Schizoaffective Disorder and Positive Self-Talk
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I find it really hard to use positive self-talk to help me through schizoaffective disorder symptoms. I think the reason is that when I try to do so, I feel like I’m “kidding myself.” Somewhere, I picked up the idea that depressed, negative thinking is more realistic than positive thinking. Now that I realize I think that, though, I’m working to change the perspective.

Working to Change My Schizoaffective Self-Talk to Positive

Working to change my schizoaffective self-talk came along at about the same time that I received a gift to help with this. My sister Laura gave me a deck of “Positive Thinking” cards, and I’ve been pulling one out every morning. The cards say things like, “You don’t have to have everything figured out,” (I really like that one) and “Today is a great day to be happy.” I find these cards to be very helpful for positive self-talk.

I also wrote down a new coping thought for my schizoaffective disorder. It’s simply, “You’re smart. You can do this.” This coping thought helps a lot, too.

Still, it is a challenge to rewire my brain to generate positive self-talk. Another reason for this is my awareness of toxic positivity. Toxic positivity is when being positive is presented in such a way that it whitewashes over and invalidates negative experiences and becomes harmful to evaluating them realistically. An example of this, for me, is the idea of “choosing joy.” My schizoaffective depression--the mood I’m generally in is mildly depressed--makes it impossible for me to simply “choose” joy. I can’t will myself to be happy by choice, and the idea that I can and should be able to do this hurts.

However, as harmful as toxic positivity can be, I think dismissing positive self-talk entirely because of it is an example of throwing out the baby with the bathwater. Yes, toxic positivity exists, and it’s bad, but that doesn’t mean that trying to be positive is bad.

Schizoaffective Disorder, Positive Self-Talk, and Worry

Another reason I struggle with using positive self-talk is that I have this feeling if I don’t worry about doing something difficult, it will turn out badly. I don’t know where I got this idea. It’s very destructive. For example, I have to drive to a doctor’s appointment tomorrow. Driving triggers my schizoaffective anxiety. The positive self-talker in me is saying that it won’t be a bad drive because it’s only a few blocks. But I still want to worry about it.

So, I’m not going to come to positive self-talk overnight. It’s a process.

For more about my difficulties with positive self-talk, watch this:

What is your experience with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder and self-talk? Please leave your comments below.

Stop Hurting Yourself: How to Make a Resolution and Keep It
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Self-harm recovery, in many ways, begins with intent. In order to stop hurting yourself, you first have to make a conscious decision to do so. That's the first difficult step; the next is figuring out how to keep that resolution once you've made it.

Resolving to Stop Hurting Yourself

Deciding to stop hurting yourself is easier said than done. I mean that quite literally—it's one thing to say, whether to yourself or someone else, that you're going to quit. It's another thing entirely to mean it—and to stick to it.

If you're thinking about stopping, even if it's only a fleeting thought that flits across your consciousness now and again, that's a good thing. Those thoughts are seeds; plant them, water them, and help them grow.

Let yourself fantasize about what life would be like without self-harm. Imagine feeling comfortable in your skin, not worried about your wounds giving you away, or feeling the urge to destroy every blemish (real or imagined) that mars your appearance. Picture your skin healing; put yourself in the shoes of a version of you that doesn't feel the need to self-injure. Focus on the good that self-harm recovery will bring and the reasons you want to get better.

Really get to know your "why." Once you do, hold onto it with everything you've got. It's going to be your compass throughout the recovery process.

Keeping Your Resolution to Stop Hurting Yourself

A decision is a momentary thing; deciding to stop hurting yourself takes only a handful of heartbeats at most. But it's a decision you have to make again and again; that's the secret to keeping resolutions such as this. This is why you need to know your "why"—so that every time you're tempted to forget your resolution, you can use that "why" to bolster your resolve.

Sometimes, for some people, the urge to hurt themselves is too strong. It's okay if you relapse—you still have your "why," and it will help you get back on track. (Hint: If it doesn't, you may need to reexamine it. The reason you've been holding onto may not be your true or your only reason to pursue recovery.)

Keep in mind, however, that your "why" is not the end-all, be-all of your recovery toolkit. You'll need other coping mechanisms as well. I can't tell you the precise ones you'll need; recovery is different for everybody. But my "why" was one of the first tools I put into my own toolbox, and to this day, it remains one of the most important ones.

Don't just think about it once and expect to remember it always. Write it down. Turn it into a mantra. Create a vision board, or any other kind of visual art, to help you remember. Feel free to adjust it whenever and however you need to. Wear self-harm recovery jewelry if it helps.

In short—do whatever you need to do to keep yourself conscious of why you want to recover. Knowing that you have something to look forward to, in return for all the hard work of the recovery process, will help you keep going, no matter how tough the going gets.

Introduction to Emma Parten, Author of ‘Binge Eating Recovery’
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My name is Emma Parten, and I’m excited to be the new author for the Binge Eating Recovery blog. I intend to focus on the common experiences of those who struggle with binge eating disorder (BED). Binge eating disorder can be isolating and difficult to talk about. It’s essential to know you aren’t the only one struggling. I also want to focus on ways you can take action to move forward in your healing process. Recovery doesn’t have to mean your relationship with food is completely healed. Binge eating recovery is wherever you are right now.

Emma Parten’s Experience with Binge Eating Disorder

I’ve had a complicated relationship with food since I was eight years old. I was a quiet, anxious kid. I discovered early on that food was something I could try to control to ease my general anxiety. I started restricting food, obsessing over it, forming food rules, and breaking food rules. I lived in this cycle for over 10 years.

My habit of restricting food eventually led to binge eating. I imagined these extremes of eating as being the opposite ends of a pendulum swing. During the week, I’d hold on to a strict diet while managing my schedule as a student-athlete. By the end of the week, I’d crash to the other side of the pendulum and binge eat in secret.

I carried this habit into adulthood. When I felt stressed, lonely, or hopeless, I turned to food as a comfort. The cycles of restriction and binge eating stole my mental energy; I knew I had to find a way back to balance. I had to learn how to take care of myself in a loving way.

Binge Eating Disorder Recovery for Emma Parten

I decided to surrender and stop trying to control my weight. This was a massive change to make, so I focused on building positive daily habits to support myself. I approached my recovery holistically and slowly strengthened other coping skills to help me deal with negative emotions.

Today, I still practice eating without rules, gentle yoga, walking meditation, and journaling. I try to spend less time comparing myself to others and more time practicing textile art, painting, and creative writing.

Reading about other binge eating disorder experiences has also helped me feel understood and connected during periods of recovery where I felt hopeless. I hope to assure anyone who is recovering from binge eating disorder that they aren’t alone. Recovery is possible, and I am eager to share what I’ve learned during this process. I hope to read about your experiences, too.

For more about me and my binge eating recovery story, watch this:

Missing My Emotional Support Animal (My Cat)
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I was gone for over a week seeing my family for the holidays, and that means I had to leave my cat, who is my emotional support animal. I had never left him alone for that long before, and even though I have a cat-sitter who I trust unconditionally, it’s always hard to leave him. Being away from my emotional support cat makes me anxious, and though there’s no way I can know for sure what he’s thinking, I’m sure it makes him anxious too.

Thinking About What My Emotional Support Cat Does When I’m Gone

I always wonder what my cat does when I’m away. I usually spend a lot of time with him, so I wonder if he feels confused when things aren’t normal. I know cats generally like routines, so maybe he does his best to try and feel as normal as he can. He tends to sleep a lot, so I like to imagine he spends even more time sleeping just to make the time pass. Or maybe he doesn’t even experience time in the same way that I do.

Either way, I try to set up his environment so that it’s as close as it can be to when I’m actually at home. My cat-sitter comes at around the same times as when I usually feed him. I know I would be disturbed if my routine had to change so significantly, so I try to do my best to avoid him feeling like that because I know he would appreciate it.

What I Do When I’m Not with My Cat

It’s harder for me to make those sorts of adjustments because there’s no way I can have the one thing that would take away my worry: namely being with my cat. That being the case, I do have a few things I can do to help make the separation anxiety a little easier to deal with. I always have a number of pictures of him on my phone that I can look at, and I always feel happier when I do.

That doesn’t always help completely, though. Most of what I have to do is to remind myself that even though I can’t be there to see it, he is okay. He is always well taken care of, and when I come back, he is always happy to see me. When I came back this last time, he rubbed and purred for almost 20 minutes straight.

I’ll always have to have time when I’m away from him. I can never change that. But it’s comforting knowing that it’s not permanent, and in a short time, it’ll change, and I’ll be with him again.

Introduction to Austin Harvey, Author of ‘Living with Adult ADHD’
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I’m Austin Harvey, a screenwriter, author, blogger, musician, and new addition to the Living with Adult ADHD blog at HealthyPlace. I was diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in February of 2021, at age 24, but no matter what year it is, hindsight is 20/20. In other words, my diagnosis explained a lot. I used to procrastinate on all my assignments and never planned much for the future; I was terrible with money (okay, I'm still terrible with money); I spoke without thinking first, then wondered why I'd said what I'd said; I struggled with simple, stupid things like what color shirt to wear or how I wanted to spend my free time, which often meant wasting my free time thinking of all the things I could be doing. It was an exhausting life, and it was through learning about my neurodivergency that I was able to explain some of these behaviors and, more importantly, work on correcting them.

What Austin Harvey’s Life Was Like Before an Adult ADHD Diagnosis

My mom used to ask me to repeat what she’d just told me out of concern that my “head was in the clouds” or that I was “off in La La Land.” More often than not, she was right. I hadn’t been paying attention. I interrupted a lot in class — I was just lucky that my teachers liked me, and my interruptions were received by laughter or playful eye rolls. I wasn’t a gossipy person, but I couldn’t keep my mouth shut, which, I suppose, led to gossip. I absolutely could not handle confrontation. When someone was upset with me, my brain completely shut down. Sometimes I’d lie to get out of a situation, even when the truth would have been the better option (it always is). These were things I felt I had no control over, and worse, I had no understanding of why I did them. I destroyed relationships because I couldn’t communicate; I hurt people because I couldn’t control what I said; I was broke because I spent money impulsively.

Austin Harvey’s Life After an ADHD Diagnosis

Here’s the thing with ADHD: it never goes away. I’m on ADHD medication now, and I know useful coping mechanisms and techniques to help me focus. I know eating well, getting enough sleep, exercising, and spending time in nature help me to focus. I keep a planner, and I mark everything down in my calendar. But it’s still difficult. My brain is still noisy. The first time I took medication and the chatter in my head softened, I thought, “Is this what it’s like for everyone else?” 

It was a lonely thought. I’m writing this because it doesn’t have to be a lonely thought. Roughly 4.4% of the U.S. population is diagnosed with ADHD.1 That’s nearly 15 million people if you do the math.2 That isn't a small number. Yet ADHD still faces a crippling stigma — medication for it even more so. The only way to combat ADHD stigma is by sharing information and experiences.

That's what I'm here to do, and I’m glad you're all here for it.

Sources

  1. CHADD, "General Prevalence of ADHD." Accessed January 5, 2022.
  2. Worldometer, "United States Population (Live)." Accessed January 5, 2022.

A Lack of Control Can Activate My Eating Disorder Habits
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Confession: I have felt internally out of control during the past month, and as I have come to learn about myself, this perceived lack of control can activate my eating disorder habits. To be fully transparent here, I'm not sure what to do about this recurring behavioral pattern in my life, but for right now, I just need space to acknowledge it. I will undoubtedly examine it through a curious, in-depth lens with my therapist in this week's counseling session. However, at the moment, I have to be truthful about the reality that this lack of control I feel is threatening to activate my eating disorder habits.

Why I Feel Out of Control and How This Can Activate My Eating Disorder

I am a person who thrives on structure, organization, routine, and alone time in order to refuel my energy tank. Without these essentials, I feel a sense of depletion and anxiety; and lack of control begins to encroach on my mental health. As those feelings continue to exacerbate, the lack of control can activate my eating disorder habits—no matter how long I have been in recovery. Allow me to illustrate with an example from this holiday season:

For the last couple weeks, two of my friends, who live in Miami, have been visiting me and my husband at our new home in Phoenix. I love these particular friends of mine immensely, and I have a blast with them, but two weeks of us all crammed into a 650-square-feet apartment can wear on my nerves after awhile. As such, it has been difficult to carve out alone time for myself to retreat and rejuvenate in this confined amount of space. Not to mention, it's basically a lost cause to maintain a clean, organized environment with four humans cohabitating in a one-bedroom, one-bathroom apartment.

This is no one's fault, of course, but as someone who craves being in control of my own personal surroundings, it can seem chaotic nonetheless. Since I do not want to make my friends feel unwelcome, I have contained this internal anxiety beneath the surface, but the continual effort to repress all that nervous energy takes a mental and emotional toll. I know it's not healthy to become overwhelmed at the slightest disruption to my normal routine and environment, but this is the current state I find myself in. And life experience tells me that when I sense a lack of control, it can activate my eating disorder habits. 

Where to Go from Here in Order to Maintain Eating Disorder Recovery

My honest answer of how to solve this dilemma is that I do not exactly know the solution. I am self-aware enough to realize that my need for control has been harmful to both my relationships and my personal wellbeing over the course of my entire life. When I feel out of control, I succumb to behaviors that impact me and those I care about in negative ways, and I do not want this toxic pattern to follow me into another new year.

I believe the first step in any transformation process is to acknowledge what no longer forwards the person I strive to be or the life I desire to create, so I am doing this now. I confess that a lack of control can activate my eating disorder habits, and I commit to work on dismantling that cycle in 2022. After all, nothing is more sacred to me than eating disorder recovery.

Side-Effects of Diabetes Medications

Tanya J. Peterson

What are the side-effects of diabetes medications? Is type 2 diabetes medication safe? Does it help or harm? Read about diabetes medication side-effects here.

The side-effects of diabetes medications make many people hesitate. Is taking diabetes medication worth it if unpleasant and even dangerous side-effects threaten? Some people believe that type 2 diabetes medications are dangerous and shouldn’t be used if blood sugar doesn’t swing too high or low ("What Is Type 2 Diabetes? Symptoms, Causes, Treatment"). Dangers of these medications include their side-effects and interactions with other drugs and conditions. Let’s explore the side-effects of diabetes medications to discover what’s more harmful: medication side-effects or diabetes itself.

Side-Effects of Diabetes Medications

Many types of medications for type 2 diabetes exist. General classes you might hear of when working with your doctor are

  • Biguanides
  • Thiazolidinediones (TZDs)
  • SGL2 inhibitors
  • DPP-4 inhibitors
  • Sulfonylureas
  • Meglitinides
  • Insulin

Each group includes specific medications, and they do different things to keep blood sugar in control. Doctors prescribe certain medications based on what the individual patient needs. Your medication might work by helping your pancreas produce more insulin, decreasing the amount of sugar your body produces, helping your kidneys remove excess sugar from the blood, or boosting insulin function. They can be very beneficial, but like all medications, diabetes medications carry side-effects.

It’s important to note that each type of medication has unique side-effects, although effects do overlap considerably. The below list is general. Not every side-effect applies to every medication. This is meant to be an overview of things you might expect when taking medication for type 2 diabetes that can help you talk to your doctor about taking medication.

There are both short- and long-term side-effects of diabetes medication. They range from mild to very serious. Examples of long-term side effects of some diabetes medications include:

  • Nausea
  • Weight gain (which can be counter-productive, as overweight and obesity are culprits in type 2 diabetes)
  • Periods of low blood sugar, or hypoglycemia. Often called “hypos,” these dips in glucose can be dangerous, leading to disorientation, fainting, and possibly coma

Other serious side effects that you may encounter when taking diabetes medications:

  • Increased risk for fractures
  • Elevated risk of liver disease
  • Higher risk of bladder cancer
  • Increased ovulation and risk of pregnancy
  • Fluid retention
  • Interference in the absorption of vitamin B12
  • Upper respiratory infections

Among the milder side-effects of diabetes medications:

  • Minor physical discomforts
  • Slight and short-lasting hypoglycemia
  • Headache
  • Minor fluid retention
  • Hives
  • Facial swelling
  • Upset stomach
  • Decreased appetite
  • Diarrhea
  • Constipation
  • Gas
  • Bloating
  • Skin rash
  • Yeast infections
  • Urinary tract infections
  • Weakness
  • Dizziness

In addition to these side-effects of diabetes type 2 medications, there are health conditions that affect how diabetes medication works. Your medication might not work correctly or as well if you have:

  • Heart disease
  • Kidney disease
  • Liver disease
  • A heavy drinking problem

Side-effects of diabetes medications can involve interaction with other medication you may be taking. If you are being treated for any of the following conditions, diabetes medications can interfere:

  • HIV/AIDS medications
  • Diuretics to flush out excess fluids
  • Nitrates for angina
  • Medication for high blood pressure in lungs

Always disclose all medication you are taking to your doctor. That way, the two of you can discuss what is safe and what you should avoid.

Another important thing to discuss with your doctor is whether you should stop taking diabetes medications. Just as taking medication can cause undesirable effects, there could be side-effects of stopping diabetes medication, too.

Side-Effects of Not Taking Diabetes Medication

An important function of diabetes medication is to reduce the amount of sugar in the bloodstream. It’s logical that when someone stops taking diabetes medication, blood sugar climbs again. The resulting hyperglycemia can cause serious complications like nerve and blood vessel damage.

There are other results, too. Short-term effects of not taking diabetes medication include:

  • Fatigue
  • Weakness
  • Confusion
  • Ketoacidosis (more common in type 1 diabetes, it can occur in type 2 as well; it occurs when the body breaks down fat for fuel, producing ketones that cause serious health conditions)
  • Hyperosmolar syndrome (dangerously high blood sugar caused by dehydration)

Among the long-term effects of not taking diabetes medications:

  • Vision problems
  • Blood vessel damage/blood flow problems
  • Diabetic neuropathy (nerve damage)
  • Necrosis (the process of tissue death, possibly resulting in amputations)
  • Kidney disease
  • Cardiovascular disease
  • Dental problems

Not taking diabetes medications can gradually destroy someone’s health. In comparing the side-effects of diabetes medications to the side-effects of not taking diabetes medication, you might find that the dangers of diabetes are worse than the dangers of diabetes medications.

Medication is too complex to be “right” or “wrong.” Medications are unique. People are individuals. The best approach is to talk openly with your doctor to develop the right treatment plan for you, one which balances proper diabetes management with drug side effects and interactions. It’s possible to find diabetes medications without major side-effects ("Complete List of Diabetes Medications for Type 1 and Type 2").

article references

APA Reference
Peterson, T. (2022, January 4). Side-Effects of Diabetes Medications, HealthyPlace. Retrieved on 2025, May 5 from https://www.healthyplace.com/diabetes/medications/side-effects-of-diabetes-medications

Last Updated: January 12, 2022

Alcoholism and Type 2 Diabetes: Does Alcoholism Cause Diabetes?

Tanya J. Peterson

Alcoholism and type 2 diabetes – a big problem! Learn how alcoholism causes diabetes and the effects of drinking on diabetes on HealthyPlace.

Alcoholism and diabetes type 2 can be a very dangerous combination. Alcoholism and heavy drinking can cause type 2 diabetes. Additionally, for people who already have either type of diabetes—type 1 or type 2—heavy alcohol consumption can worsen the disease. This look at the mix of alcohol and diabetes is designed to increase understanding of alcohol’s effect on diabetes in order to inform lifestyle choices.

There’s a difference between occasional moderate alcohol consumption and alcoholism and/or heavy drinking. It’s alcoholism and heavy drinking that pose health dangers, including diabetes. Indeed, “Diabetes mellitus is recognized clinically as a complication of alcoholism” (Kim & Kim, 2012). Multiple factors explain why alcoholism can cause diabetes type 2 ("What Causes Diabetes?").

The Relationship Between Alcoholism and Type 2 Diabetes

Heavy drinking, whether binge drinking, excessive daily drinking, or both damages the body in many ways. A brief description of what happens in diabetes can help put alcohol’s effects in perspective.

Diabetes is a disease involving metabolism. When we eat carbohydrates, they’re digested into blood sugar called glucose. In healthy functioning, an organ called the pancreas makes and releases insulin into the bloodstream to meet glucose and help it enter the body’s cells where it’s used for energy. That process goes awry in both type 1 and type 2 diabetes, however, resulting in hyperglycemia (high blood sugar) or hypoglycemia (low blood sugar). Glucose and insulin problems cause other serious health conditions as well.

Now let’s add alcoholism and heavy drinking to the mix and see how they increase the dangers of diabetes:

  • Impaired liver function, which leads to depleted blood glucose levels
  • Insulin resistance
  • Decreased or obliterated glycemic control (the ability to keep blood sugar levels within a healthy range)
  • Pancreatitis, a disease that damages the pancreas and interferes in insulin production
  • Disruption of carbohydrates and glucose metabolism
  • Weight gain and obesity, major causes of type 2 diabetes, due to the high calorie content in alcohol
  • Hypoglycemia, which can begin within minutes of the first drink and continue for up to 12 hours after stopping

Heavy drinking and diabetes each cause other health problems. Together, their damage can be extensive. Alcoholism and diabetes complications include, but aren’t limited to:

  • Nerve damage (neuropathy)
  • Eye damage (retinopathy)
  • High blood pressure
  • Increased triglycerides (fatty acids that increase risk of stroke)
  • Liver damage (cirrhosis)

Alcohol can also interact with diabetes medications. Many diabetes medications are designed to lower blood glucose levels, and because alcohol also lowers blood sugar, hypoglycemia can result. Blood sugar can drop so low that it causes insulin shock, a condition that can be fatal without swift treatment.

Does Alcohol Always Cause Diabetes Problems? Not Necessarily

One thing to note is that the amount of alcohol consumed matters. Studies have shown that light drinking or abstinence has no effect on diabetes, heavy drinking can cause or worsen it, but moderate drinking may have protective factors.

Research indicates that moderate drinking can reduce the risk of diabetes development by 30 -40 percent (Carlsson, et al., 2003). Further research is needed to discover the reason moderate alcohol consumption seems to have protective factors for diabetes. Moderate drinking is defined as five to 29.9 g/day in men and five to 19.9 g/day in women.

It seems that other factors matter as well. Alcohol appears to affect men and women differently. Body type and weight make a difference in how drinking affects diabetes. Much is still not well understood, and research is ongoing to deepen understanding of alcoholism and type 2 diabetes.

Drinking and Diabetes: Use Precautions

Having diabetes doesn’t necessarily mean you can’t drink alcohol. Drinking and diabetes type 2 or diabetes type 1 is possible with some precautions:

  • Stick to moderate drinking
  • Count carbs while drinking because too many leads to hypoglycemia
  • Monitor your glucose levels frequently
  • When glucose drops, eat something low-carb
  • Wear a medical alert bracelet, as hypoglycemia symptoms are similar to intoxication (you want to avoid being dismissed as drunk if you need medical attention for hypoglycemia)

Alcoholism can cause diabetes type 2, and it can worsen the effects of both types of diabetes. If you are struggling with alcoholism, seeking treatment can improve your health and quality of life.

article references

APA Reference
Peterson, T. (2022, January 4). Alcoholism and Type 2 Diabetes: Does Alcoholism Cause Diabetes?, HealthyPlace. Retrieved on 2025, May 5 from https://www.healthyplace.com/diabetes/mental-health/alcoholism-and-type-2-diabetes-does-alcoholism-cause-diabetes

Last Updated: January 12, 2022

Diabetic Rage: Can Diabetes Cause Aggressive Behavior?

Tanya J. Peterson

Diabetic rage is a real thing. Learn diabetic rage causes, symptoms and strategies for treating and managing aggressive behavior on HealthyPlace.

Diabetic rage and aggressive behavior are real. Diabetes can be hard to live with. Frustration and irritability are common. These are normal human emotions, especially in the face of living with a serious and difficult disease like diabetes. There is a darker side to diabetes, though: diabetic rage. It’s frightening and dangerous. This look at diabetic rage and aggressive behavior can help you understand what’s happening to you or a loved one and learn what to do about it.

Diabetic Rage: Why it Happens

Two primary factors are responsible for diabetic rage and aggression: psychological and physiological.   

The psychological components of diabetic rage come from the stress of living with this disease. Feelings of frustration and resentment, a sense of “why me,” are common. Fear and uncertainty about health and lifestyle limitations can loom large. Then there’s the overwhelming nature of diabetes treatment and management that can create emotions ranging from annoyance to infuriation ("Does Diabetes Cause Mood Swings?").

Psychologically, perspective plays a big role in diabetic rage. The more a person remains stuck in the resentments and anger of having to live with diabetes, the more he or she is vulnerable to becoming aggressive.

Mindset and stress contribute to diabetic rage and aggressive behavior, but they don’t work alone. Numerous physical functions underlie the violent nature of diabetes.

The driving force behind diabetes-related problems in brain functioning is glucose. The brain needs proper levels of glucose (sugar) to operate. When blood sugar levels are above 140 mg/dL (hyperglycemia) or below 70 mg/dL (hypoglycemia), the brain suffers. Things can go wrong, too, when blood sugar levels spike and drop frequently. Incorrect or fluctuating glucose levels can cause damage and lead to such things as:

  • Increased production and secretion of the stress hormone cortisol
  • Depression
  • Anxiety
  • Damage to the amygdala (the structure responsible for cortisol secretion and the fight-or-flight response)
  • Damage to the thalamus (the structure responsible for things like self-control)
  • A decrease in the functioning of the blood vessels in the brain

These psychological and physiological factors involved in rage and aggression are part of both type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Likewise, the behaviors apply to both types of diabetes.  

What Diabetic Rage and Aggressive Behavior are Like

Feeling furious is normal. Problems arise when anger intensifies and is projected outward. Diabetic rage symptoms are intense and often frightening. While there are individual differences in the way people act when they’re enraged, watch for these general signs of diabetic rage:

  • Delusional beliefs that someone is trying to hurt you, making you lose self-control and lash out
  • Intensifying agitation
  • Hitting or slapping
  • Shoving
  • Yelling
  • Grabbing
  • Threatening
  • Belittling
  • Intimidating
  • Impulsivity
  • Destruction
  • Temper tantrums

Diabetic rage can lead to violence against property and people. There are ways to deal with this diabetic rage to prevent it from recurring even though diabetes itself is permanent.

What To Do About Diabetic Rage

Dealing with diabetic rage involves immediate treatment to stop aggressive behavior and long-term management techniques to prevent future episodes. Because improper glucose levels are behind diabetic rages, it’s important to return blood sugar to the healthy range (between 70 mg/dL and 140 mg/dL). Testing blood sugar often will help you know when to treat your glucose levels.

Once you test your blood sugar, you can take measures to return it to normal. This involves eating or drinking something to raise or lower your numbers. If you have hypoglycemia, have a bit of food with a high glycemic index (GI) such as sugar, sugar-sweetened drinks, or even glucose tablets. If you have hyperglycemia and need to lower your number, eat something with a low GI, such as a hard-boiled egg, whole-grain bread, or cheese.

Treating your blood glucose levels in the moment will return your functioning to normal and decrease the hostile feelings and aggressive behavior. You can prevent future hostility by treating aggression and anger problems in general.

Self-care is crucial. Following your diabetes treatment plan by monitoring your blood glucose, taking your medication, eating well, and exercising will help keep blood glucose levels stable and your temper even.

Dealing with feelings of anger and resentment will help you feel more satisfied with life and less aggressive.

Taking anger management classes or counseling, in person or online, will give you strategies to deal positively with anger. Support groups are helpful for many people trying to manage diabetic rage. Also, keeping a journal to track your angry feelings and aggressive behavior will help you see patterns, notice anger building, and take measures to reduce feelings of hostility.

Developing a collection of calming strategies can help. Deep breathing, meditation, yoga, tai chi, drawing, coloring, or listening to or playing music can help induce calm and replace anger with engagement in a pleasant activity.

Anger is indeed a natural psychological and physical response to diabetes. With awareness and treatment, diabetic rage and aggressive behavior can be treated and managed so they don’t hurt anyone.

article references

APA Reference
Peterson, T. (2022, January 4). Diabetic Rage: Can Diabetes Cause Aggressive Behavior?, HealthyPlace. Retrieved on 2025, May 5 from https://www.healthyplace.com/diabetes/mental-health/diabetic-rage-can-diabetes-cause-aggressive-behavior

Last Updated: January 12, 2022

Understanding Dissociative Identity Disorder Alters

Natasha Tracy

What are dissociative identity disorder (DID) alters? DID alters are complete personalities living within one person. Learn about DID alters and their types.

Alternate personalities, known as alters in dissociative identity disorder (DID), are a fundamental part of the disorder. And while most people can't imagine more than one identity living within the same person, that's exactly what alters in DID are. People with alters often refer to themselves as "we," due to the multiple alters within the single person (Dissociative Identity Disorder Controversy: Is DID Real?).

What Are Dissociative Identity Disorder Alters?

While the term "alter" is not mentioned in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition – the manual used to diagnose all mental illnesses – it does contain the criterion of multiple personality states being present in one with dissociative identity disorder (DID DSM-5 criteria). These personality states must each have their own enduring pattern of perceiving, relating to and thinking about the environment and self. These personality states can be thought of as alters. Alters involve marked discontinuity in sense of self and sense of agency, accompanied by related changes in affect, behavior, consciousness, memory, perception, cognition, and/or sensory-motor functioning.

DID alters can have different physical affects, accents, memories, ages, names, functions, genders and other traits. Collectively, all the alters together are known as the "system" in dissociative identity disorder. The dissociative identity disorder alter who has executive control over the body most of the time is known as "the host." The host personality may or may not be the individual's original personality.

In dissociative identity disorder treatment, some patients wish to integrate the different alters. Dissociative identity disorder integration is when an alter becomes combined into the individual as a part of them and not as a completely separate alternate personality.

Common Dissociative Identity Disorder Alter Types

Dissociative identity disorder alters are commonly of specific types. The following are common DID alter types:

  • Child and adolescent alters – young alters are often the first discovered in therapy and are the most common type of alter. These alters emerge to handle the abuse that the original personality couldn't tolerate. A DID alter may be referred to as a "little" if the alter acts seven years or younger.
  • Protector or rescuer alters – these alters can be of any age and were created to save the original person from intolerable situations. These DID alters are often tougher and braver than the original personality.
  • Persecutor alters – these DID alters are modeled after the abuser. Persecutor alters create negative messages blaming the original identity for the abuse and telling them they need to die or pay for it. Often the host will act on these negative messages and self-harm or even attempt suicide. This is often when the person is first introduced to the mental health system.
  • Perpetrator alters – also modeled after the abuser, these dissociative identity disorder alters direct their hostility outward rather than inward towards other personalities.
  • Avenger alters – this dissociative identity disorder alter holds the rage from childhood abuse and may seek retribution from the abuser. They tend to express the anger of the entire system and can be hostile.

While those are the common DID alter types, other alter types occur as well.

article references

APA Reference
Tracy, N. (2022, January 4). Understanding Dissociative Identity Disorder Alters, HealthyPlace. Retrieved on 2025, May 5 from https://www.healthyplace.com/abuse/dissociative-identity-disorder/understanding-dissociative-identity-disorder-alters

Last Updated: January 12, 2022
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