Taking Care of Your Mental Health
For people living with conditions such as diabetes and heart disease, anxiety and stress can be overwhelming. Now is a good time to take a breath, look at some of your habits and see if you can make positive changes.
For example, are you staying up too late or overindulging in your favorite comfort foods? Is it hard to concentrate or make decisions? If so, you’re not alone. Here are some questions to help you gauge your level of anxiety:
- Are you overwhelmed with fear about your own health or that of your loved ones?
- Do you feel more anger, hostility or irritability than usual?
- Have you been neglecting routine hygiene and self-care?
- Are you having headaches, muscle tension, digestive issues or other physical symptoms?
- Have chronic health problems or mental health conditions worsened?
- Are you using alcohol, tobacco or other substances more frequently?
If stress interferes with your daily activities for several days in a row, call your health care provider.
Anxiety can make the best-laid plans fall apart. But it’s key for people with conditions like heart disease and diabetes to stick to their treatment plans and to consult their health care providers if they are struggling.
Meanwhile, there are a number of things you can do to help reduce your anxiety.
Here are some tips:
- Eat well and avoid alcohol and other substances.
- Get 7-9 hours of sleep each night.
- Stay physically active. Aim for 150 minutes of exercise each week.
- Try meditating, stretching, deep breathing, yoga, mindfulness or other stress-reduction techniques.
- Enjoy something that calms you like a hot bath, a nature walk, journaling or quiet time with pets.
- Set aside time for hobbies, music, movies or other enjoyable pastimes.
- Agree on a daily schedule for everyone in your household to help reduce day-to-day friction.
- Find people and things that make you laugh.
- Establish your own special space where you can quietly relax.
- Tackle things on your long-term to-do list, such as cleaning a closet or reorganizing your office.
- Connect with your usual support network as well as other loved ones, share how you feel.
- Find an online support group.
If you’re feeling overwhelmed by anxiety or sadness, contact your primary care provider, your health insurer or your employer’s Employee Assistance Program, if available, to find a mental health provider.
In an emergency, call:
- The federal government’s 24-hour Disaster Distress Helpline at 800-985-5990 (or text TalkWithUs to 66746).
- The 24-hour National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255.
