Stress, it is everywhere, physical, emotional, families, jobs, etc.  We can’t seem to escape it.  This stress starts a very vicious cycle in the body.  One, that if not corrected can create havoc on your blood sugar.

Let’s examine the stress response in the body so we can better understand it.  When your body triggers the stress response, it stimulates the adrenal glands to release cortisol.  The function here is to get the glucose in the blood into muscles and other cells to use.  Now as time continues the stress has a long term effect on the adrenals.  They start in the alarm reaction, if the stress is prolonged it goes into the resistance stage, and ultimately if left uncorrected it goes into exhaustion.

Once your body has been under the stress response long enough the cortisol will down regulate insulin receptors.  So now we have a situation in the body that produces more insulin from the pancreas, and more glucose in the blood, but cells that cannot respond to it and thus we have elevated blood sugar levels.

Now if you are in the modes of adrenal resistance and exhaustion, you need to help the body out of this response.  Along with correct supplementation here are some tips for better relaxation:

1. Exercise.  It always comes to this.  Exercise is very important to the body and healthy exercise reduces stress and improves cardiac function as well.
2. Progressive Relaxation.  There are many different ways to do this, but the concept is very similar.  You think about a specific muscle group, contract it, relax it and move to the next group.  This is best done in a quiet environment and can be a great way to go to sleep.
3. Breathing Exercises. Sit or lie down, uncross arms and legs.  Take in a deep breath and exhale fully, in through the nose, out through the mouth.  As you exhale relax all of your muscles.  Do this at least once a day and for 5-20 minutes.

That is it for today.  Try these tips and get ready to feel the reaction, because your life will be better for it.

If you are suffering from Type 2 Diabetes and need help getting it and keeping it under control, please fill out the form to the right and we can help get you the information you need.

Article by Dr. Jade Malay, Type 2 Diabetes Professional, Dallas/Ft. Worth, TX