CoVid-19 Anxiety effecting BG control

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I dont know if anyone else has had this experience, but i did post it before and got very little response, so i am trying to post it again using a different tag, in the hope that others will join in and discuss their own personal experiences.

Since this horrific virus has infiltrated all of our lives, i have found myself in a state of on and off anxiety/panic attacks. i, as so many of you who know me know, keep very tight control over my BGs and my A1cs. I work very very hard to keep on top of my health. however, during this “crisis” i have found that i have required more insulin, both basal as well as bolus, in order to keep in my target range. and, as well, i am having a great challenge bringing stubborn highs down with many corrections (including both via pump and IM) i have made basal changes, but although for the most part they have allieviated the problems, there are particular times during which my anxiety rises and so do my BGs. I have noticed, for example, that when i go out for a healthy walk outside with my husband, from the moment i gear up with the mask and gloves, my heart begins to pound ferociously. i feel like i might even suffocate beneath the restrictive mask. we SD from others, but i never feel truly safe. then i become very chlostrophobic beneath the mask, and breathing becomes difficult. then i begin thinking that i will need to be put on a ventilator, and there will not be any available…on and on and on. my mind is a dangerous neighborhood.

Needless to say, i was wondering if others are finding that their stress levels have had any impact on their BGs. just putt’in it out there. would LOVE to hear back from you guys.

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My blood sugars have been pretty good, maybe in part because my activities are so consistent these days. Normal insulin resistance from hormones, but I haven’t noticed anything unusual.

I think everyone is going through waves of stress and anxiety lately. This past week I’ve had two friends start crying while talking to me on the phone…and I cried at some point I think last week. I think managing stress and doing what’s best for one’s mental health is extremely important.

I, personally, have tried to keep my stress levels as low as possible (although it’s impossible to eliminate the stress/anxiety completely) by isolating myself from others. I’m luckily an introvert, so this is where my comfort zone is, anyway. But I do not feel safe going outside or even out into my apartment building, so I have not left since March 17. I’ve had to go to different areas of my apartment building for various things, but I try to do this only when absolutely necessary.

At some point, I’ll probably have to leave my apartment building to do something. But right now, I don’t feel safe going out for daily walks. I exercise inside my apartment for my own mental health.

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I have Generalized Anxiety Disorder and take meds for it. I had been trying to taper off the meds and was having success until, you guessed it, Covid-19 reared its ugly head. Now I’m back on the meds and I have periods during the day when I worry about all sorts of things, my healthy 91-year-old mom who lives by herself in California, if she gets sick, I probably would never see her again. Same with my husband if he got sick, or me. That seems to be the constant worry I think about, that you can’t visit someone with Covid-19 who’s in the hospital. It hasn’t seemed to affect my BG other than it affects my appetite, so I end up with lows from taking too much insulin and not eating enough.

The other anxiety inducing thing is going to the grocery store. I stocked up so I haven’t been since March 13th, but eventually I will have to go get some things. I live in a rural area so the closest 2 grocery stores don’t have delivery or drive-up services, and neither does the one pharmacy. So I’ll have to make the trip.

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I don’t think the anxiety is affecting my blood sugars, but is affecting every other aspect of my life and causing a lot of tension and arguements in my household

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Hey @daisymae. I love your openness, your posts, and your questions. I’m sorry for missing your first go around.

I was definitely seeing stress reflected in my bg numbers last week. I myself thrive in crises, but once I get through to the other side of the crisis all of my repressed stress and fears bubble out and I lose it afterward. Everyone else is like, “But we’re fine now.” And I’m like, “But we weren’t and I held it together for a really long time and we’re safe now so I’m going to be a mess for a bit.”

Anyway. I have loved ones with unique health problems that I’ve usually been able to be cruise director for their care when it crops up. BUT, the dynamics of COVID-19 have tied both hands behind our backs and our problem-solving for our loved ones (in my family) is having to get a lot more creative remotely. Last week was not ideal and I saw it in my sleep and my bg.

The other thing I’m dealing with is increased pod site failures since we’re all home 24/7. I’m sitting more often, in different furniture and playing more sports with my kids. I’m failing sites about every 36 hours at this rate. So living differently is definitely impacting me on two fronts.

I am fortunate that I have a lot of space I can use for walks and hiking. I cannot imagine what you have to deal with as a mermaid in your situation. I’m sending you lots of love and hugs and breathing exercises (which never work for me but maybe they’ll help you!). :heart: :heart:

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My BGs have been pretty stable, not really effected by the stress due to the impact of the virus on our lives. I am running nearly everyday though. Without the running, I know I would be experiencing what you are going through. I know you haven’t been able to do your normal swims and that must really be wreaking havoc with your BGs, in addition to the stress. Is there some other exercise you can try to incorporate into your daily life to reduce the stress?

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@daisymae Yes, yes, yes! I can relate.

The first week, managing my BG started out fairly smoothly…then it stopped working. At first my brain went to “site problems and/or insulin resistance). But this week I’ve finally admitted that it is probably related to major changes in my sleep habits, physical activity and, yes, stress!

@T1Allison I also focus on taking care of others. I push most self care aside for too long, until I have to stop and decompress!

Thanks for asking DM - sending you some peace and serenity.

Lisa :sunflower:

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@daisymae:

I don’t think that we have ever conversed, so let me introduce myself:

I’m 70, been a T1D for about 48 years. In general, my BG control is pretty crappy. My best-ever A1C is 6.9 … and I’ve seen double digits, too. Many of you, I know, would be apoplectic if you ever saw an A1C as BAD as my BEST-EVER number.

So what can I possibly add to this discussion?

I think that for most of us, just about everything, including our stress levels, have changed over the last few weeks. We are all likely too fully plugged in to way too many news feeds, overall activity levels have been lowered, exercise is lowered, thinking, planning, and executing the simplest activity has become dramatically more challenging. Sleep patterns have changed, etc. I suspect that all of these changes affect our BG numbers.

For me, I have not been to a Home Depot, Lowe’s, Ace, or True-Value hardware in a month! I’m in desperate need of a 12-step program to allow me to deal with that withdrawal …

I find that going to a grocery store is the scariest thing I face … and I have only been to a grocery once in the past three weeks and do not even go down the TP aisle. Takeout has been my savior and stress-reducer in that area … I’ve found several places where I can pick up takeout food with virtually zero contact … a gloved and masked staff member puts food in my trunk. No credit card slip to sign, no cash … all handled on the phone.

But, for me … and this underscores how we are all so different … my walks are the best, least stressful parts of my day.

I walk with my dog. While she is perfectly well-mannered and friendly, she is afraid of little kids, doesn’t really care to greet other dogs, and, unlike most labs, has no interest in greeting other people. In short, she should have a vest that says “COVID-19 Support Dog”. She will cross the street in advance of other dogs or humans or if we are on a narrower trail, she steps aside to let others pass. We went on two walks totaling about 8 miles today, and I was likely not within 30 feet of anyone. I am lucky in that regard: I have lots of places to walk with very little pedestrian traffic … I’m in Santa Fe, NM and it was 63 and sunny today.

You may not live in an area where you CAN walk as if you were walking my dog … where you have the luxury of crossing the street to avoid people or step out of the way to maintain proper distance, even if oncoming pedestrians seem oblivious.

Finally, I think that for some folks, stress causes their BG numbers to be LOWER than normal. To me, under these circumstances, I’m actually THANKFUL that my numbers are a bit higher than normal rather than the other way round. Certainly none of us need to make an unplanned trip to the ER because of a seriously low event.

I wish you the very best @daisymae as we all try to adjust to the new normal.

Stay safe out there.

John

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When we did a survey, 20% of people on our site that were willing to hit a survey had A1c’s above 7, while this means our population skews heavily towards those with better control, it also says you have a lot of company here. The walks sound amazing, Oregon just closed every place I want to walk (Forest) until September and I am going to go crazy if this hold through the whole summer.

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@Chris:

Yes, it is sad that so many state and national parks have been forced to close because too many folks are unwilling to maintain proper separation. These must be the same people who are jamming all of the home/hardware stores for all of their “essential” projects …

I’m lucky: I’m getting better at seeing the world through my dog’s eyes. Although I’m not a hunter my dog is a German Shorthaired Pointer. So anywhere we walk, we might see a bunny rabbit, or a squirrel, or a duck …

Stay safe.

John

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Hey Daisy, I started obsessing over “the numbers” back when I started my isolation (March 12) and discovered that it was not helping my attitude one bit. That idle time also harmed my BG control, possibly aided by the worry that the numbers were causing.

So I decided to throw myself into house and yard projects that could be done solo or as a couple. I did have to go to a garden center and buy a bunch of shrubs but other than that I’ve been able to stay isolated. Having some drudgery type projects that I treat like a 7 day work week has made me feel productive and got my mind off the whole pandemic for a good part of the day. Not sure I can keep it up for the duration of the lockdown but I will sure try. I am saving the worst for last: clearing 25 years worth of junk out of my attic.

Seeing as I live in the suburbs It’s pretty easy to find things to work on around the house and yard. I don’t know how you can do it but if you can dream up a few projects will take weeks to complete it might help both the anxiety and the BG. There are all kinds of things that are sold as a kit…years ago my wife and I assembled a loom that we bought in kit form. Maybe something like that will help?

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Samson is too young for him to articulate any kind of anxiety and he seems to be doing fine actually. But I would say anxiety has made it tough for us to be 100% on top of his blood sugar all the time – plus the added challenge of having 3 kids at home while we’re both trying to work full time, and I haven’t been as attentive to his numbers as I could be. So far his average blood sugar has been roughly the same (fewer junky snacks than at school), but there is more late bolusing and so there are more needless spikes – mainly when he runs away from his phone and I don’t notice for 20 minutes.

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Hey DM. I’m glad you brought this topic up, and as we can see, everyone is being affected in different ways by the stress and anxiety around covid and how it has changed our daily lives.

Last week and the week before I certainly had spiraling thoughts and could relate to this sentiment:

I tried to ignore the emotional burden that this pandemic has brought with it, and it all kind of burst out one night and I sat and cried for a bit. I really needed that release and to just confront my fears, sadness, and madness. My anxiety around the uncertainty of my own health and my loved ones’ certainly remains though.

It has been a bit comical for me that I believe I’ve handed off anxieties over the past few weeks - traded anxiety around social situations and constantly being surrounded by people with anxiety over this pandemic and the future. That and more free time to pay attention to my BGs have actually allowed me to have tighter control recently (except when I’ve gotten sucked into spiraling thoughts playing out in my mind the what-ifs).

With these spiraling episodes, I know myself and I know that a spike in stress and paranoia typically means an eating spree, so the increase of insulin necessary for the two of those is impossible to separate on my recent eating sprees.

I am fortunate to still be able to go running, and that has helped with BG control and my mental state I’m sure. I’m sorry that you’ve certainly had to be torn from swimming and the release that likely was able to give you. I really can’t offer advice, but just know you’re not alone with dealing with all of this. thinking of you :heart:

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