Type1. Depression and diabetes.....

[letitia7778]

Hi, Im a T1 diabetic who really needs some advice from those that have battled depression relating to their diabetes.

Ive been battling diabtes for 20 yrs now but the last 6 months have been particularly bad. Ive lost my hypo symptoms and am now unable to leave the house without fear of them happening. I live on my own and Im so frightenned that I wont wake up one day.

Im on the waiting list to get a pump so I hope this helps but I just feel so helpless at the minute while I wait for the pump apointment.

My blood sugars swing between LO and 25 on an almost daily basis and Im so exhausted all the time. I have changed insulin 4 times and tried everything. I have lumps on my legs that are not helping as some days my insulin is absorbed so much better and I go hypo.

I have completely changed my diet to try and get back control and now cant drive or excercise. I feel so sad and low as Im usually so positive and never let my diabetes stop me from doing things.

The hypos meant I lost my job too and it feels like I am constantly fighting my body. I just feel like there's nothing left to try.

 

[Juicyj]

Hello @letitia7778 Sorry to hear you are feeling this way, firstly are you getting any support from either your DSN or consultant ?

My honest answer in regards to your hi/lo's is that there will be part of the reason you at feeling so low, swinging high and low can cause depression, when I was fairly early on in my diagnosis I was yo-yo-ing, I saw my doctor for depression and he advised that it was this that was causing it, I have since stabilised my control a lot more and since then no problems.

Seeing your DSN will determine if it really is your sites and absorption at your sites that's causing the hi/lo, also try doing some basal testing to see if your background is working as it should be, can you try this ? Getting support right now should be your priority, your DSN may even give you a continuous glucose monitor to keep a watch and see if there's a pattern to this. Most trusts have one which is loaned out to anyone who struggles as you are now.

There will be a reason for this, it's just pin pointing the cause, best wishes J

 

[letitia7778]

Thanks for your reply. I do wonder if the depression is linked.

I already have a continual glucose monitor and there is no real pattern - hypos are at any given time and 4 diabetes nurses and the specialist doctor can't work it out. The nurses have checked my sites and confirmed some of the problems are caused by the lumps. I'm hoping the pump will stop this.

I just dont want to carry on any more - nothing I do seems to help. I'm just so frightenned to go out as almost every time I do I end up in an ambulance. I seem to get so badly hypo so quickly I start having fits and get so confused I end up lying in the road crying, completely unaware I am diabetic and that I have sweets in my pocket. Its frightenned me so much Im housebound, which doesnt help the depression.

 

[Soo2]

Hi @letitia7778 I am sorry you are feeling so depressed . I ddon't not have type1 but lots on here do and there is a lot of information on here to help you !!

If you ever need someone to vent on please feel free to give me a shout

Sue

 

[yakudueye1]

its easier said than done but i can tell you from realizing that when your feeling down thing would even spiral out of control hence find what makes you happier and try slowly and see every little bit before you have the hypos as it may be linked to something or may be its the insulin type however collect your and believe you can beat it and get some advice from dsn and dont worry about the stereotypical ones as far as your are giving your best and keep reading on the diabetes uk as i learnt onhow to manage my hypos and what are actually causes them even though am terrified and feel undignified and helpless and hopeless most ot the time because of hypos ,what helps me keep going is i checked my sugar levels frequently so it keeps me informed and i help myself before i have another episodes although they are times its beyond my control as when am asleep i dont know nothing only my family members realizes it

 

[Juicyj]

As I mentioned before have you tried doing any basal testing ? It would be worthwhile to try doing this as it will tell you if your basal dose is working as it should be: http://www.salforddiabetescare.co.uk/index2.php?nav_id=1007

Whenever my levels get out of control I start here with this, getting your basal at the right level is key to good control, so try this and see how you get on ?

 

[donnellysdogs]

Agree totally with basal testing.

Also, if your hospital cannot sort your diabetes out then you need to get to a hospital that can.

There are different categories of hospital..
primary care is your GP;
Secondary care is first line hospitals with consultants:
Tertiary care hospitals are hospitals with Professors, honorary consultants and true specialists....

You need to go to GP after finding a teriary hospital in your area and a specialist professor that canhelp you.

Speak to Lesley at INPUT and see if she can give you any info to speed up your pump...

You will only normally be allicated to secondary care for diabetes at a standard hospital... your GP would need to refer you, please speak to Lesley..

 

[novorapidboi26]

Are there any injection sites that are not lumpy......?

it sounds like its just your legs from your post.....

how much insulin goes in per day do you think?

 

[DaftThoughts]

Hey @letitia7778, I just wanted to tell you that you're not alone. I know things appear very difficult right now and it feels like there's no end to this. Nothing you do seems to be working, and that sucks really badly. It's okay to feel bad about this, it's not easy to deal with diabetes and it's more difficult when you can't seem to get any control over your values. I've been there myself. Allow yourself to acknowledge that things aren't going as they should.

I also want to tell you that the way you're feeling right now is a by-product of the severe swings in your bloodsugars, and it makes it difficult to see things for what they really are. Even though your healthcare team doesn't have any answers for you yet, doesn't mean there are no answers. And just because you're feeling horrible right now, doesn't mean it will stay that way. Depression is very nasty because it lies to you. It lies about there being no relief from how you're feeling. It lies when it says that you can't get this figured out. That's the only thing depression is really good at, lying.

Sometimes it helps to imagine depression as being a very annoying person you roll your eyes at. Lately, I've taken to pretending that Trump is the person hurtling insults and degrading comments at me while trying to be the big shot in my life - it just makes me laugh, roll my eyes and flip him the bird!

We may not control our circumstances and what our bodies are doing right now, and that's okay. We can control how we deal with the stuff that's thrown at us. It's not going to be easy, but I strongly believe that you're more than capable of tackling this problem and finding a balance in your levels that works for you. I firmly believe that once your levels are stabilized, your depression will ease up as well.

There is a reason why your body is behaving this way, so let's try to figure out why together, alright? There have been some great suggestions so far on your basal rate that is worth looking into, and if you keep us updated, we can continue to throw our expertise and ideas your way. We're not going to abandon you on this.

You may also want to consider that your insulin sensitivity varies depending on time of the day, your activities and moods. When you're stressed out, it messes with your values considerably.

Is there anything in particular that helps you relax? Are there any activities that take your mind off things? I personally love to knit, it's very soothing, but maybe you can pick up an adult coloring book and work on that when you're feeling down.

Do you have any friends or family in the area who might be willing to go out with you? I know how scary it is being alone when you're uncertain about your values, so having someone around whom you can educate on hyper/hypo signals, and who can help you out, helps tremendously. Being stuck inside makes you feel worse.

Let us know if there's anything we can assist you with! I'd be happy to see if I can find some resources near you for support if you want/need it.

 

[nmr1991]

Regardless of what insulin i use, if i go high i get depressed, if i go low i get insane anxiety that makes me vulnerable to the many noises around which overload my senses even when in my own room which is quiet and also gives me severe headaches. I consider low between 3-10mmol/l and high 20+mmol/l thus i tend to keep to the mid-range of 11-19mmol/l. before diabetes I was still in this frame of mind, depressed etc because of the atmosphere I was in, and found when I was alone I felt better, so I don't value the company of others as my levels of anxiety increase. Nobody's a winner here.

 

[Engineer88]

Give that handsome pup of yours a cuddle to start! Completely agree with how difficult it is *hugs*

 

[genix]

You need to bring those hypos under control fast @letitia7778 . I also had the exact same problem as you and it is generally because of unpredictable long acting combined with poor carb counting for fast acting insulin and blood sugars start to move literally like a roller coaster.

 

[Juliegal]

Hi, Im a T1 diabetic who really needs some advice from those that have battled depression relating to their diabetes.

Ive been battling diabtes for 20 yrs now but the last 6 months have been particularly bad. Ive lost my hypo symptoms and am now unable to leave the house without fear of them happening. I live on my own and Im so frightenned that I wont wake up one day.

Im on the waiting list to get a pump so I hope this helps but I just feel so helpless at the minute while I wait for the pump apointment.

My blood sugars swing between LO and 25 on an almost daily basis and Im so exhausted all the time. I have changed insulin 4 times and tried everything. I have lumps on my legs that are not helping as some days my insulin is absorbed so much better and I go hypo.

I have completely changed my diet to try and get back control and now cant drive or excercise. I feel so sad and low as Im usually so positive and never let my diabetes stop me from doing things.

The hypos meant I lost my job too and it feels like I am constantly fighting my body. I just feel like there's nothing left to try.

Hi Have you tried changing your injection site ? as you have lumps in your legs. I would recommend doing your daily insulin in your stomach and your night time insulin in the side of your bum. I was told this on a course I went on and it worked and has helped me.