My Diabetes My Way: April 2026 update


Welcome to the My Diabetes My Way newsletter for April 2026.


Stress Awareness Month
April is Stress Awareness month and, although not immediately obvious, stress can have a significant effect on your blood sugar. When you are stressed, the levels of the hormone cortisol increase, and this increases your blood sugar. Cortisol levels can change rapidly and go up and down so your blood sugar can fluctuate. So, tackling the stress in your life is an essential component of good diabetes management.

Longer daylight hours and plants growing in gardens can give us the incentive to get out and about in nature and this can be one way to relieve stress. Spring can be a good time to reflect on your life and try to minimise stress levels by sorting out problems. This may involve talking to your healthcare team or a mental health practitioner. There is more information about the effect of stress on diabetes at the following links:


Notes for Home Data Recordings
If you add your home data to My Diabetes My Way (e.g. weight, blood pressure, blood glucose, etc) you may be interested in some recent changes. Based on your feedback you can now add notes as a reminder of what was happening at the time of recording. For example, a high blood pressure measurement may be down to a stressful event, or a lower weight may be due to a period of exercise and activity.


World Health Day
April 7th was World Health Day and the theme of this year is “Together for Health. Stand with Science”. The World Health Organisation aims to launch a year‑long campaign celebrating the power of scientific collaboration to protect the health of people, animals, plants, and the planet. It will promote the use of scientific research and evidence to inform healthcare both for individuals and society. Science shows us that there are approximately 589 million people aged 20-79 years with diabetes in the world today. Pakistan, several Pacific Island nations and Middle Eastern countries have the highest adult diabetes prevalence globally, with over 30% of people living in these regions having diabetes. Diabetes is a significant factor in the health of the world’s population.

Diabetes care has improved greatly in the last few years with all the new technologies including continuous glucose monitoring and insulin pumps, and this is all due to scientific advancement. We have lots of information if you are thinking about getting an insulin pump and in the link below 2 diabetes specialist nurses discuss what kinds of person are suitable and would benefit from an insulin pump:
https://mydiabetesmyway.scot.nhs.uk/resources/video/patient-experience-who-is-an-insulin-pump-right-for/


Free Online Course – Understanding Type 1 Diabetes and Technology
This month’s online course concerns some of the technology associated with diabetes care and is titled “Type 1 & Tech”. The course is running on the 29th and 30th April and covers technologies for managing Type 1 diabetes, including continuous glucose monitoring and insulin pump therapy. It provides insights on sensor usage, understanding results, dose calculation, and lifestyle aspects.

Participants explore hybrid closed-loop systems and smart pens for advanced diabetes care. The course includes a live question and answer session with diabetes experts on Zoom. These experts also moderate discussion boards and respond to comments throughout the course. You can register for free here:
https://understandingtype1.mydiabetes.com/


Facebook, X and Bluesky
Please remember, you can keep up-to-date with the latest news and useful information on the My Diabetes My Way Facebook, X and Bluesky pages.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mydiabetesmyway
X (formerly Twitter): https://www.twitter.com/mydiabetesmyway
Bluesky: @mydiabetesmyway.bsky.social‬


Help and Support
If you have not yet managed to gain access to your diabetes records on My Diabetes My Way, or would like an update on the status of your registration, please let us know. You can contact us regarding any problems or request further help and support by emailing: mydiabetes.myway@nhs.scot

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