In exactly 30 days I am sitting for the Examination for the Professional Practice of Psychology, known to psych types as the EPPP.  This exam is the culmination of 5 years of graduate school, 1 year of postgraduate training and countless hours of work.  This test is extremely difficult and I have never been good at standardized tests.  Needless to say, I’m extremely nervous.

Whether it’s an exam or self care of our diabetes, all of us face situations that are challenging, and over which we feel we don’t have complete control.  Nonetheless, individual experience of these situations varies widely.  Some people become anxious and stressed to a point that it becomes debilitating.  Some people are able to calm themselves down with relaxation techniques or positive self-talk, and others are able to remain calm despite feeling pressures and stress.

 

How Can Psychotherapy Improve Diabetes Care?

Despite their best efforts, many people struggle to keep their diabetes in good control.  Even those people who take their medication routinely, keep up with their doctor’s appointment and get appropriate exercise often have unexplained blood sugar fluctuations, as well as other co morbid medical issues such as hypertension and an inability to lose weight.  Personally, there is nothing I find more frustrating than working really hard, and trying my best at something, and not getting results.  After 20 years with diabetes I still have a hard time understanding why some days my blood sugar will be absolutely perfect, and the next day it will be up and down all day.

 

 Adolescence is tough time full of raging hormones, questions about one’s own identity and sexuality development.  Even under the best of circumstances, adolescence is a tough time.  The good news is, as previously noted in last month’s column, despite this confusion less than 20% of adolescents are diagnosed with a major psychological disturbance during adolescence.  Nonetheless, the less severe challenges of negotiating adolescence are common and often difficult to negotiate.

 

Human sexuality is a complicated concept that includes sexual preference, personal sexual desire, and intimacy.  As noted by the Advocates For Youth, “Sexuality is not just what we do but who we are, how we think and feel, how we relate to others, and how the world relates to us.” (www.advocatesforyouth.org).  Needless to say, this can be a confusing topic, and once you add diabetes into the mix, things get even more complex!