New Year, Same You: Diabetes, Mental Health, and Letting Go of Perfection

By Ashlyn Smith, MMS, PA-C, DipACLM, DFAAPA, LSC

ELM Endocrinology & Lifestyle Medicine

As the new year begins, there’s often pressure to embrace a “new year, new you” mindset—big resolutions, dramatic changes, and the idea that January is the time to finally “get it all right.” But when you’re living with diabetes, this all-or-nothing approach can feel exhausting and unrealistic. Instead of helping, it often adds stress, guilt, and burnout.

If that resonates with you, you’re not failing. What you’re experiencing makes sense.

Diabetes isn't your only priority. Find a team that understands you as a person beyond a diagnosis.

Diabetes and Mental Health Are Closely Connected

Diabetes doesn’t exist in a vacuum. Conditions like depression and anxiety often coexist with diabetes, and that connection isn’t a personal weakness—it reflects the real burden of managing a complex, lifelong condition.

Monitoring glucose, taking medications, navigating food choices, managing appointments, and worrying about long-term health can take a significant mental and emotional toll. It’s common for diabetes to affect how you feel about yourself, your body, and your future.

What Is Diabetes Distress?

In addition to anxiety and depression, many people experience diabetes distress. This is a completely normal emotional response to the daily demands of diabetes.

Diabetes distress can show up as:

• Feeling burned out or overwhelmed

• Difficulty staying consistent with medications or monitoring

• Frustration with numbers that don’t reflect your effort

• Strain on relationships, work, school, or personal goals

  
  

Diabetes distress isn’t a diagnosis—it’s a signal. And when it goes unrecognized, it can quietly become one of the biggest barriers to effective diabetes care.

Why Talking About It Matters

If we don’t talk about diabetes distress, we can’t address it.

There are validated tools that help identify diabetes distress quickly, including a simple two-question screener that takes just one to two minutes to complete. These tools can open the door to more meaningful conversations about what’s really getting in the way of care.

When emotional burnout is present, focusing only on medication changes or glucose targets can feel disconnected from real life. Recognizing distress helps align treatment plans with what a person is actually able to do right now.

Support Exists—and It Can Make a Difference

Some mental health professionals specialize in working with people who have diabetes and understand its unique challenges. Support that acknowledges both physical and emotional health can be incredibly powerful.

The American Diabetes Association maintains a directory of mental health providers with experience in diabetes care, helping connect people to professionals who truly understand this condition.

A Different Way to Start the Year

There is no requirement to reinvent yourself in January. Managing diabetes is not about perfection—it’s about sustainability, compassion, and meeting yourself where you are.

Progress can look like:

• Naming burnout instead of pushing through it

• Asking for support

• Adjusting expectations during hard seasons

• Remembering that your worth is not defined by a number

  
  

You don’t need a “new you.” You deserve care that recognizes the full picture of your health—physical, emotional, and mental—every day of the year.

Have more questions about diabetes distress or mental health and diabetes? I am here to help—let’s connect on a free consultation to discuss further!

Search for mental health professionals experienced in diabetes in your area through the American Diabetes Association's directory here.

Disclaimer:

The content on this blog is for informational purposes only and is not intended to provide medical diagnosis, treatment, or replace professional medical advice, diagnosis, or care. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider with any questions regarding a medical condition or treatment.