DIABETES & THE MID-LIFE CRISIS

An article for those who are in their 40’s or 50’s and also for those who wish to reach at that age and beyond

Introducing the Mid-Life Crisis

40’s is a beautiful age. Assuming the average human life span to be of 80 you have reached the middle age. You must have had a fair share of life with lots of achievements to look upon but yet a lot of moments yet to be experienced.

The body of yours in 40’s is definitely not the same when you were in your 20’s swinging with energy levels and neither of 30’s when you have gained sufficient experience to control those energy levels and have tried moulding your life. Now, in 40’s the time has come when you generally don’t change much but strengthen, revive and re-establish the life (either personal or work) you have initiated earlier.

Many of our male readers experience a distressing experience at this age, which generally is called ‘mid-life crisis’ which starts around at the age of 35 and is experienced till 50’s. Experiencing anxiety over what you’ve achieved in your life can cause this crisis like situation. Basically, the mid-life crisis could be a mix of feelings where you feel empty inside, you may not be a complete materialistic person but lately you will start thinking of buying new clothes, watches, stuff for your car, or perhaps an expensive cycle yet not are fulfilled. These feelings will crowd your emotions, it will be like you are happy but not happy, and it’s the feeling of wanting more out of your life even if you have sufficient.

At this age, even if you would have done well in defining your professional career and also managed sufficient finances to support your family, still it doesn’t constitutes that you will live a worry free life. Your mind will start getting concerned about your children’s higher education, concerns about yours and your partner’s health conditions, for some it would be to streamline the money matters. The problems will never leave a human being alone.

The concern of Diabetes at this age

Apart from other concerns, we wish to bring to your attention the life altering and threatening lifestyle disease - DIABETES.

Diabetes is one medical ailment which will start showing its weight now at this middle age. If anyone in your family side was diabetic, you have more of the reason to be concerned about your blood sugar levels. The uncertainty and unpredictability in life makes you more worried about diseases. The only thing good in diabetes is that you can try to safeguard yourself by following simple but effective remedies. Start by knowing diabetes. To help you, the medical practitioners and researchers at Grass-Diabetes.com with their years of experience and research in diabetes have developed a complex algorithm to calculate the lifestyle and genetic risk of type 2 diabetes. This algorithm later through help of software engineers is developed into a user friendly and very simple web-based portal. The beauty of this portal is that a “risk report” is available after free sign-up, after filling a few simple questions on your lifestyle it shows the “Impression of Diabetes” i.e. it provides the best prognostic reports of your Susceptibility, Risk of developing Diabetes, and the Age at which you may get it. The Preventive Part of Report suggests the life style modifications, and unique kitchen spices, by which type 2 diabetes can be postponed or can be worked upon to prevent Diabetes.

If someone in his middle age is already suffering from diabetes and have had experienced the ill effects of this dreaded disease by using insulin, numerous pills and also by living in the everyday worry of what to eat and what not to eat, you are bound to worry thinking whether your child may also get diabetic. Read how you can help your child avoid diabetes.

Though, the possibility of this mid-life crisis is among 25-30% of population in that age group, it is hardly a researched topic by medical scientists or psychologists. The so called mid-life crisis is often associated with depression. Diabetes and depression are a harmful combination to experience, which we had explained earlier in our blog. In India, depression is hardly considered a medical concern among common public, unless the person is associated with any further medical problem. More often, for men at middle age (or otherwise also), they tend to not admit the fact that they are either depressed or are generally hesitant in sharing their fears, anxieties and stress with their family members.

Look beyond obvious: The beauty of life

Mid-Life is in fact a beautiful phase of life. Help yourself avoid falling in the situation where at your prime age instead of worrying and coping with diabetes, be more focused on increasing your productivity towards yourself, towards your family and loved ones and also to a larger extent towards society.

At the end what we can suggest is, stop worrying and start acting upon the issues to solve them. You can help yourself by following a few simple steps:

• Get your medical checkup done regularly - at least annually once
• Avoid depression by including a regular exercise schedule in your daily life; this eases tension and triggers brain chemicals that improve your mood
• Eat good and healthy food - nutritional and vitamin rich food can promote better health. Vitamin B complex in particular is believed to be helpful for stress. Taking regular multivitamin and mineral supplement will act as a "health insurance policy", ensuring that you do not suffer from any dietary deficiencies which might affect mood and energy levels
• Sleep well as it helps to ease out and is an important way of living stress free
• Take up a hobby which you always wanted to earlier but due to some reason or other could not act upon it, now is the time to do it
• Balance your work and home. Working long hours doesn’t necessarily means highest job satisfaction, infact in UK where people work for longest hours in whole Europe have reportedly shown lowest levels of job satisfaction. In India, we generally and often compromise our personal lives and relationships through fear of losing our jobs, and by surrendering to the pressures of an ever-accelerating workplace. Cut down on the hours and spend more time with your friends and family. Think of quality work rather than just quantity of work
• Most of all, don't bottle up your feelings, let it come out and your loved ones to be with you in resolving the feelings.

Middle age is crucial to control lifestyle diseases such as diabetes. Know diabetes well to avoid it. The better you understand this enemy, better it will be to help to you in avoiding it. If you are already a diabetic, now is the time to evaluate the risk of type 2 diabetes for your child who is above 21 years and educate him/ her in adopting early healthy habits.

  

Write to me for any of your doubts, fears and/or worries on diabetes.

Best wishes,

Dr. MS Singhal

MD - www.Grass-Diabetes.com

An initiative of Singhal Diabetic Clinic, Haridwar