Do people with diabetes who need to talk want to talk?

Aim. To examine whether the people with diabetes who ask for psychological support are those who are experiencing clinically significant levels of psychological distress. <br/>Method. In total 300 people with diabetes were asked to complete psychometrically validated questionnaires that assessed subjective need and objective psychological distress. <br/>Results. High levels of psychological distress were reported: 25% of the sample reported depressive symptomatology, 41% reported clinically significant levels if anxiety and 51% reported a degree of binge eating behaviour. Participants also indicated a desire to talk to diabetes professionals about various problem areas in diabetes. Chi-square analysis demonstrated that those reporting psychological distress, especially depression, were most likely to indicate a desire to talk to somebody about living with diabetes.<br/>Conclusions. Those who want to talk are those who need to talk. Future service development issues should acknowledge the needs and expressed wishes of service users.