Getting over Diabulemia

[Heatherlou18]

I have had Type 1 Diabetes for 14 years and have always struggled. I am a perfectly healthy size 10 however I have had mild eating disorders in the past and have had my weight as low as 6.5 stone but I am now starting to think that my issue with diabetes is because I gain weight every time my blood sugars get better and panic.
If I know ive put on weight I purposely miss injections to get back to where I was and sometimes go days without injecting Its embarrassing when there are people who are twice my size that have their diabetes nailed with perfect sugars and I cant seem to keep mine stable. Ive not done DAFNE yet and Im done making excuses for myself because I want to sort my diabetes out..

Has anyone been in a similar situation and if so is it possible to keep weight under control whilst significantly improving diabetes?

I exercise and eat healthily - no carbs in evening apart from dinner with my mum on a sunday and don't eat rubbish - I don't drink or smoke but need a bit of advice.

 

[noblehead]

Hi @Heatherlou18

Hopefully you'll get some replies soon, but I wonder if you've seen the following, its a website set-up for people with type 1 diabetes and have a eating disorder:

http://www.dwed.org.uk/

 

[Heatherlou18]

@noblehead Thanks I'll have a look !

 

[carbmyenthusiasm]

I have had Type 1 Diabetes for 14 years and have always struggled. I am a perfectly healthy size 10 however I have had mild eating disorders in the past and have had my weight as low as 6.5 stone but I am now starting to think that my issue with diabetes is because I gain weight every time my blood sugars get better and panic.
If I know ive put on weight I purposely miss injections to get back to where I was and sometimes go days without injecting Its embarrassing when there are people who are twice my size that have their diabetes nailed with perfect sugars and I cant seem to keep mine stable. Ive not done DAFNE yet and Im done making excuses for myself because I want to sort my diabetes out..

Has anyone been in a similar situation and if so is it possible to keep weight under control whilst significantly improving diabetes?

I exercise and eat healthily - no carbs in evening apart from dinner with my mum on a sunday and don't eat rubbish - I don't drink or smoke but need a bit of advice.

I put on more weight when I take more insulin. I take more insulin when I exercise less because my sensitivity is lower.

My suggestion would be to first get a handle on your sugars even at the expense of your weight. Then you can start to exercise more, test more, but do not skip your insulin. Eat a balanced diet. Do not skip breakfast and do not skip carbs or fats, especially if you like to exercise. Those are the fuels that your body needs. If you skip them, your body will release its own and can make you put MORE weight on! Including giving cholesterol and thyroid problems. Eat. Exercise. Eat. Sleep. Repeat. DAFNE won't teach you anything you shouldn't have worked out in 14 years.

 

[rachel162]

Hi @Heatherlou18, I'm not sure if my situation is quite similar enough to yours but it's along the same lines so:

A few years ago I spent a couple of months in a specialist hospital with anorexia, and I'd lowered my insulin drastically not to lose weight (I didn't know it made you put it on at the time) but because I just wasn't eating enough and I'd have been low all the time. It was a very tough time and my dosing was carefully monitored, but by nurses who knew very little about diabetes so it was difficult to explain about changing my dose as I was eating more, but we got there eventually.

Diabetes is a difficult condition to live with. I've had it for 19 years (I'm 21), and I still have days, weeks or even months at a time when it feels like it's so out of control that I'll never get it right! But so long as you're doing your best often that's enough; I'd rather have odd blips than have perfect diabetes to the detriment of everything else in my life!

I'd say don't try and fix everything at once. Like @carbmyenthusiasm I'd recommend prioritising the diabetes and trying not too focus too much on the weight till your levels are a bit more stable, and just remind yourself that once this is sorted you can focus on your weight if you want to, so you're not ignoring it, just putting it on pause for a bit.

In terms of weight I'd say if your diet and exercise is good, just stick with it, and very gradually lower your calories until you're losing again. Although at a size ten I doubt you've got much losing to do! Just make sure you're getting enough calories as well; if you're eating too little your metabolism will slow right down. I exercise quite a lot but tend to go fairly low carb (plenty of veg, but less on the pasta, rice etc) and quite high protein just for the lean-ness it helps me achieve (and I guess I'm using less insulin but I never really thought of it like that), but just experiment with different things and see what works for you...or maybe just changing your routine in general would be the help you need??

I know this is hard, but hopefully some of what I and others have suggested might help. We're all here to support!

Rachel

 

[Juicyj]

To be honest I struggle some days to get stable blood glucose even though I eat low carb, I try not to get too obsessed with my monitor's results and try to focus on getting on with life. My Insulinx calculates my carb ratios for me and my correction doses, so it stops me getting too fixated on numbers, however life always throws curve balls like this morning took my basal but forgot my QA so I was running at 21 when I checked 30 mins ago, doh !!

I appreciate when I was younger I was fixated with my weight, I was very sensitive to what people thought about me, now at the age of 43 I still try to keep my weight down, but do i care what anyone else thinks.. nah, nowadays it's about enjoying life, and keeping my BG as controlled as I can. Your priorities will change but if you continue to eat healthy and exercise then please do not worry about your weight, your quality of your life should your focus which means taking your insulin as this is the key to a long and healthy life

 

[Heatherlou18]

Thanks @Juicyj I think its nice to know that people with controlled diabetes have bad days too! I think I wish too much for perfect diabetes I lose focus on the important bits. Thanks @rachel162 for the tips! I need to just take it as it is for a few months whilst I get it stable then work my bum off after! Ive read info about sugar levels spiking when you do cardio as your body releases glucose in a panic? Do you have any experience of this? <3

 

[rachel162]

If it's slow, steady cardio then I tend to go down, but if it's short and intense cardio or weights then I'll spike at first; I know a lot of people need to do extra insulin for that but I find that it almost 'catches up with me', ie I'll come back down again a few hours later and if I've done any insulin I'll just be too low. But if I'm going to eat not too long after I'll do a bit of insulin just to avoid the high. Its annoying but manageable...lots of blood tests is probably the way to go to see what works best (oh the joy ) x

 

[donnellysdogs]

I've been size 8/10 majority of my life. Ate one meal a day for vast majority of my 52 years...

Also had pretty good levels.. Lower levels rather than higher.

Because I only eat once a day it has been easier for me to get my basal levels good...so I can be fit and do my job.. ( Gardening) and also the gym.

I go to gym either in morning or afternoon.. Its harder to get good levels going in the morning as I have waling phenomen and to counteract this have to have a bolus.. And going to the gym first thing can be a bit hard to balance. Afternnon before my dinner is best.

It is has been easier for me because nobody except my recent consultant has ever asked what I eat... My current consultant is 100% behind my food which is meditereanean food (salads), fresh fruit salad and chia and flax seeds.

I cannot tolerate a lot of foods such as bread, pasta, rice or any sweeteners and even some preservatives can harm my body.. So I have had to find my own way around foods to give enough vitamins, minerals and enough healthy fat to stop me lising weight and maintain my health.

I think this is the most vital thing... To ensure you have essential vitamins and minerals and fats from your food.

I can honestly say that "heavy" carbs to me are killers.. Bread gives horrendous tennis ball shapes in my stomach and agonising pain and can block it up... Bread has no nutrional value that I can't get from my healthy balanced other foods. Etc.

If you know how to manage your insulin to do basal resting or can adjyst your insulins with or without eating that is the basic starting point. From there you can work out how to balance your eating...