Living with someone who is trying to cope with type 1

Cathn61may

Well-Known Member
Messages
68
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
Dislikes
people who think they know it all
Hi , my husband got diagnosed in Jan 2015 with type 1 , we are trying to manage his incline but it is getting him down , he thinks Xmas is a waste of time as he cant do "normal" things , has to watch what he drinks and eats . He is also having more mood swings which I believe is down to him coming to terms with the whole process , I just want to be there for him . Has anyone got any advice for a "normal " Xmas
Tell him to use DAFNE so easy to use he can eat like you. DAFNE is fab for Type 1 Diabetics. I have had it for 48 years.
 

Anon_shark

Newbie
Messages
1
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
Count the carbs, take the jabs.
He's a Type 1, if he has his ratios right, there's no reason he can't act normally.

I loathe and dread Christmas, but it's because of the probability of fights, and the snarky not-quite-arguments, and the brittle false smiles; nothing to do with being Type 1.
 
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Andy_D85

Active Member
Messages
41
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
As a few folk have pointed out, if he's Basal/Bolus and has his ratio's sorted, eating/drinking whatever he wants at Christmas should be, pardon the pun, a piece of cake! That's the good news...it's also not necessarily about 'planning' meals, to me it's more about noting what we're taking in and reacting to it in enough time. if the idea of 'planning' everything is part of what's getting him down then maybe suggesting changing his POV to look at it that way may help? It helped me anyway :). The Carbs & Cal's app for iPhone/Android is great as you can search for foods, use pictures to judge portion sizes and even build up a 'meal' of all the different stuff on the plate and it'll give you a pretty accurate carb value to work your bolus (Novorapid I think I read earlier in your husbands case?) dose out from - means you don't have to 'plan' the meal out in advance and if you're out and about at restaurants etc you can use it to judge what you're eating without having to google carb values etc - App isn't free but it's worth every penny :)

Potentially unpopular opinion coming up, but bear in mind it's just my opinion as opposed to 'here's what to do' - but I'd imagine another part of what's getting to him is the idea of 'bad' results if he does over-indulge...constant high-sugars over months, weeks, years etc will absolutely have a really bad effect on him...and he could end up like me...however, the odd one here and there, even if it's over a day or 2 say AT CHRISTMAS, won't do him any long term harm...it's worth having a good chat about the fact that if he does a test and it comes out high, you just correct it - you deal with it, it's not a failure in any way, you just didn't get the amount of insulin for what you ate right on that occasion - one of my favourite quotes is from Thomas Eddison, who invented the lightbulb (well, it's allegedly from him anyway!) - he apparently made 99 unsuccessful prototypes for the lightbulb before coming up with a working design, so he was asked why, after failing 99 times he didn't just give up and he replied: "I never failed. I just discovered 99 ways how NOT to make a lightbulb". I like to think of my carb counting and doses a bit like that - if it didn't work, I mark it off as just another dose NOT to take when I have that food again :). Doesn't stop me from having a pot of custard in the future because I happened to have a BM of 18.2 the last time I had one, I just now know I'll need to take more than 3u of Novorapid per pot next time :).

He's new to all this so it will take time to adjust, but experimentation with carb counting and doses takes time, and there will be lots of 'error' during the whole trial and error thing. But nothing is 'off' the menu with basal/bolus regimes, at least that's what I've always been told, there's just a lot of eating, injecting, and seeing what happens afterwards...and if it doesn't work...it's just another dose NOT to take in the future :)

The one thing I would advise re-reading up on is the booze - because of the whole liver/glycogen storage vs alcohol clearing issue what can effectively happen is you run high at first when drinking lots, so you take lots of insulin, then crash and hypo later when your liver finally stops dealing with the booze and starts syphoning off the glucose - slightly simplified version of what happens but it's the gist - you can actually need LESS insulin than normal if having a heavy session and occasionally need to let the sugars run a bit higher once you stop for a short time in order to avoid some nasty hypo experiences...nothing worse than crashing with a hypo whilst also hungover :/ - there's some great advice on the DAFNE website about adjusting for alcohol and there's probably some great hints and tips on here as well, but having not had a look for them myself you'd need have a wee search - but if he's wanting a heavy sesh or 2 over the festive period (and why shouldn't he, it's christmas) it's definitely worth brushing up on so the other side of it doesn't put him off doing it again - that bit unfortunately will need some 'planning' - but if it means getting to waltz in the pub and go home like there's nothing else to worry about - I'd imagine he'll be well up for it :D.

That's my tuppence-worth over Christmas eating/drinking anyway - hope you and hubby have a very merry christmas! :)
 
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RogerRam

Active Member
Messages
39
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
Hi,
I've had Type 1 for over 50 years (Novorapid & Glargine). Like Andy, this what I've done & NOT advice!
For Christmas Day there are NO diabetics on this one day.
I have normal 4 iu for breakfast-3 dessert spoons of muesli, extra walnuts & a few Goji berries. Lunch is the BIG one so depending what I fancy I gave myself 30-40 iu for chapon (capon), we've retired to France, with a few boiled & roast potatoes, then usually Christmas pud, with cream & a mince pie. Snag is I have to BS check umpteen times to avoid going hypo-easily remedied with another chocolate! I use an Accu-Chek Mobile to check my blood-sugar & keep a daily diary record of injections & food & exercise to have an educated guess as to what insulin I need. Just read about an app called

mumoActive https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/mumoactive/id808363184?mt=8

that I'm going to try to monitor my blood sugars.

Probably a healthier day here in France 'cos I haven't found any Christmas pud or mince-pies-yet.

Have a great Christmas & enjoy the festive season.

All the best,

Roger
 
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KarenAdamson

Active Member
Messages
26
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
Tell your hubby to enjoy his Christmas and to stop worrying as he can eat what he wants as long as he adjusts his Novorapid to allow for the carbs. If he doesn't get it right he can always take an adjustment dose the next morning if he needs it. That is our advantage over the Type 2 Diabetics who limit their carb intakes. I've been a Type 1 for 43 years and the only really akward thing is weighing my carbs to calculate how many carbs I'm eating. Apart from that I will pig out as it's Christmas. If he drinks quite a bit over Christmas he should snack whilst drinking. Nuts are always a good option as the carbs aren't too high. By snack I mean carbs as opposed to no carb foods. Your husband still might be helped even if he doesn't want to discuss any problems. He is more than welcome to visit the site and he will discover there are many people here who have lived with Type 1 for many, many years without bad things happening even if we all have hiccups at times.
 
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Trina_P

Member
Messages
16
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
Hi there, it was my first Christmas with Type 1 Diabetes last year and I must admit I felt like it was going to be really hard, but he's taking Levemir and Novorapid like I am which gives him so much flexibility. DAFNE is the best thing your husband can do so he can feel like he's in control of this beast, but in the mean time just work to 1 unit of Novorapid per 10g of carbohydrate and write down your results so you can see if that is working for you. If he wants a mince pie, he can have it. If he wants a couple of After Eights, he can have them. If he wants second helpings of Christmas dinner, he can have it. As long as he's keeping an eye on what he has eaten and injected, you can always take more. Quite often if I'm eating out, I'll take my Novorapid for my starter and main, then decide later in if I want a dessert. If I do, I wait till it arrives and give it an eyeball, then take more Novorapid to cover it. It's as flexible as he wants it to be, as long as he's aware of how much insulin he's taken so he doesn't take too much.

I think the real issue he's struggling with though is feeling like the odd one out. It's now 18 months since my diagnosis, and I feel like I'm finally coming to terms with it. I had many days where I felt ****** off with life and angry at ny body for letting me down. A 23 year old girl who exercised and ate well - I didn't deserve it. But there's no point in fighting it, you only find peace when you learn to accept it and how to manage it. I'm off out for a meal tonight and going to some bars. On Tuesday I will be eating a Christmas Meal with people who don't know I'm diabetic. And on Christmas Day, my breakfast will be chocolate orange and a cup of tea as per usual. I know I'm going to be taking a lot more insulin than normal and my levels won't be perfect, but it's one month of the year and I won't let bad results get me down.

I hope you both have a wonderful Christmas and tell him that although we've been dealt a rubbish hand, things could be much much worse.
 
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Wick55uk

Member
Messages
15
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
Hey there, I was diagnosed with type 1 just before Christmas back in 2001 when I was 15 and I know how your husband must feel as even I hated missing out on the treats that my friends and family got but as long as he can watch his bloods, how much he eats of the sweet treats & keep his routine of injections uptime with maybe a little extra of the Nova like I did and still do, he should be just fine. It took me a few years of getting used to having this problem but after a while I'm sure he'll up for it every time. Hope this helps & Merry Christmas :)
 

Kristin251

Expert
Messages
5,334
Type of diabetes
LADA
Treatment type
Insulin
Why not start new traditions? Of course this is easier if it is just a small crowd. I tried eating 'normal' and dosing last Xmas (my 1st T1 Xmas) and didn't do too bad ( I still skipped the starchy carbs and only a taste of desert but over ate meal size) but this year we are just having beef tenderloins, roasted veggies, a salad nad some dark chocolate for desert. The stress of how much insulin and when to take it is much worse for me than eating a delicious diabetic friendly meal. I don't feel well after all those carbs anyway.
 
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alaska

Well-Known Member
Messages
475
Hi , my husband got diagnosed in Jan 2015 with type 1 , we are trying to manage his incline but it is getting him down , he thinks Xmas is a waste of time as he cant do "normal" things , has to watch what he drinks and eats . He is also having more mood swings which I believe is down to him coming to terms with the whole process , I just want to be there for him . Has anyone got any advice for a "normal " Xmas

As a type 1 of some 23 years (starting to lose count), I can totally understand a wanting not to do much over Christmas -particularly in wanting to avoid Christmas eating.

My experience of Christmas eating is that even when trying to eat in moderation, I get a week of higher than usual sugar levels.

This just like a slap in the face and higher sugar levels are directly linked (research shows this) to short term depressive symptoms. Or in other words, higher sugar levels really do make you more miserable until they get back to normal.

Also, you're feeling miserable whilst everyone else is feeling cheerful. That creates a sense of additional alienation and makes you feel worse.

So, I can totally understand someone just wanting to remove themselves from that kind of situation. Just to have a break without a 'trial by diet' situation which makes Christmas such a pain for some of us.

Yes, I can enjoy Christmas too, but it can be hit and miss and I think I've yet to have a Christmas that is not spent wishing sugar levels were lower and into a more normal range.

Ed
 
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