Is it helpful to worry about hypos?

Janine says: Hypos are unpleasant and potentially very dangerous, so it’s not unusual for people with diabetes and their loved ones to worry about them. Worrying about hypos can be productive if it motivates a person to be proactive and engage positively with their self-care routine. However, it is often very unproductive – serving only to increase both anxiety about diabetes management and unhelpful actions such as obsessive monitoring and checking, overtreatment of hypos, running BGLs too high, and so on.

Sadly, some people think that worry or fear of hypoglycaemia is part-and-parcel of living with diabetes. But it doesn’t have to be.

When worrying a lot about hypos starts to interfere with the normal daily routine, when it’s occupying a lot of ‘mental space’ and is ‘hard to shake’, then speak to a health professional. There are lots of things that can help to reduce worry and restore self-confidence, ranging from improving early recognition of hypoglycaemic symptoms to putting plans in place for seeking psychological support. ➤