Emotional effects of type 2 diabetes

How do you know if a diabetes patient is suffering from stress or anxiety?
There are different situations. It might be someone who is not compliant with their self-care and isn’t checking their blood sugar regularly or taking their medications as prescribed. Their doctor notices this and sees their A1C [hemoglobin test] levels are up and there are problems. In that case we might get communication from their physician, and we’ll help them work through their issues and come up with a game plan.
It might be a patient who is severely depressed and openly talking about their level of sadness and that they’ve given up hope. Their diabetes is affecting them socially and putting a strain on their relationships or marriage.
Sometimes patients are good at hiding these feelings. It’s important that doctors ask questions and probe beyond how their medical care is going. A lot of patients are reluctant to talk about their feelings unless asked. When a doctor is willing to ask questions above and beyond whether or not they’re checking their blood sugar, the patient is more willing to talk.