ABSTRACT
Diabetes forces us to re-examine “self-help.” The individual cannot do it alone. Diabetes requires medical treatment in order to avoid devastating complications like blindness and amputation and reduce risks of associated death through cardiovascular disease. Yet the individual’s healthy eating, physical activity, weight management, and other behaviors are central to diabetes management. This chapter will review the established and potential benefits of self-help interventions as part of the range of resources and services individuals need in order to live life with diabetes. An ecological perspective that emphasizes the multiple levels of influence on behavior, from individual to organization, community and policy, provides the context within which self-help has an important role.
