Type 1 New to diabetes type 1

[Bigtony1131]

Hi i am struggling with my blood sugar levels. I'm not carb counting yet but I have days where they are about 5 but then go up into teens and other days opposite. I try to eat eat little and often more or less the same things everyday

 

[Knikki]

Hello @Bigtony1131 Welcome to the forum and going to tag @daisy1 who will post a Welcome pack that explains more about diabetes that you may find interesting/informative.

Are you a Type 1 or Type 2 and how do you control your Blood Sugars normally?

This can have an impact on the kind of advice which can be given but please bear in mind that none of us, as far as I know, are medically trained, so any advice could just be an opinion and or experience from having the condition a long time

 

[Deleted Account]

Welcome to the club.
How long ago were you diagnosed and what is your insulin regime?
You will quickly learn there is a lot to learn, perfection is very difficult, but, hopefully, diabetes should not stop you doing what you want. Albeit with a little more planning.
It is common for the initial type 1 treatment to be gentle. This is bring your bg down gradually, avoid hypos and minimise information overload.
Look around the whole site (not just the forum) and feel free to ask questions.
Remember 9 out of 10 people with diabetes have type 2 so 9 out of 10 people on the forum have type 2.
Everyone is helpful but what works for type 2 is not necessarily applicable to type 2.

 

[Emile_the_rat]

Carbs count are important to keep good blood sugar values, and prevent huge flucations.

You have to find your insulin-to-carb ratio, and here it is no correct answere. The insulin-to-carb ratio are different for everyone. And tell how many carbs you can count per unit of insulin.

You should start to count carbs and how many units you’re taking. Say you eat 15g carbs and take 1 unit (this gives an insulin-to-carb ratio of 1:15) If your blood sugar are still too high your insulin-to-carb ratio should probably be lower, and you need more insulin. If it has to be lower you can try 10g carbs per unit, insulin-to-carb ratio: 1:1. Insulin-to-carb ratio can also be as low as 1:0.5, maybe even lower. While for others it can be way higher.

I have a ratio of 1:2, but thats because I am not total insulin dependent.

It is very important to find your insulin-to-carb ratio to accomplish good blood sugar control

Edit: I kind of assumed you were type 1 because of carb count. Sorry if I assumed wrong, and my answere weren’t that helpfull

 

[Bigtony1131]

Hello @Bigtony1131 Welcome to the forum and going to tag @daisy1 who will post a Welcome pack that explains more about diabetes that you may find interesting/informative.

Are you a Type 1 or Type 2 and how do you control your Blood Sugars normally?

This can have an impact on the kind of advice which can be given but please bear in mind that none of us, as far as I know, are medically trained, so any advice could just be an opinion and or experience from having the condition a long time

Type 1 and got diagnosed in July.

 

[Bigtony1131]

Welcome to the club.
How long ago were you diagnosed and what is your insulin regime?
You will quickly learn there is a lot to learn, perfection is very difficult, but, hopefully, diabetes should not stop you doing what you want. Albeit with a little more planning.
It is common for the initial type 1 treatment to be gentle. This is bring your bg down gradually, avoid hypos and minimise information overload.
Look around the whole site (not just the forum) and feel free to ask questions.
Remember 9 out of 10 people with diabetes have type 2 so 9 out of 10 people on the forum have type 2.
Everyone is helpful but what works for type 2 is not necessarily applicable to type 2.

Hi i have type 1. I do novorapid before meals 4 ml and absalagor 12 ml before bed. Started with novomix 14 ml twice a day but was not right for me.

 

[Bigtony1131]

Carbs count are important to keep good blood sugar values, and prevent huge flucations.

You have to find your insulin-to-carb ratio, and here it is no correct answere. The insulin-to-carb ratio are different for everyone. And tell how many carbs you can count per unit of insulin.

You should start to count carbs and how many units you’re taking. Say you eat 15g carbs and take 1 unit (this gives an insulin-to-carb ratio of 1:15) If your blood sugar are still too high your insulin-to-carb ratio should probably be lower, and you need more insulin. If it has to be lower you can try 10g carbs per unit, insulin-to-carb ratio: 1:1. Insulin-to-carb ratio can also be as low as 1:0.5, maybe even lower. While for others it can be way higher.

I have a ratio of 1:2, but thats because I am not total insulin dependent.

It is very important to find your insulin-to-carb ratio to accomplish good blood sugar control

Edit: I kind of assumed you were type 1 because of carb count. Sorry if I assumed wrong, and my answere weren’t that helpfull

Thankyou. I should be carb counting soon. I will see what my nurse says tomorrow

 

[Bigtony1131]

Thankyou. I should be carb counting soon. I will see what my nurse says tomorrow

I am type 1

 

[Emile_the_rat]

I am type 1

It is critical to count carbs if you’re type 1 and wants to maintain a normal blood sugar

It is very easy to give too much insulin ending with a hypo, or other way around, too little insulin, if you aren’t counting carbs.

It is some work in the start, but you do get used to it and starts to know how much you have to take after some time. Trust me, it is worth it to count carbs in the start, and learn how much you need to take to different meals and stuff

 

[Bigtony1131]

It is critical to count carbs if you’re type 1 and wants to maintain a normal blood sugar

It is very easy to give too much insulin ending with a hypo, or other way around, too little insulin, if you aren’t counting carbs.

It is some work in the start, but you do get used to it and starts to know how much you have to take after some time. Trust me, it is worth it to count carbs in the start, and learn how much you need to take to different meals and stuff

Thankyou I am seeing my nurse tomorrow so hopefully I will be soon. She said about a 6 month period to get on the right track

 

[Emile_the_rat]

Thankyou I am seeing my nurse tomorrow so hopefully I will be soon. She said about a 6 month period to get on the right track

It’s never easy in the start, and can be even harder if diabetes are something unfamiliar or new. You’ll get there, it will be better with time

 

[Bigtony1131]

It’s never easy in the start, and can be even harder if diabetes are something unfamiliar or new. You’ll get there, it will be better with time

Thankyou. I've had a couple of hypo but controlled them. It strange to me when I am regular for a few days then I am in the teens or go below. Thankyou I am new got diagnosed in July

 

[Domi0205]

Hi i am struggling with my blood sugar levels. I'm not carb counting yet but I have days where they are about 5 but then go up into teens and other days opposite. I try to eat eat little and often more or less the same things everyday

Hi, I know how you feel I also still struggling sometimes with stabilising my sugar levels I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes two months ago so still learning a lot about everything but I can help you out if you want to
This forum is extremely supportive so as well you can ask them questions

 

[Emile_the_rat]

Thankyou. I've had a couple of hypo but controlled them. It strange to me when I am regular for a few days then I am in the teens or go below. Thankyou I am new got diagnosed in July

Well there will always be those days when it is a little bit out of control

Hope you’ll never be discouraged by that Diabetes isn’t always easy, and there is a lot of thing that can influence your blood sugar ^^,

 

[daisy1]

@Bigtony1131
Hello and welcome to the Forum Here is the Basic Information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful. Ask questions when you want and someone will be able to help.

BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEW MEMBERS

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 well over 235,000 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

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.

Over 145,000 people have taken part in the Low Carb Program - a 10 week structured education course that is helping people lose weight and reduce medication dependency by explaining the science behind carbs, insulin and GI.

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 blood glucose 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.
Take part in Diabetes.co.uk digital education programs and improve your understanding. Most of these are free.

• Low Carb Program - it's made front-page news of the New Scientist and The Times. Developed with 20,000 people with type 2 diabetes; 96% of people who take part recommend it... find out why
  
  
• Hypo Program - improve your understanding of hypos. There's a version for people with diabetes, parents/guardians of children with type 1, children with type 1 diabetes, teachers and HCPs.
  

 

[Deleted Account]

It is critical to count carbs if you’re type 1 and wants to maintain a normal blood sugar

It is very easy to give too much insulin ending with a hypo, or other way around, too little insulin, if you aren’t counting carbs.

It is some work in the start, but you do get used to it and starts to know how much you have to take after some time. Trust me, it is worth it to count carbs in the start, and learn how much you need to take to different meals and stuff

There is a lot to learn about diabetes.
Some carb count from day 1 but others are advised to get used to injections, BG monitoring etc. when they are first diagnosed and add carb counting at a later date.
This is what I did and experienced no ill effected.
Once I learnt to carb count, I gained more flexibility and control.
However, I would not be putting pressure on a newly diagnosed person with type 1 diabetes to do so: there is more than enough to get your head around and there are people who have lived with type 1 diabetes for 30, 40, 50 or more years including many years before there was an option to match insulin to what they eat.

If @Bigtony1131 has a good nurse, they can decide together when it is a good time to start carb counting.

 

[Dodo]

There is a lot to learn about diabetes.
Some carb count from day 1 but others are advised to get used to injections, BG monitoring etc. when they are first diagnosed and add carb counting at a later date.
This is what I did and experienced no ill effected.
Once I learnt to carb count, I gained more flexibility and control.
However, I would not be putting pressure on a newly diagnosed person with type 1 diabetes to do so: there is more than enough to get your head around and there are people who have lived with type 1 diabetes for 30, 40, 50 or more years including many years before there was an option to match insulin to what they eat.

If @Bigtony1131 has a good nurse, they can decide together when it is a good time to start carb counting.

Totally agree. I had been diabetic for 48 years before I went on a carb counting course, prior to that there were no such courses and just had to go it alone. Been carb counting now for over 4 years and my hba1c has definitely improved.

 

[Emile_the_rat]

There is a lot to learn about diabetes.
Some carb count from day 1 but others are advised to get used to injections, BG monitoring etc. when they are first diagnosed and add carb counting at a later date.
This is what I did and experienced no ill effected.
Once I learnt to carb count, I gained more flexibility and control.
However, I would not be putting pressure on a newly diagnosed person with type 1 diabetes to do so: there is more than enough to get your head around and there are people who have lived with type 1 diabetes for 30, 40, 50 or more years including many years before there was an option to match insulin to what they eat.

If @Bigtony1131 has a good nurse, they can decide together when it is a good time to start carb counting.

I started carb count from day 1, and that helped me very much

But then again, diabetes was not something new for me, so maybe that helped me adapt easiler. So I understand it could much for someone in the start, when you have to learn all from scratch

But the earlier you start counting, the easier it would be to control blood sugar in my opinion

 

[Bigtony1131]

Thankyou for all the advice. I've seen nurse today and said all going well and pleased. All your comments have helped me.