is simple no person and no circumstance must ever trump your own health neglecting to monitor your blood sugar or to take your medication as prescribed can put you at high risk of many complications some of which are life threatening patients on insulin therapy should ask their doctor to help pick an insulin type that suits their daily schedule and body requirements remember you are not to blame for your condition many have called diabetes a blame and shame disease because patients tend to be held responsible for developing their condition feedback from some patients indicates that they have faced open insinuations that they would not have developed diabetes if they had watched their weight or limited their intake of sweets these illadvised words from friends and colleagues are further fed by social media comments that describe diabetes patients as overweight people who lead unhealthy livesii but the truth is that diabetes is a complex disease influenced by several factors such as genetics and the environment and can affect anyone from healthy young children to aging adultscan we together change the fear and stigma into hope and happinessyes we can the constant stress and fear only add to the physical and psychological pressure that diabetes already imposes on patients as a society we can help patients reduce this added stress by breaking these stereotypes and misconceptions and instead offering support to women with this condition india now has a growing network of diabetes patient support groups so i urge patients to reach out and be a part of these wonderful communities and for doctors family and caregivers to reassure patients that they are not alone in this journeyby dr beena bansal dm endocrinology door to care