Impact of Chronic Illness – Diabetes Mellitus Essay Assignment
Diabetes mellitus has various impacts on the patients, their families, and the friends around them. Various patients have various mechanisms of coping with the situation most of which is as advised by their doctors or healthcare facility professionals where the diagnosis was done. This document is a discussion on the impacts of this disorder as per the analysis of an interview I conducted with one of my diabetic friends.
Results of the interview
The initials of the patient friend with whom I conducted the interview is R.O. He was diagnosed with the disorder in 2010 while he was at the age of 22. He was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. Before being diagnosed with the disorder, R.O experienced the following symptoms; frequent urination and in large quantities. He often felt very thirsty and wanted to drink water always. He was losing weight over time. He indicated in his response that his weight dropped from 70kg in March 2009 to 65Kg in August 2009. He always felt very hungry. Sometimes he experienced blurred vision and felt tired most of the time. R.O admitted that in his life, he has never been engaged in any meaningful exercise. He liked consuming meat and other animal products implying that there was a possibility of feeding on saturated fats. He also had no regular eating hours. In fact, he liked skipping breakfast according to his response. No member of his family has ever suffered from this disorder.
Sometimes he feels angry at very simple things, he feels very tired when he engages in the vigorous activity. He indicates that since the diagnosis, his family has offered emotional support such as encouragement and physical support such as ensuring he has not involved in vigorous physical chores around. He feels that this has enabled him to cope well. According to R.O., his doctor has advised him to avoid emotional stress and engage in light physical exercise. Since the diagnosis, the doctor advised him to avoid foods rich in saturated fats, those that contain high levels of sodium and those containing excess sugar. There are other tests that the doctor advised him to take. One is the blood pressure test and those related to cardiovascular systems. The main medication prescribed by his doctor is insulin given by regular injection and pramlintide also regularly injected.
Analysis
According to the results of the interview, the ability to live for long with this disorder is all about its management. The management of the illness can be divided into three aspects. These are treatment, copying, and support.
Treatment
The main form of treatment as per this case is insulin injection. The existence of diabetes type 1 implies the inability of the pancreases to produce enough insulin. The role of insulin in the body is to ensure proper usage of the glucose consumed by an individual. Low level of insulin implies that the glucose consumed is not properly used in the body such that its level in the blood rises (Chiang et al., 2014). The treatment is aimed at ensuring that the glucose level in the blood is kept at normal levels. The injection of insulin in the body is to restore its level back to normal so that the blood glucose levels are maintained. That implies three options of insulin depletion, the first one is short-acting insulin, and there is the rapid-acting insulin and finally the intermediate-acting insulin. The other for medication used in the treatment of this disorder is the pramlintide. This medication delays the time taken by the stomach to empty itself. It basically lowers the secretion of glucagon after the meals taken. Further, it reduces the appetite through a central mechanism so that at the end of it all it helps reduce the glucose level in the blood. As part of treatment, other tests are necessary. Diabetes is known to result in other disorders such as blood pressure and various cardiovascular diseases. Determining their presence and treating or controlling the is key to the success of the treatment process. It is not logical to treat a person with diabetes without treating and managing any associated disorder. The main objective is to increase lifespan hence the need to take these tests as in the case of R.O.
Copping
The other management method to this disorder rests on the advice offered by the doctor. The first one is a change in eating habit. Reducing consumption of red meat, animal products means reducing the calories that an individual takes in. this reduces the possibility of obesity and diabetes. Sugary foods high glucose contentment once they have been broken down. With the low levels of insulin in the body, consuming a lot of this food implying introducing high levels of surplus glucose in the body which in turn causes a rise in the blood glucose level hence worsening the situation (Evert et al., 2014). The other aspect is avoiding emotional and physical stress. Mental or psychological stress has been found to increase glucose level in the blood and that is the reason it is discouraged. Stress hormone called cortisol increases the blood sugar level (Reagan, 2012). Exposing oneself to stress result to production of this which in turn increases the glucose level in the blood. Light exercise helps relax the mind and the whole situation is hence kept under control. Constant doctor-patient contact like the case of R.O is another coping mechanism. Further advice from the doctor and close monitoring to avoid any escalation of the situation. Impact of Chronic Illness – Diabetes mellitus Essay Assignment. Impact of Chronic Illness – Diabetes mellitus Essay Assignment. Impact of Chronic Illness – Diabetes mellitus Essay Assignment.
Support
The other coping strategy is drawn from support from various people within the environment of the patient. In the case of R.O, family and workmates provided the necessary support. The family is one of the main sources of stress. The family in ensuring that the patient is not subjected to emotional family stress is very key (Haas et al., 2012). Finding a solution to family problems without causing any tension that would escalate the situation is the key concept of family support. Further, the family provides financial support for treatment and medication. Family members taking over responsibilities that require a lot of mental effort or physical effort that would result in stress is also a mechanism. The other support source is an understanding of the employer and the work. The main idea behind this is to provide a conducive environment for management of the illness. The employer ensuring that work pressure is reduced is important. The baseline is understanding the patient and what is required of the people in his environment.
Impact of the interview findings on care plan for diabetic persons
The development of care plan for a given group of people suffering from a given disorder relies heavily on knowledge of the illness. That is management mechanisms which include copping, treatment, and support. The information gathered from this interview provides the care program planner with the information on what is required in the care environment. Again, it provides the information on treatment methods which is a key concept in the development of the care program. What should be avoided and that which should be encouraged by the care program depends on the information gathered in the interview. In general, the interview sheds light on the requirement that must be included in the care program which is treatment mechanism, copping and support. Impact of Chronic Illness – Diabetes mellitus Essay Assignment
Conclusion
Diabetes as a disorder associated with low levels of insulin in the body. The resultant effect is a high level of glucose in the blood. Treatment of the disorder involves insulin injection and pramlintide for those with diabetes type 1. The copping mechanism includes reducing emotional and psychological stress. This requires support from family members and the workmates among the different types of people in the patient’s environment. The development of a care plan relies on the knowledge about the patient’s disorder type and what kind of support necessary for him. The care plan must ensure that the coping mechanisms necessary for the patient are included.
References
Chiang, J. L., Kirkman, M. S., Laffel, L. M., & Peters, A. L. (2014). Type 1 diabetes through the
lifespan: a position statement of the American Diabetes Association. Diabetes Care, 37(7), 2034-2054.
Haas, L., Maryniuk, M., Beck, J., Cox, C. E., Duker, P., Edwards, L., … & McLaughlin, S. Impact of Chronic Illness – Diabetes mellitus Essay Assignment
(2012). National standards for diabetes self-management education and support. The Diabetes Educator, 38(5), 619-629.
Reagan, L. P. (2012). Diabetes as a chronic metabolic stressor: causes, consequences and clinical
complications. Experimental neurology, 233(1), 68-78. Impact of Chronic Illness – Diabetes mellitus Essay Assignment
Evert, A. B., Boucher, J. L., Cypress, M., Dunbar, S. A., Franz, M. J., Mayer-Davis, E. J., … &
Yancy, W. S. (2014). Nutrition therapy recommendations for the management of adults with diabetes. Diabetes Care, 37(Supplement 1), S120-S143.
Impact of Chronic Illness – Diabetes mellitus Essay Assignment