In Need of Some Advice/Help

Becca3003

Member
Messages
9
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
Hi everyone,

I've just become a member of this forum, however I have had Type 1 diabetes for 18 years. I've never really had any major issues with my control until recently and I'd really appreciate some advice..

Basically earlier this year I got married and my husband and I are now planning on starting a family. I've spoken to my consultant who said I needed to get my HbA1c down to a good reading ready for pregnancy and my GP told me I needed to loose weight (I wasn't on the large side, quite slim really but she said I was considered obese with my BMI).. She started me on Folic acid tablets which I've already started taking, and said how much she wanted me to loose by the time I saw her next. So I started dieting (I calorie count) and exercise on a daily basis (I have an exercise bike I use at home), and that has been going really well for me, I've lost 2st but don't want to loose much more. With doing this type of dieting I've obviously changed what I've been eating and having smaller portions which has also had a huge impact on my blood sugar levels. My HbA1c has gone from 70 to 49 which is brilliant, although I'm told it still needs to be lower for getting pregnant. I had been going hypo on a daily basis but after much trial and error I've sorted that as much as I can and really only go hypo now if I've exercised too much or accidentally done a little too much insulin.

Now for the bit I need help with.. this weekend just gone I've gone from having fairly normal readings to going higher than normal. I haven't changed anything in my diet or exercise however my blood sugars are creeping up. On Saturday I woke up with a blood sugar of around 8, which isn't bad, but I had my usual breakfast and allocated the amount of insulin for it. By lunch time around 5/6 hours later, my blood sugar had risen to 11.6. Now I know this isn't ridiculously high but it's higher than I need them to be. I had my usual lunch and did extra insulin - which should have made me go hypo. By dinner time, I tested again and it hadn't moved from 11.6 which I was confused by. I exercised and got it down to 3.4, I had something to eat to bring it up to 6. But then over night it had started to creep up again, and in the morning it had risen to 10, when usually it would have started to drop. Sunday was basically the same as Saturday in regards to readings. And today it's been steadily rising all day, from 4, to 7 and then to 10. I really don't know what to do. As I said, I've done nothing different from what I've been doing for the past few months so can't understand why this is happening.

I'd really appreciate some guidance/help/advice on this if possible.. it's starting to really get to me and having someone to talk to who has possibly had the same experience or just knows what else I should be doing would be great.

Thanks in advance!
Becca :)
 

noblehead

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Spiker

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TOTM ???
Infection??
Are you TTC yet? Taking any meds for that?

All these things can mess with your BG.
 

Becca3003

Member
Messages
9
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
You should always start with some basal testing when bg goes to pot, only then can you begin to look at your insulin to carb ratio:

http://www.salforddiabetescare.co.uk/index2.php?nav_id=1007

Has your HCP's not mentioned doing a carb counting course such as DAFNE, to give you an idea what's involved take a look at the following:

http://www.bdec-e-learning.com/

Thank you, I will look at basel testing and see what results I get from that.

I've never done carb counting before, only calorie count and I've never done a carb counting course and I only know about DAFNE from a friend at work who also is type 1. I think I'll bring it up when I go for my next appointment.
 
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Becca3003

Member
Messages
9
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
TOTM ???
Infection??
Are you TTC yet? Taking any meds for that?

All these things can mess with your BG.
Not TOTM, usually have lower readings for that.. I don't believe I'm ill, feel completely fine.. What's TTC?
 

Spiker

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Type of diabetes
Type 1
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Thank you, I will look at basel testing and see what results I get from that.

I've never done carb counting before, only calorie count and I've never done a carb counting course and I only know about DAFNE from a friend at work who also is type 1. I think I'll bring it up when I go for my next appointment.
If you want to get pregnant as a T1, you need to carb count. Your doctor should have mentioned this to you. In fact if you are trying to get pregnant as a T1 you need your hospital diabetes team to start supporting you, now. They are the experts. You will be in really good hands with them, and they will support you all the way through from conception to delivery, but start working with them sooner rather than later. Good luck Becca. xxx
 
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Becca3003

Member
Messages
9
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
If you want to get pregnant as a T1, you need to carb count. Your doctor should have mentioned this to you. In fact if you are trying to get pregnant as a T1 you need your hospital diabetes team to start supporting you, now. They are the experts. You will be in really good hands with them, and they will support you all the way through from conception to delivery, but start working with them sooner rather than later. Good luck Becca. xxx
My doctor never mentioned to me the need to carb count. My next appointment is in October so I'm hopeful things will be good for then and then go from there. We haven't started trying yet as I wanted to make sure my HbA1c was within the range it should be when trying. I don't want there to be any unnecessary complications. Thank you :) I'm sure I'll be posting about it when the times comes :) xx
 
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noblehead

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Thank you, I will look at basel testing and see what results I get from that.

I've never done carb counting before, only calorie count and I've never done a carb counting course and I only know about DAFNE from a friend at work who also is type 1. I think I'll bring it up when I go for my next appointment.


Unfortunately not many people are aware of the courses until they hear about it on forums such as this.

Meant to say earlier, well done on your weight loss and getting your Hba1c down, that is a remarkable achievement. Make sure you do get your basal dose right as you will always be chasing your tail if you don't, when you do register on the BDEC site and that will help you get sorted with regards to your meal -time ratio's, on there they'll be advice on reducing your insulin for when you do exercise , plus there's also advice on what to do in times of sickness (known as the Sick Day Rules), but do make sure to get enrolled on the DAFNE course or similar.

Good luck on getting pregnant and hope all goes well for you all :)
 
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Daibell

Master
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12,642
Type of diabetes
LADA
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Insulin
Hi. If you are on the Basal/Bolus regime then carb counting is really essential. The aim is to minimise blood sugar levels and swings to avoid hypos. It also avoids weight gain thru excessive insulin. Forget calories and think carbs. Many of us started with a ratio of 1 unit of Bolus to 10gm of carbs and tweaked from there; I have stayed with that ratio as it's about right for me. There are many sources of info for what foods and quantities have 'n' carbs. My DN gave me a Roche leaflet that showed this. Yes, get the Basal right first.
 
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