Type 1 for 7 days. Help!

[emmabai1ey11]

Hi All,

i'm new to the forum and new to diabetes.
Diagnosed last Monday as type 1. A huge shock as i'm sure most of you know.
I am just saying hello and wondering if you had any tips or advice for me. As I'm still wondering around not sure what I'm doing.
I am running quite high between 8 and 16ish.
Appointment with dietician on Thursday.

thanks in advance.
Emma

 

[noblehead]

Welcome to the forum Emma

It's early days yet and it might take a few weeks to get your insulin doses right and your bg levels under control, just keep in close contact with your diabetes team and hopefully they will advise you further on adjusting your insulin.

The book Think Like a Pancreas is an excellent book that explains how to manage type 1 diabetes, it comes highly recommended amongst the type 1's here on the forum.

 

[azure]

Hi

My top tips are to test lots, including after meals (two hours after) and to count carbs and adjust your insulin accordingly.

It's a huge change to start with, but it does get easier as you learn more and become more confident.

Adding another tip here - always keep hypo treatments near, just in case

 

[Kristin251]

If you want your bs to come down lowering carbs is a great place to start. Many of us T 1's find we have better control with low carbing. Keep in mind low carb requires much less insulin so test test test. Also as azure said keep hypo treatments close by.
Many of us stay under 30 a day but that is your choice. I personally couldn't keep bs steady with carbs. I was all over the place. I think pumpernickel do better with carbs than MDI.

 

[Mrsass]

Hi Emma

Just take one day at a time and don't stress yourself out that things aren't 'perfect' straight away

Everything will soon become second nature

 

[BlaiseS]

Don't worry about not knowing what you're doing for now, just make sure you're taking care of yourself and taking insulin as you've been told.
Your dietician will probably want to discuss 'carb counting' with you, which is just as it sounds really, you count your carbs up and from that work out how much insulin to take. Please don't attempt before your appointment though, because you don't want to put yourself at risk and its not far away! You've probably been diabetic for a while afterall, and a few more days a little high won't do any harm.
It won't always be perfect, there will be days when you go high and just can't figure it out. But as long as you're doing your best then it's better than doing nothing at all.
I was diagnosed 4 weeks ago nearly, so if you need to talk to someone on the same journey, please feel free to have a chat!

 

[Diamattic]

That sucks for you Emma lol But we are all here, and it sucks for us too, so i guess here that makes it normal and that sucks for no one?

Either way - Welcome.

The best advice I can give you that i wished someone told me about ASAP is - EAT LOW CARBS.

Start by eating as low carb as possible and slowly add it back if you NEED to. If you don't need carbs and they are just things you like, its time to limit them.

This may sound either easy or hugely hard depending on who you are - but it will keep your sugars normal, and make the transition MUCH easier. After you start getting a handle on what to do with small amounts of carbs, you can try adding more, and when you have perfected eating like 30-45g of carbs, if you want you can add more, etc etc

Google is your friend. So are we.

Cheers

 

[emmabai1ey11]

Nice to 'meet' you all.
its a scary thing. never thought it would happen to me but i spose' nobody does.
Thank you for your responses. My diabetes nurse team have been absolutley fantastic and calling me daily. (not over bank hol)

 

[terryleeuk]

Hi Emma,
Comes as a bit of a shock to most of us, but things could be a lot worse really.
This is all about you taking control of your diabetes, not the other way round.
Talk to and listen to your diabetes professionals, read a lot and use this forum.
Somebody on here will have faced all the same things that you are going to
encounter. And they are a friendly bunch.
Lastly, just take things steady, there's no rush. Always err on the side of caution,
if in doubt, inject less. Better to have bs a bif high than too low, you can adjust
next time. Keep a detailed food diary so you can refer back and build up a picture
of how you are affected by different things.
You will get the hang of things, probably quicker than you think.
Good luck.
Keep posting.

 

[Tylers73]

Hi there Emma. I'm a newbie too it is all scary but ok life could be worse eh. All here to chat to each other and it does help. Big hugs xx

 

[pinewood]

Sorry to hear about your new diagnosis. It's all so overwhelming at first but it'll quickly become second nature. Definitely read Think Like a Pancreas, it really helped me in my first few weeks.

If you don't need carbs and they are just things you like, its time to limit them

Sorry, but I think this is really unhelpful advice. I'm so glad I wasn't scare-mongered into eating low-carb when first diagnosed. On a basal-bolus regime you don't need to eat low carb; you can eat a normal healthy diet and adjust your doses accordingly.

 

[Kristin251]

Sorry to hear about your new diagnosis. It's all so overwhelming at first but it'll quickly become second nature. Definitely read Think Like a Pancreas, it really helped me in my first few weeks.


Sorry, but I think this is really unhelpful advice. I'm so glad I wasn't scare-mongered into eating low-carb when first diagnosed. On a basal-bolus regime you don't need to eat low carb; you can eat a normal healthy diet and adjust your doses accordingly.

I completely disagree. Pumping yourself full of insulin is NOT healthy. Keeping bs low by eating low carb and taking insulin to compensate for our lack of insulin is the right approach IMO.
Sorry but that is my strong opinion

Edited by a mod to remove unproven information

 

[samantha13]

Hi Emma! I remember my first few weeks well. Very scary. Keep in touch with your nurse. Take it one day at a time. Wish you all the best

 

[andcol]

Ladies and Gentlemen can we please take the merits of a low carb diet and MDI to a different thread. This is Emma's "hello thread" and she does not need to be dragged into a low carb debate. If, in a while, she has read the forum and wishes to know more or is struggling to control her BG levels then she will ask.

Welcome Emma

 

[himtoo]

Hi Emma
Welcome to the forum
After only a week I am sure your head will be spinning , so my advice is to try your best to slow down and not worry about anything but today. Right now that is the most important thing. This Diabetes lasts for a long time.
there are many of us here to help with anything and you have your DSN ( diabetic specialist nurse) to contact whenever you need.

 

[Lucky41_]

Hi Emma, I also got diagnosed last Wednesday, so am also in the shocked and confused boat. As I'm new too I'm probably not the best person to be handing out advice but like the others said it seems to be good to take regular blood sugars and take things slowly with insulin if adjusting yourself.

Under the direction of my diabetic nurse i'm trying to eat vaguely the same food each day, for a few days in a row, to see patterns in blood sugars and try and work out my carb to insulin ratio, that could be helpful for you if you're not already doing that.

It is scary but I'm sure with time, like everything new in life, it will just become normal. The good thing is you're not on your own, there seem to be lots of really knowledgeable people on here that after living with it for a long time are experts on the condition, and also a lot like me and you - so we can all work it out together, am here to chat and be confused about it with!

 

[hh1]

Hi Emma

Scary, huh? You've just taken me back 30 years, and the joyful thing is that there's now a community like this with lots of good people to offer support and advice. I couldn't agree more with those who urge caution about not worrying too much about blood gluose being a little high until you get used to injecting and monitoring. I remember being told that there'd be times when I wouldn't be able to remember whether I'd injected or not, and thinking yeah, right! but it was true. All these new things will become second nature, just part of daily life. There are worse conditions to have, and though you don't get any days off, for me diabetes sometimes imposes a self-control that I wouldn't necessarily have otherwise. I eat better than many people, I know what's in the food I eat, and I'm fit and well. Sure there are days, just like BlaiseS said, when you do everything right and your results aren't good; everyone I know with Type 1 experiences that occasionally. And odd down days too when it all feels so tedious. But....there's heaps of help and good advice here, and from your DSN, use what's on offer and carry on enjoying life! Lots of good wishes to you

 

[emmabai1ey11]

thank you all for your kind responses. i appreciate it a ton! x

 

[Nidge247]

Hi Emma

The beginning is always the hardest stage; you're feeling rotten as your bs is so high, then loads of advice is thrown at you from all directions (some conflicting), and your head just spins!

As others have said already, test test test is the key, and you will quickly learn what spikes and what's 'safe'. Do have a look at lchf elsewhere on the forum; it's turned my life around - now 18 months since diagnosis.

If you ask your diabetes team for details of any DAFNE courses in your area, they too are a mine of useful information .

Above all, if you are struggling or stressed with big D; come on here and ask away or have a rant - we've all been there, and can help you as others have helped us.

 

[becky.ford93]

Hi there,

I was diagnosed about a year ago now. My blood sugar was all over the place for the first 7-10 days, being below 12 was a miracle at first!! I don't think you need to worry about making a ton of life changes straight away. You have enough to worry about without changing your diet completely! I avoided big sugary snacks like desserts for the first few weeks, and was on fixed doses until I was taught to carb count about a month later. These things take time so try not to panic, it will get easier! It seems like you have great support in your diabetic team, and everyone on here including myself are more than happy to help!