Stress is smart. It sneaks up on you, taking away your energy and keeping you from sleep, making it harder to defend. Stress does a great job of creating a cycle that can seem harder and harder to free yourself from.

Fortunately, no matter how smart stress is, you are smarter. Maybe you cannot change all the causes of stress in your life—living with diabetes can add a lot of pressure to the situation. But you can control the way you react to stress. Changing your attitude about things can make a big difference in how you feel.

Here are few simple steps that you can use to help create a more positive outlook:

Write down the causes of your stress in specific terms
Think about the specific events that cause stress to build. Maybe it happens when your supervisor gives you 10 new assignments just when you are leaving for the day. Or when you have a high blood sugar level, despite your best efforts. Sometimes putting pen to paper will help you feel better.

Write down the negative thoughts you have in response to stress
If it is about high blood sugar, maybe you think, “I will never get my blood sugar under control,” or, “It is useless to keep trying.” Be honest with your feelings.

Write down the healthy responses you would like to have when stress occurs
When your blood sugar is high, maybe you could say to yourself, “Tomorrow is a new day for me to try again,” or, “I have to get this under control, so I am going to call my doctor and discuss what is not working for me.”

Refer back to your healthy responses over the next couple of weeks
Repeat the positive things to yourself when you are driving, taking a walk, standing in front of the mirror, or falling asleep at night. After two weeks, evaluate your progress and give yourself a pat on the back.