While attending a research meeting on education and management of the Diabetes Branch of the Chinese Medical Association, I hit it off with Director Yao from the Psychology Clinic of Lipu County Hospital in Guilin. We both have a soft spot for diabetes self-management education. I am an old "sugar patient" who has been ill for 17 years. After retirement, I am determined to use knowledge to save diabetes and change my destiny through self-management. Director Yao faces many patients who are afraid and depressed due to diabetes every day, and is determined to help them overcome their psychological barriers and live a good life. A life path to resist “sugar”. In this way, the two of us have a common goal: it is urgent to change diabetes, and we met in Lipu County, Guilin for an exchange event between North and South "sugar friends".
Many "sugar friends" have fear and depression
During the 8 days in Lipu, I communicated one-on-one with "sugar friends" during the day, and at night I went to the local love club to give lectures on diabetes health. I found that most of the "sugar friends" who came to communicate every day were afraid and depressed about diabetes. .
An old "sugar lover" in his sixties said that he had been losing weight recently and was afraid of complications. I asked him about his daily diet and exercise, and what drugs he used to control blood sugar. He said that he did not need drugs, but used diet and exercise to control blood sugar. He walked 8 kilometers a day and danced a lot of exercise; he ate one pound of staple food every day. I don’t dare to eat fruit if I have two meats. He said that if I don’t eat so much, I will feel hungry, and if I eat and don’t exercise, my blood sugar will be high.
A 59-year-old male patient already had cardiovascular complications and had a stent placed in his heart. His neighbor had three stents in his heart and died at the mahjong table a few days ago. He was very scared, fearing that the same would happen to him. He dared not exercise every day, and his heart ached even when carrying a bucket of water. His lifestyle habit was to sleep late and wake up late.
An elderly female patient asked me if she could use several health products. She doesn't believe in the doctor's treatment and often buys so-called health care products to treat diabetes, claiming they have curative effects. She was already very thin and worried about complications. I suggested that she should check the pancreatic islet function. If it is seriously damaged and insulin secretion is insufficient, she should inject insulin to delay complications. But she said she had never heard of this test of pancreatic islet function.
The sister of a patient comes for consultation on behalf of her younger brother. Because my younger brother is suffering from diabetes and cannot face the reality, he does not take active treatment, and does not allow family members to mention diabetes, but just keeps on dieting. My sister is very anxious and does not know what to do.
There was also a patient who had suppurative appendicitis and needed surgery, but her blood sugar level was nearly 30.0mmol/L. The doctor suggested that she inject insulin, but she refused, saying that insulin would cause dependence. Another "sugar friend" suffered from unbearable inflammation and pain in the lymph nodes in his thigh. He didn't know how to treat it and told his children that he was going to die...
Leverage the power of peer education
In the past few days, while communicating with many "diabetes friends", I felt that they lacked formal prevention and treatment knowledge education in the control and treatment of diabetes. They had many misunderstandings about sugar control, were anxious and depressed, had poor compliance, and believed in false information. Advertising health products, etc. I used my 17 years of fighting against sugar to encourage them to build up the confidence to dance with the sugar devil, and analyzed and corrected their misunderstandings one by one. I tell them that if they want to avoid complications, they must drive the "five carriages" well. Many people have barely heard of the concept of the "Five Carriage", so I used my spare time in the evening to explain it at the Lipu Love Club.
After several days of extensive communication with my "sugar friends", I became good friends with them. Many people said that after communicating with me, they strengthened their confidence in fighting "sugar" and understood the role of the "five carriages" to delay complications. No longer believe in false advertising, no longer buy "three no's" health products, change your bad living habits, and become a caring person who can manage yourself. Some "sugar friends" also added me as WeChat friends, hoping to keep in touch and often exchange experiences in fighting "sugar". I established my own "sugar friends" WeChat group in Lipu to let them experience the journey of fighting "sugar". It feels good to have company.
Comments from psychological experts (Hideo Otsu, psychological counselor at Xuanwu Hospital Psychological Counseling and Treatment Alliance):
Every "sugar patient" has experienced negative emotions caused by the disease, such as anger, anxiety, depression and fear. If you are immersed in it and cannot extricate yourself, it will not only lead to a vicious cycle of painful feelings, but also often lack of rationality and failure to strictly implement medical instructions. If this situation continues, it will cause huge or even irreversible damage to the physical and mental health of "sugar lovers".
"Peer education" is aimed at the two major needs of such "sugar friends": ① Psychological support, resolving negative emotions, and using motivation to increase the self-confidence and motivation of "sugar friends". ② Comprehensive diabetes education: Scientific expertise makes “diabetics” trustworthy, and specific guidance can pay careful attention to the specific lives of “diabetics”.
Diabetic patients, as a group, have their own special psychological characteristics. "Peer education" uses the model of "group (group)" to support "group (group)" to give full play to the initiative of all group members, so that every peer with different needs can gain something.
Comments from endocrinologists (Liu Guorong, chief physician of the Department of Endocrinology, Beijing Coal General Hospital):
In the 21st century, the world, including China, is facing the risk of a diabetes outbreak. The World Health Organization predicts that from 2000 to 2030, the number of diabetic patients worldwide will increase from 171 million to 366 million. There are currently more than 100 million diabetic patients in our country, and there is also a reserve army of equal weight - pre-diabetic people.
Diabetes is the basic disease of metabolic diseases. It brings various complications, especially heart, brain and kidney damage, which can cause disability and death, bringing great misfortune to individuals, families and society. To this end, it is necessary to scientifically prevent and treat diabetes, mobilize the whole society to participate, and form a broad anti-sugar united front. It is necessary to unite medical, pharmaceutical and nursing professionals, and to mobilize patients and their families to fight a protracted war. This article proposes that we should arm the mind with science, solve various psychological barriers through diabetes education and communication, give full play to patients' subjective initiative, fight against all kinds of pseudoscience, pseudo propaganda, and pseudo products, and drive the "five carriages" well, which will ultimately enable us to It is worth advocating to stay away from diabetes and achieve a beautiful, high-quality life and a happy and long old age.
