How many times in your life have you decided you needed a change? Have you ever found yourself stuck in a rut and you think, something really needs to change, to get me out of this place? I am sure we all have had these moments at one time or another. Realizing that what you are doing or how you are doing it is no longer working. We as humans are known to constantly be surveying our surroundings and our lives for ways to be more efficient. There are so many industries out there in the world that feed into this desire to change. Diet and fitness commercials, websites and coaches. Home improvements and DIY shows and blogs. And ads for schools and specialty training. I believe it is human nature to want to be better.
Change is something not everyone looks forward to. It can be difficult to change. There are changes we choose to go after, and then there are changes that are thrust upon us, often without our wanting them. Whether it is a lost job, spousal disharmony, unruly children or a challenging physical or emotional ailment, these unexpected changes are often very difficult to accept let alone embrace with open arms. So, how can we make change become smoother and easier to handle, no matter what the cause of that change is? We need to build new habits to ensure these changes lead to effective outcomes.
When someone is first diagnosed with diabetes, it can be a shock on many levels. Diabetes is a scary word. Most people know someone who has diabetes and they have seen or heard about their struggles with it. Diabetes is a chronic, lifelong illness that can have an impact on your future health. It is a disease that is with you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and if not properly treated, it can lead to serious complications. I don’t know of anyone who was diagnosed with diabetes who welcomed it into their life with open arms. Diabetes is a disease that requires a lot of change to one's lifestyle. So, why do some people who have diabetes seem to do so well with it and others seem to struggle every single day with it? Do you honestly think it is a “luck of the draw” as to whether or not these changes are easy for you to make?
I think those that do well with their diabetes do so based on the habits they are able to build over the years. New habits are created by practicing and reassessing, building upon experiences and constantly adapting. Often it involves trial and error to find a way that works for the individual. For someone with diabetes they could check their blood sugars and take their insulin every day and yet still never see improvement in their blood sugars. Why is that? They are doing what they were told right? Although they are doing what they were told to do, there are pieces missing. Like someone who is a sprinter, who wakes up every day at 6 am to run until he is tired. He could do this day in and day out and never really see a change in his running times. Why? Because simply doing something repeatedly does not mean you will improve. Running 100m over and over again without changing anything about how you run will never make you a better runner. Just like checking your sugars 6 times a day and taking your insulin the same every day will never make you sugars better. When a change is wanted, we can’t expect to see that change occur from doing the same thing over and over again. In order to see improvements, we need to try new ways to tackle the situation we are facing.
Lets go back to the runner, if he wants to improve his race time, he needs to focus on the different aspects of running. How is he pumping his arms? How does he hold his head? How does he exit the starting blocks? How is his stride? How is his breathing? These are all different parts to running. Identifying which part needs work can make all the difference in the world. Just like with diabetes, checking you sugars and taking insulin are great but if you can’t assess what you are doing and look for ways to make it better you will never see a change in your blood sugar readings. Taking 5 units of humalog for every meal you eat, will often not give you optimal blood sugars. You need to look at how much you are eating and what time of day you're eating and how active you are before and after you eat. You need to look at what time you take your insulin related to when you eat and you need to adjust your dose based on what your current blood sugar is. It takes reassessment and change to get to better blood glucose control.
So how can we set new habits that will improve our overall blood glucose readings? Well first we need to identify what it is you are trying to accomplish. Is your end goal to have better blood sugars or to have less fluctuations in your blood sugars? Knowing what you want to achieve will help you to do this. It will take some self evaluation and some trial and error but knowing what you are hoping to accomplish will help you to set new habits that are effective
Next you have to break down the new habit you want to build into parts. Knowing all the pieces that will make up that new habit is essential to your success. For example if you want to get in to work earlier, you might have to look at what you do the night before? You may need to take steps the night before to help you get to the goal of getting to work earlier. (Go to bed earlier, lay out your clothes, pack you lunch). As for improving your blood sugars, you need to think about what you know affects your blood sugars and then make whatever changes you can to eliminate them. Timing of the insulin dose, proper carbohydrate counting, exercise, and so on.
Step 3 is to create physical cues to remind you. This sounds corny but it will help you to achieve your goals. If you leave notes around to remind you of what you are trying to accomplish you will have more success at doing it. You will be surprised to see how effective this can be. Leave a note on your fridge reminding you to check your sugar before you eat. Leaving reminders for yourself will help you to build the new habits you are trying to build.
Step 4 is to tell someone what your goals are. If you have a support system, you are more likely to accomplish your goal. Have someone who you can count on to support you as well as hold you accountable for following through with building these new habits. Studies have shown couples who exercise together are significantly more consistent with completing their goals then those who do it alone.
And the final step is to identify why you want to create the new habit. If you write down your motivation for setting the goal and have it visible to you, it will be a constant reminder to you of why you are trying to change. Knowing that you want to have better blood sugars because you want to live a long and healthy life so you are there for your children and your grandchildren. Well, that is a hugely motivating factor to help you succeed. Really take some time to figure out why you are really trying to build a new habit, what are you wanting to accomplish in the long run?
If you are persistent in building these new habits step by step, you will be surprised by how easily you are able to accomplish your goals. Without building these new habits, change will not occur. You will very easily slide back into the way you were doing things if you do not work at building something new. So, I challenge you each to think of 1 goal you want to accomplish this month and think about what habits you need to build to make that goal a reality.