Coping

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Adjusting to diabetes takes time, and dealing with it is a daily challenge. Here are some strategies for helping your child cope with diabetes:

Encourage your Child to be a Team Captain

The more your child participates in her diabetes care (at an age-appropriate level), the more healthy and confident she will be. Emphasize that she is the captain of her diabetes team.

Learn About Diabetes

You and your child can learn about diabetes from your local American Diabetes Association, from a diabetes educator, and from other books. As you both learn more, you'll both feel more confident about taking care of diabetes.

Share with Family and Friends

Encourage your child to share her knowledge about diabetes with family and friends. Don't force her to talk about her diabetes if she's not ready, though. Gentle encouragement and sensitivity are best.

Talk to Others with Diabetes

Your child may benefit from participating in a support group for children or teens with diabetes. (You may want to get involved with a group for parents of children with diabetes.) Ask your doctor or diabetes educator or call 1-800-DIABETES to find out about diabetes support groups in your area.

Talk About Feelings

Allow your child to express her feelings -- both positive and negative. Don't make light of negative feelings ("It's not that bad!"). Agree with her that diabetes is unfair or difficult, but go on to reassure her that you are there to help her through the hard times.

Try to Re-focus

In the time after diagnosis, it's normal to focus on your child's diabetes to the exclusion of the other parts of her life, but as soon as possible, try to re-focus on your child as a whole person -- not just "a diabetic child." Support all aspects of her life.

Eventually, you and your child will come to a point of accepting her diabetes. You'll both begin to feel more confident about the daily tasks of diabetes care and it will become a habit for your child and the rest of the family.

Adapting to Change

Although you and your child may come to accept her diabetes, diabetes doesn't go away. As your child grows, you will face new challenges: how much responsibility to give her; how to deal with changes in diabetes treatment; how she can adapt her diabetes treatment to life changes (like beginning high school or going away to summer camp). Expect your child to go through tough times and better times in her diabetes care. As she matures, she may need increased support at some times and demand increased independence at other times (sometimes all in the same day!).

In short, you, your child, and the rest of your family will adapt and re-adapt to the demands of diabetes. To adapt as easily as possible, foster a sense of teamwork about diabetes care. When the whole family is supportive and knowledgeable about your child's diabetes, it is easier to take change and challenges in stride.

Stress Relievers

No matter how well you’re coping, diabetes brings a lot of added stress. Try some of these ways to reduce stress.

• Exercise -- it elevates your mood and helps relax tense muscles
  

• Writing -- just getting it out on paper can make your problems seem more bearable (and don’t worry about spelling or grammar -- this is just for you)
  

• Relaxation exercises -- things like yoga, deep breathing, or tensing and relaxing one muscle at a time
  

• Distraction -- have an evening out, rent a video, or get lost in a good book
  

• Massage -- it’s a great way to relax
  

• Meditation or prayer -- take care of your spiritual side