Having diabetes definitely adds to life's challenges. But rising to those challenges brings incredible rewards -- like a lower risk of complications and a younger RealAge! So work on developing a positive mindset about the road ahead, because a can-do attitude is one of your most powerful tools in managing diabetes. Need help feeling positive? Print this list of inspirational quotations, and post it someplace prominent in your home.
"Positive thinking will let you do everything better than negative thinking will."
-- Zig Ziglar
You may feel like you have a lot to manage with diabetes, but tell yourself you can do it and you probably will. And a positive attitude is also a great buffer against stress.
"Did you ever stop to taste a carrot? Not just eat it, but taste it? You can't taste the beauty and energy of the earth in a Twinkie."
-- Astrid Alauda
Appreciate the foods you should eat rather than focusing on the ones you shouldn't. Work consistently at making small improvements to your diet and enjoying the good in each one.
"Exercise: You don't have time not to."
-- Author unknown
Movement is like medicine for the body. It takes time, but in the end it makes more time by reducing your risk of diabetes complications and making your RealAge younger. Find active things to do that you enjoy -- and do them every day.
"Fall seven times, stand up eight."
-- Japanese proverb
Nobody's perfect! You will have setbacks, you will fall off the wagon, you will gain a pound, eat too much, skip your workout. But don't throw in the towel! Stay committed to a healthy lifestyle by not letting a little slip turn into a big slide.
"I manage it. It doesn't manage me."
-- Patti LaBelle, on her diabetes
Diabetes doesn't have to define you or rule your life. You are in the driver's seat. Having diabetes is really just another one of life's challenges -- not a reason to put life on hold or defer your goals and dreams.
"Do not protect yourself by a fence, but rather by your friends."
-- Czech proverb
Don't hesitate to seek the support you need from friends and family members in managing your diabetes. We all need somebody to lean on -- especially when dealing with health problems.
