Lifestyle Changes For Diabetes Control
About Me
Lifestyle Changes For Diabetes Control

My name is Tony Richards and when I turned 40 years old I began having unusual health symptoms including a powerful thirst and numbness in my hands. I went to see my doctor and after running tests he determined that I had diabetes. My doctor prescribed medicine for my condition and he also told me to make some lifestyle changes or the diabetes would get worse. I didn't want that to happen so I began researching ways to control diabetes. After implementing these ideas, my condition actually got better and I was able to reduce the amount of medication I was taking. If your doctor has diagnosed you with diabetes, it's very beneficial for you to read my blog so your condition doesn't worsen. I hope that by following this blog, it will help you to control your diabetes too.

Lifestyle Changes For Diabetes Control

Depression And Chronic Illness: Two Reasons Why They Are Inexorably Linked

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When you suffer from a chronic illness, your chances of becoming depressed increase significantly. In the general healthy population, approximately 10 to 25 percent of women and 5 to 12 percent of men suffer from depression. In the chronically ill population, however, the instances of depression can be as high as 33 percent. Why is depression so much more prevalent in individuals with chronic illness? The reason is twofold. First, many illnesses can cause depressive symptoms on their own. Second, people who struggle with the reality of their illness may also develop depression.

Biological Relationship

Science has shown that people who have depression have perceptible changes in their brain and the chemical composition of their brain. Depression can cause these changes, but other illnesses can cause them as well. When those illnesses are present, depression may be a symptom of the illness itself rather than a byproduct of it.

Illnesses that can cause depression include disorders and diseases of the central nervous system, such as multiple sclerosis, dementia, Parkinson's disease, and cerebrovascular disease. Hormonal imbalances and endocrine disorders, such as hypothyroidism, can cause depression as well.  In these cases, depression has a biological relationship with the disease.

Situational Relationship

The relationship can also be situational, meaning that the symptoms of depression are not directly caused by the disease but are rather caused because of it. People who are chronically ill often have a poorer quality of life than they were once used to. They may not be able to do the things that they like to do or be able to take care of their family. Their finances may suffer, which can cause a lot of stress. Also, chronic pain can cause depression.

The instances for situational depression can be greater for certain diseases than it is for the whole population of chronically ill people. For example, as many as 65 percent of people who have had a heart attack experience depression. Amazingly that's more than twice the number of people with cancer who become depressed.

If you're chronically ill and suffering from depression, it's vital that you seek treatment for your symptoms. People who are depressed often have a harder time dealing or overcoming their primary illness. Depression can also intensify the pain you experience. All-in-all, you will be better able to deal with your illness if you can get your depression under control. To talk about treatments, see a psychiatrist like those at Commonweath Affiliates PC.


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