Hi,
new to this forum and this is my first post. (found this whilst looking for info on pumps).
I was diagnosed 25 years ago at the age of 13.
Like all on here I was thirsty very thirsty, I remember drinking water straight from the tap at school, and if you knew school toilets thats the last place you'd want to drink from, but I was a kid and I had never heard of diabetes or its symptoms.
The bed wetting started, and I was really embarrassed by this and managed to hide this for a while from my parents....its amazing how if you lie on the wet patch for long enough you can dry this out.
My youngest sister had serious digestion problems since birth and she was having various tests done and she was about 4 so my parents had not really noticed my ever increasing thirst as they had been distracted with my sister.
The bed wetting and constant trips to the toilet got worst, and I lost a lot of weight, I had always been thin, but I lost about a stone half, and for a boy who was not over weight before I looked unwell.
I remember I had been riding my bike and told my friends I needed to stop, I got off the bike and bang, the cramp in my legs was unreal, every muscle from my waist, down to my toes had cramp. My legs where just fully locked and I fell over, I was rolling around on the floor in tears due to the pain...trust me cramp in one muscle hurts, but every muscle in both legs was agony.
I couldn't ride the rest of the way home so my friends went for my parents. I think this was the wake up call that I was unwell, they noticed my weight loss, and pale appearance and the thirst and the toilet aspects, combined with the bed wetting and the penny dropped for them. I remember my grandad getting some urine strips from a gentleman he worked with, and me weeing on the strips, sure enough ketones, the number of re tests and family members doing test to make sure that it wasn't a faulty strip, but it was just me who had the strange colour reaction.
The next day I was taken to the doctors, who tested my urine and told my mum that he was referring me to the hospital, and he would send a letter and they would write back with an appointment. Can you believe a postal referral at this stage!
Anyway my mum, had the good sense to take the letter from him and we both went straight up to the hospital. A BM was done and this came out at 33, this meant nothing to me or my mum and the consultant started to talk into his dictophone saying the imortal words "Adolescent Type 1 Diabetes."
Thank goodness for the nurse, a lady called Ina Hampson, who was fantastic, I was taught the diabetic basics and given a glass syringe, methylated spirts and insulin. It was my condition, and I had to do the injection. I was not kept in hospital, as they had the opinion that was not real life, I had to find the right regime for my life. We kept going to the hospital every morning for about two weeks, and I was given the crash course of being a diabetic. Funnily enough I was taught how to count carbs back then, but the carb counting was fixed Eg 40grms for breakfast...no more no less. Sadly Ina was diagnosed with breast cancer within 18 months and died shortly afterwards, but she was one of the NHS stars, I wish I could have thanked her as an adult. How many can remember a nurses name from when they were 13 and now nearly 40.
My parents had a bad time that week at the end of Jan, my youngest sister was diagnosed with Ceaolic's Disease and on the same day them having an appointment to see the dietician for me and then for my sister. It was decided that this was too much info for one day, and they were to deal with my prob and then the following week my sister.
The following december my eldest sister asked for xmas for White bread, as all our diets had switched to high fibre (exception being the Ceaolic who was on her own bread which had to be home made with special flour).
Worst aspect was the unknown, the consultant talking to the dictophone and not me or my mum. The reusable glass syrnge with a needle that looked like a six inch nail, when compared to todays pen needle, and having to compare colours on bm sticks to the side of containers....how far things have come. Thank goodness!