What is Fear of Diabetes?
Fear of diabetes, also called diabetophobia, is an irrational fear of being diagnosed with diabetes.
Diabetes is a chronic condition with some serious complications associated with it.
While it is normal to have some fear of any bad thing, when a fear becomes irrational and interferes with day to day life it is considered a phobia.
Phobias are often indicated by physical reactions to the focus of the phobia.
For the fear of diabetes, physical reactions such as increased heart rate, sweating and shortness of breath can follow the mention of the disease or anything that brings diabetes to mind.
This fear may be related to fear of the treatments for diabetes such as insulin injections and the finger pricks of testing.
It may be related to some of the more severe complication of the disease such as blindness, loss of limbs or kidney failure.
Regardless of the actual root cause of the fear, a severely affected diabetophobe often has problems with daily activities.
Some medicines are occasionally prescribed for treatment of phobias including the fear of diabetes.
Many practitioners believe these medicines only hide or mask the symptoms of the fear without treating the root cause of the fear.
Diabetes is relatively easy to diagnose and modern treatments can prevent or delay the complications that contribute to the fear of diabetes.
Even the daily insulin injections can be eliminated with insulin pumps.
There is no real basis for the disabling fear.
One part of the treatment for fear of diabetes is education.
Convincing the diabetophobe that most of the fears are unfounded can help weaken the fear reactions.
This education alone is not a complete treatment.
Combine this education with some techniques for reprogramming the fear responses of the unconscious mind and one effective treatment is created.
Hypnosis has also been effective for many individuals.
If you are having problems with daily activities because of a fear of diabetes you should consult a professional for a correct diagnosis.
A professional can run tests to be sure you do not actually have diabetes and to check for underlying conditions that increase you susceptibility to fear or anxiety problems.
Diabetes is a chronic condition with some serious complications associated with it.
While it is normal to have some fear of any bad thing, when a fear becomes irrational and interferes with day to day life it is considered a phobia.
Phobias are often indicated by physical reactions to the focus of the phobia.
For the fear of diabetes, physical reactions such as increased heart rate, sweating and shortness of breath can follow the mention of the disease or anything that brings diabetes to mind.
This fear may be related to fear of the treatments for diabetes such as insulin injections and the finger pricks of testing.
It may be related to some of the more severe complication of the disease such as blindness, loss of limbs or kidney failure.
Regardless of the actual root cause of the fear, a severely affected diabetophobe often has problems with daily activities.
Some medicines are occasionally prescribed for treatment of phobias including the fear of diabetes.
Many practitioners believe these medicines only hide or mask the symptoms of the fear without treating the root cause of the fear.
Diabetes is relatively easy to diagnose and modern treatments can prevent or delay the complications that contribute to the fear of diabetes.
Even the daily insulin injections can be eliminated with insulin pumps.
There is no real basis for the disabling fear.
One part of the treatment for fear of diabetes is education.
Convincing the diabetophobe that most of the fears are unfounded can help weaken the fear reactions.
This education alone is not a complete treatment.
Combine this education with some techniques for reprogramming the fear responses of the unconscious mind and one effective treatment is created.
Hypnosis has also been effective for many individuals.
If you are having problems with daily activities because of a fear of diabetes you should consult a professional for a correct diagnosis.
A professional can run tests to be sure you do not actually have diabetes and to check for underlying conditions that increase you susceptibility to fear or anxiety problems.