Give yourself the chance to learn from mistakes:
Life as a diabetic is no paved, smooth, well-maintained road. It is a winding, rocky path with dangerous pot-holes to evade, threatening your health at every turn. There is that constant need to be alert, looking ahead, checking every bush and the way ahead, travelling not too fast to end in a ditch or too slow to not be able to climb out of it. This diabetic path needs to be navigated vigilantly and despite all your efforts there are bound to be mistakes made along the way.
As a diabetic, a simple mistake you can make is just neglecting to have available some food while travelling or on the move. A serious mistake could be taking more than the usual dose of insulin just before going for a drive. So, you need to aim to have your diabetes managed as well as you can. However, you ought to understand that, despite all your efforts, your blood glucose can never be perfectly under control.
Regardless of whose blood sugar you are managing, your very own or that of your child with type 1 diabetes, below are some pointers to assist you to perform your very best without the necessity to be perfect.
Diabetes Overview – Video Guide
Resist blame
With mistakes comes the instinctive reaction of putting the blame on somebody. Unless we understand the fault lies with us, blaming another person somehow gives us some kind of comfort. However, instead of blaming anyone, it would certainly be better to stop the blame game, take a good look at the mistake, understand how it came about, learn from the mistake and be prepared not to allow the same mistake to happen again.
Admit your inability to completely control diabetes
A lot have been learned about diabetes and we do know how we can often manage it well. Unfortunately, certain things which can trigger blood sugar levels, lifting them high or plunging them low, are beyond our control. Those things may be associate with stress, hormones, sickness, environmental conditions, foods or whatever reasons. We know that we can never have a hundred percent control over diabetes. There are always so many things in diabetes which can so easily change that it will be impossible to have it as well under control as we desire. Do not blame yourself, should you find blood sugar fluctuations you cannot understand. Look forward to a new tomorrow the next day.
Think of mistakes as opportunities to understand your diabetes better.
Whenever mistakes appear, take the role of a scientist and seek answers to some questions:
- How could this mistake have happened? Could it be a failure to recognize a symptom, a miscalculation, lack of knowledge, neglect, etc.?
- Could the mistake be prevented? If yes, how?
- Is there anything we can learn from this mistake and the events that followed?
- What different actions can we take in future to ensure the same mistake is not repeated?
You should attempt to honestly and impartially answer the above questions without putting blame on anybody. This will get you to know the mistakes in a manner that can give you a better understanding in order to prevent future mistakes that are similar to them.
Discuss with your diabetes healthcare team if similar mistakes recur
Certain mistakes are associated with a poor understanding of the problem or a lack of knowledge concerning diabetes management. For instance, you usually wake up each morning with high levels of glucose. You have tried reducing your food consumption before bedtime as well as have your insulin dose adjusted; yet found no answer to your problem. Definitely, something is not right with your management.
However, do not blame yourself. Instead, consult your doctor, the nurse, the nutritionist and the dietitian. One of them may be able to tell you the answer to your problem. Then, again, the given solution may not be of help each and every time but then, in diabetes management, nothing is perfectly reliable. It may just help you to keep at it with a confidence that you do have some control over it. So, by giving yourself allowances for making mistakes, you still can continue with some control over your future with diabetes.