Living with diabetes: perceptions of well-being

A group of 192 adult insulin-dependent diabetic patients free from manifest late complications were asked, through mailed questionnaires, about the influence of the disease on their daily life and about their feelings of well-being. Well-being was measured using 11 semantic differentials comprised of bi-polar adjectives. Only a minority of patients reported that the disease caused them considerable problems in daily life. The greatest problems occurred in connection with regularity in daily life (26% of subjects) and diet management (24%). Although a large proportion of the patients were very concerned about retinopathy (45%), other complications were of great concern for only 10 to 25%. Younger age was significantly associated with more problems in daily life and more worries about complications. There also were associations between younger age and feelings of anxiety, lack of freedom, insecurity, and reduced self-esteem. Most of the patients, both men and women, had a general feeling of well-being. Living with insulin-dependent diabetes appears to be quite consistent with experiencing well-being and feeling fit provided that no severe complications have developed.