Members of the T2D Healthline community share how they react to unsolicited advice and judgmental comments.
Often times, when you live with type 2 diabetes, everyone has an opinion on what you should or shouldn’t be doing to manage your health.
Navigating a chronic health condition like type 2 diabetes is challenging. Dealing with additional outside pressure can be overwhelming.
Feeling confident about making health decisions is important, but cutting off unwanted input from others can be difficult.
Research shows that judgment can lead to feelings of shame or guilt. This can make people with diabetes less confident that they are able to care for themselves and less likely to seek care, according to a 2017 study and 2018 study, respectively.
The T2D Healthline community understands what you are going through. This is how some of our community members say they respond to a judgment.
“Find out about every aspect of this disease. If someone says something mean, kill them with kindness. Also try to educate them. Most people have the same misperceptions as some of us. Most of all, be nice. “- Chrismar
“The best advice I can give is to do what you think is right and try to educate the people around you about your health problem. Sometimes it’s just about them really having a better understanding. “- Brian D.
“We were all there. Depending on who the people are, they may not be worth educating. Pick those that you think are worth explaining and understand and receive the information well. Just do what you’ve learned and remember that you know the truth and what’s best for you. “- Korie C.
“If it’s hereditary and in your DNA, it’s very difficult to avoid. There is no shame in being diabetic any more than there is any shame in having heart disease or Parkinson’s or Alzheimer’s. I would tell people to educate themselves about diabetes. Ignore them until they do. “Beam
“I have ZERO control over what others say, do, or think. In fact, what others do is their own business. Not mine! I respect other people and their boundaries, and I’ll be damned if I don’t ask that mine be equally respected. “- Luella triplet
“Concentrate on your successes! Learn from the past, but you really need to let go and focus on the future! Lingering in the past doesn’t solve anything and can burden you. And stress increases our numbers! Not to mention, it’s negative, useless energy. It’s your life and what you make of it. Don’t be so hard on yourself. “-Sherry
It can take a while to trust the voice in your head when it competes with the seemingly louder voices of others.
Some days it can feel empowered to share your knowledge. In other cases, it can simply be exhausting to educate others.
Focusing on self-care is not only perfectly valid, but also necessary. Ultimately, nobody is a better advocate for your health than you.
Find a community that interests you
There’s no need to go through a type 2 diabetes diagnosis or long-term trip alone. With the free T2D Healthline app, you can join groups and participate in live discussions, coordinate with community members to make new friends, and stay up to date with the latest news and research on type 2 diabetes.
Elinor Hills is an Associate Editor at Healthline. She is passionate about the intersection between emotional well-being and physical health, and how individuals make connections through shared medical experiences. Outside of work, she enjoys yoga, photography, drawing, and spends far too much time running.
