of diabetes if I don't get hit by a bus or get cancer. I have accepted that fact. Actually, I guess because I have accepted the fact that I shall die someday (something that people in our culture tend to deny or ignore), diabetes is not such a big deal. I don't want to become a burden to my family and would not like to go blind so I try to keep my sugars in check, but I don't feel depressed about
my diabetes. I feel that there are many others out there with much larger problems that are not as treatable.
Don't know if this will help you but it's my 2ยข.