While stress can cause blood sugar to go up it can also cause people to skip a workout or make poor food choices, notes Susan Guzman, PhD, senior psychologist with the Behavioral Diabetes Institute in San Diego.
"I think the bigger problem with stress is that you stop making time for exercise, you stop making time to test your blood sugar regularly, you stop making time for meal planning," Guzman says.
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Even if you're stressed and on a deadline crunch, it's not the time to "run to Denny's or to run to McDonald's," she says.
Guzman, who teaches a class on diabetes and depression, says being part of a group also helps alleviate anxiety for some people. "Just having a place to come and talk and feel supported and to know you're not alone in what you're feeling is so therapeutic," she says.
