Can diabetes mess with your mind?

In the same way that diabetes can cause nerve damage to your eyes, feet, and hands, it can also affect your brain by damaging nerves and blood vessels. This can lead to problems with memory and learning, mood shifts, weight gain, hormonal changes, and over time, other serious problems like Alzheimer's disease.


Can diabetes cause mental confusion?

A: Yes. Studies have demonstrated that people who have diabetes, compared with people without diabetes, are more likely to develop cognitive problems. Older adults with diabetes have higher incidences of dementia, Alzheimer's disease, and vascular dementia than those with normal glucose tolerance.

Can diabetes cause weird thoughts?

In both type 1 and type 2 diabetes, the body can't regulate its glucose levels, so glucose can soar too high or plummet too low. Diabetes and irrational behavior and mental confusion are among the dangerous consequences of blood sugar fluctuations.


Can diabetes cause irrational behavior?

Type 2 diabetes can cause behavioral problems, and some behaviors can cause diabetes. Behavioral changes can be directly caused by fluctuating blood sugar (for example, hyperglycemia can cause anger or sadness), or comorbid mental health conditions like depression, which can be a symptom and cause of type 2 diabetes.

Do diabetics get mean?

What's sometimes called "diabetic rage" can be dangerous, because it may involve behaviors you're not consciously aware of. When your blood sugar fluctuates, spikes, or drops, it can produce feelings of anger, anxiety, or depression. You may feel like your emotions are out of your control.


How Diabetes Can Affect Your Brain



Can diabetes make you psychotic?

Patients with diabetes mellitus experiencing ketoacidosis or hypoglycemia have also been shown to experience delirium. However, association of acute psychosis (in the absence of cognitive disturbances) with hyperglycemia has not been reported.

What is diabetic anxiety?

We may develop mild to moderate anxiety around a variety of diabetes-related issues, such as: Fear of needles and injection pain. Fear of CGM sensor or insulin pump infusion site pain. Fear of high blood sugars. Fear of low blood sugars.

Why do diabetics get confused?

Low blood sugar deprives your brain of the nutrients and energy it needs to function correctly. Low blood sugar leads to confusion, difficulty with coordination, and behavior changes… all of which are also symptoms of dementia.


How does diabetes make your head feel?

Headaches from low blood sugar may feel dull or throbbing. Headaches from high blood sugar are typically also dull and throbbing, but one type may feel more severe, like stabbing, piercing, or shock-like pain.

Can diabetes give you brain fog?

In fact, sugar is the brain's main source of fuel. So if your blood sugar is out of whack due to diabetes, you may develop brain fog. Brain fog describes cognitive impairments like: decreased concentration.

How do you deal with diabetes mentally?

Here are 10 tips that can help.
  1. Pay attention to your feelings. ...
  2. Talk with your health care providers about your feelings. ...
  3. Talk to your health care providers about negative reactions other people may have about your diabetes. ...
  4. Ask if help is available for the costs of diabetes medicines and supplies.


Can diabetes cause bipolar disorder?

Diabetes mellitus and bipolar disorder frequently occur together, and this comorbidity isn't a random coincidence. More than half (53%) of people with bipolar have either type 2 diabetes or prediabetes, a state of elevated blood sugar levels that aren't yet high enough for a diabetes diagnosis (Woods, 2015).

What are the hidden symptoms of diabetes?

10 Silent Symptoms of Diabetes
  • Frequent urination. Most people urinate four to seven times in a day. ...
  • Excessive thirst. ...
  • Extreme hunger. ...
  • Weakness/fatigue. ...
  • Pins and needles. ...
  • Blurry vision. ...
  • Itchy skin. ...
  • Slow healing wounds and increased skin infections.


How do you feel when you have high diabetes?

feeling or being sick. abdominal (tummy) pain. rapid, deep breathing. signs of dehydration, such as a headache, dry skin and a weak, rapid heartbeat.


How does diabetes affect you emotionally?

Changes in blood sugar can cause rapid changes in mood and other mental symptoms such as fatigue, trouble thinking clearly, and anxiety. Having diabetes can cause a condition called diabetes distress which shares some traits of stress, depression and anxiety.

How do you get rid of diabetic brain fog?

Can Anything Help Diabetes, Brain Fog, and Memory Loss?
  1. Increase physical activity, exercising almost every day for at least 30 minutes.
  2. Reduce processed foods, including sugar.
  3. Increase healthy foods (vegetables, proteins, whole grains, healthy fats)
  4. Drink water to hydrate your brain.
  5. Sleep seven- to eight hours per night.


Can diabetics get a hard on?

Men with diabetes are 3x more likely to have trouble getting or keeping an erection. There can be several reasons for this, such as limited blood flow, nerve damage (neuropathy) and damaged blood vessels. It can also be down to medication or just how you're feeling at the time.


What happens when a diabetic is stressed?

Stress can make it more difficult to manage your diabetes as it may throw off your daily routine and can result in wear and tear on your body. Hormones from stress increase your blood pressure, raise your heart rate, and can cause blood sugar to rise. High blood sugar can make you feel down or tired.

Can diabetes be mistaken for anxiety?

Because symptoms of blood sugar fluctuations and anxiety can mimic each other, it's important to speak to your doctor first to rule out a blood sugar issue before turning to a mental health provider for treatment for anxiety, Bereolos advises.

What is silent diabetes?

“Diabetes starts as a silent disease, advancing painlessly, almost imperceptibly,” says Dr. Ferrer, who sees 25 to 30 diabetic patients per week. “It mainly attacks the small blood vessels, damaging the kidneys, eyes, and nerves.” It can also affect larger blood vessels.


How long can you have diabetes without realizing?

Type 1 diabetes can develop quickly over weeks or even days. Many people have type 2 diabetes for years without realising because the early symptoms tend to be general.

How do I know if my diabetes is getting worse?

These are some signs that your type 2 diabetes is getting worse. Other signs like a tingling sensation, numbness in your hand or feet, high blood pressure, increase in appetite, fatigue, blurred vision, trouble seeing at night, and more shouldn't be overlooked.

Can stress cause diabetes flare up?

Stress alone doesn't cause diabetes. But there is some evidence that there may be a link between stress and the risk of type 2 diabetes. Our researchers think that high levels of stress hormones might stop insulin-producing cells in the pancreas from working properly and reduce the amount of insulin they make.


Why does diabetes cause schizophrenia?

People with schizophrenia also often have low socioeconomic status and income, which affects their possibilities to make healthy lifestyle choices. Antipsychotic medications increase the risk of type 2 diabetes both directly by affecting insulin sensitivity and indirectly by causing weight gain.

What triggers a bipolar high?

A stressful circumstance or situation often triggers the symptoms of bipolar disorder. Examples of stressful triggers include: the breakdown of a relationship. physical, sexual or emotional abuse.
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