Janice Hidalgo: Hello! I am Janice Hidalgo, Project Manager for the Diabetes Self Management Educational Program at IPRO. Today, we are talking about how to self-manage your diabetes by learning to solve problems and take action. Problem solving is the skill that can be learned and applied to all aspects of managing your diabetes. There are logical step by step approaches for solving problems. First, identify a very specific problem. The more specific you can be, the more likely you are to find a solution that works. Next, think of possible solutions. Third, identify thoughts and attitudes that come with the problem. Four, choose a solution, try it and see how it works out. If your solution does not work out, don't give up; try the next option on your list of possible solutions. Remind yourself that trying is worth the effort. Try to view any failure as opportunities to learn while it doesn't work. Jane Giordano: Problem solving is a very important step to diabetes management. It helps you to identify some of the problems that are causing your blood sugars to be elevated and doing some action plans to try to get those blood sugars back under control. Janice Hidalgo: Action planning is another way to solve problems related to your diabetes self-management. When you set up a goal, make sure it's something that you want to do and you feel capable of doing. Follow these smart steps to set your goal, S for specific, make sure the goal is not vague. M for measurable, you should be able to measure it. A for attainable, your goal should be challenging but not impossible to reach. R for realistic, given your situation, ask yourself if it can be done. T is for timeline, set your goal in terms of when it will happen. It's best to make short term goals for the next week or two. These are just the few ways to help problem solving and managing your diabetes. If you would like to learn more about diabetes self-management, check out the other videos in our series.