Problem shared, problem halved.

[Sugarpapa]

Sometimes you feel it's best just to write things down. Well, some say a problem shared is a problem halved, and if enough people read this post perhaps I could simply close my eyes and wish my diabetes away.
This week I was diagnosed type 1. Not exactly what I had expected nor what I need in my life right now, and to say I didn't anticipate it was an understatement.
A few weeks back I found myself with an extreme thirst and desire to fall asleep on my feet. Sure I lost some weight, but I simply had put that down to a normal healthy lifestyle and long autumn walks with my black lab. But before long, the walks became shorter and the thirst excessive to a point that I couldn't pass by a tap without stopping. Early self diagnosis pointed to diabetes.
The first few days I tried to shut it out. I hadn't been ill for years and wasn't going to start now. It was the day I arrived home and fell asleep with boots on that I decided to take the first step.
The diabetic nurse confirmed all. She also mentioned that I was just somewhat unlucky in that I hadn't bought it on myself. Just months before I had sailed across the Atlantic as part of a racing crew, a physical, demanding adventure that requires full fitness. If you ever want to find your inner self, change your lifestyle or simply escape, mid ocean or on top of a mountain is the place to be. In fact, one of our crew was type 1 and now a true inspiration to me.
I've been injecting insulin for about a week now. Initially, I guess it's best to have someone with you at home to talk it through. As my wife works away weekdays and kids at college, I had only my dog for company. Always a good listener and a great initiative for getting outside.
The DN was also very helpful, calling me every other day to check BS levels. As the levels gradually dropped, I actually looked forward to her friendly voice. She actually made the situation seem quite normal.
My diet hasn't changed a great deal as I've always cooked from scratch using fresh ingredients, although portions are somewhat smaller, and the cereal intake has gone down to just the one bowl. My love of citrus fruits, pasta and chocolate has also taken a bit of a hike. This weekend I'm flying out to New York for christmas, the metropolis of donuts, pizza pie and shakes. How testing is that for a diabetic?
Just two weeks ago my BS levels were wandering all over the place. Today, things are not so bad. My emotions are almost intact and blurred vision on its way back to normal. Hey, even the dog walks are getting longer.

 

[jack412]

Hi..it really is normal to go nuts and stress out for a while, you had a hell of a shock, it might hit you later or maybe not at all, we are all different.
your nurse is going to be your best friend for a while, see if the nurse can book yourself onto a DESMOND course for when you get back

 

[Nuthead]

Welcome @daisy1 will be along with some interesting information.

 

[Brunneria]

Hi and welcome!

It's a huge adjustment, and you will only realise how hard it has hit you, when the dust settles.

But this is a great place to help the process!

There are masses of very experienced insulin users around, if you have any questions.

 

[Cherryred]

Hi Sugar Papa..
I have been diagnosed for 6 weeks, and I wanted you to know it will get better. This thread is filled with amazing people, post and read here often you will find you are not alone dealing with this.

 

[pavlosn]

Sometimes you feel it's best just to write things down. Well, some say a problem shared is a problem halved, and if enough people read this post perhaps I could simply close my eyes and wish my diabetes away.
This week I was diagnosed type 1. Not exactly what I had expected nor what I need in my life right now, and to say I didn't anticipate it was an understatement.
A few weeks back I found myself with an extreme thirst and desire to fall asleep on my feet. Sure I lost some weight, but I simply had put that down to a normal healthy lifestyle and long autumn walks with my black lab. But before long, the walks became shorter and the thirst excessive to a point that I couldn't pass by a tap without stopping. Early self diagnosis pointed to diabetes.
The first few days I tried to shut it out. I hadn't been ill for years and wasn't going to start now. It was the day I arrived home and fell asleep with boots on that I decided to take the first step.
The diabetic nurse confirmed all. She also mentioned that I was just somewhat unlucky in that I hadn't bought it on myself. Just months before I had sailed across the Atlantic as part of a racing crew, a physical, demanding adventure that requires full fitness. If you ever want to find your inner self, change your lifestyle or simply escape, mid ocean or on top of a mountain is the place to be. In fact, one of our crew was type 1 and now a true inspiration to me.
I've been injecting insulin for about a week now. Initially, I guess it's best to have someone with you at home to talk it through. As my wife works away weekdays and kids at college, I had only my dog for company. Always a good listener and a great initiative for getting outside.
The DN was also very helpful, calling me every other day to check BS levels. As the levels gradually dropped, I actually looked forward to her friendly voice. She actually made the situation seem quite normal.
My diet hasn't changed a great deal as I've always cooked from scratch using fresh ingredients, although portions are somewhat smaller, and the cereal intake has gone down to just the one bowl. My love of citrus fruits, pasta and chocolate has also taken a bit of a hike. This weekend I'm flying out to New York for christmas, the metropolis of donuts, pizza pie and shakes. How testing is that for a diabetic?
Just two weeks ago my BS levels were wandering all over the place. Today, things are not so bad. My emotions are almost intact and blurred vision on its way back to normal. Hey, even the dog walks are getting longer.

Hi @Sugarpapa

Sorry to hear about your diagnosis but welcome to the forum just the same.

You sound like an interesting fellow to have around, I really enjoyed reading your post. Stick around and ask as many questions as you feel you need to.

No such thing as a stupid question. In fact we like stupid questions, we can answer those. It's the clever ones that can be more tricky

Welcome once again

Pavlos

 

[noblehead]

Pleased your coping well with things Sugarpapa, being diagnosed with type 1 comes as a big shock and there's so much to learn, but rest assured it does get easier in time, just keep in close contact with your diabetes team in the first few weeks and months as they will guide you on adjusting your insulin doses, hope you enjoy your trip to New York and have a great time, if you have any questions ask your HCP's or come back on here and ask.

see if the nurse can book yourself onto a DESMOND course for when you get back

Not a good idea, Desmond is for type 2's, its a DAFNE course that the OP would be asking to go on as that is for type 1's.

 

[daisy1]

@Sugarpapa @Nuthead

Hello Sugarpapa and welcome to the forum

Here is the information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful. Ask as many questions as you can and someone will be able to help.


BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEWLY DIAGNOSED DIABETICS

Diabetes is the general term to describe people who have blood that is sweeter than normal. A number of different types of diabetes exist.

A diagnosis of diabetes tends to be a big shock for most of us. It’s far from the end of the world though and on this forum you’ll find over 130,000 people who are demonstrating this.

On the forum we have found that with the number of new people being diagnosed with diabetes each day, sometimes the NHS is not being able to give all the advice it would perhaps like to deliver - particularly with regards to people with type 2 diabetes.

The role of carbohydrate

Carbohydrates are a factor in diabetes because they ultimately break down into sugar (glucose) within our blood. We then need enough insulin to either convert the blood sugar into energy for our body, or to store the blood sugar as body fat.

If the amount of carbohydrate we take in is more than our body’s own (or injected) insulin can cope with, then our blood sugar will rise.

The bad news

Research indicates that raised blood sugar levels over a period of years can lead to organ damage, commonly referred to as diabetic complications.

The good news

People on the forum here have shown that there is plenty of opportunity to keep blood sugar levels from going too high. It’s a daily task but it’s within our reach and it’s well worth the effort.

Controlling your carbs

The info below is primarily aimed at people with type 2 diabetes, however, it may also be of benefit for other types of diabetes as well.
There are two approaches to controlling your carbs:

• Reduce your carbohydrate intake
• Choose ‘better’ carbohydrates

Reduce your carbohydrates

A large number of people on this forum have chosen to reduce the amount of carbohydrates they eat as they have found this to be an effective way of improving (lowering) their blood sugar levels.

The carbohydrates which tend to have the most pronounced effect on blood sugar levels tend to be starchy carbohydrates such as rice, pasta, bread, potatoes and similar root vegetables, flour based products (pastry, cakes, biscuits, battered food etc) and certain fruits.

Choosing better carbohydrates

Another option is to replace ‘white carbohydrates’ (such as white bread, white rice, white flour etc) with whole grain varieties. The idea behind having whole grain varieties is that the carbohydrates get broken down slower than the white varieties –and these are said to have a lower glycaemic index.
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/food/diabetes-and-whole-grains.html

The low glycaemic index diet is often favoured by healthcare professionals but some people with diabetes find that low GI does not help their blood sugar enough and may wish to cut out these foods altogether.

Read more on carbohydrates and diabetes

Eating what works for you

Different people respond differently to different types of food. What works for one person may not work so well for another. The best way to see which foods are working for you is to test your blood sugar with a glucose meter.

To be able to see what effect a particular type of food or meal has on your blood sugar is to do a test before the meal and then test after the meal. A test 2 hours after the meal gives a good idea of how your body has reacted to the meal.

The blood sugar ranges recommended by NICE are as follows:

Blood glucose ranges for type 2 diabetes

• Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
• 2 hours after meals: under 8.5 mmol/l

Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (adults)

• Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
• 2 hours after meals: under 9 mmol/l

Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (children)

• Before meals: 4 to 8 mmol/l
• 2 hours after meals: under 10 mmol/l

However, those that are able to, may wish to keep blood sugar levels below the NICE after meal targets.

Access to blood glucose test strips

The NICE guidelines suggest that people newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes should be offered:

• structured education to every person and/or their carer at and around the time of diagnosis, with annual reinforcement and review
• self-monitoring of plasma glucose to a person newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes only as an integral part of his or her self-management education

Therefore both structured education and self-monitoring of blood glucose should be offered to people with type 2 diabetes. Read more on getting access to bloodglucose testing supplies.

You may also be interested to read questions to ask at a diabetic clinic

Note: This post has been edited from Sue/Ken's post to include up to date information.

 

[Snowy12]

Sugarpapa a warm welcome to the forum.

 

[Moniker]

Welcome. I'm glad you have a lab to keep you active. I currently have three black lab girls wreaking havoc in the home.