- Messages
- 18
- Type of diabetes
- Type 1
- Treatment type
- Insulin
Hi everyone
I'm 30 years old, was diagnosed Type 1 at around 18 months old. When I was a kid and in my early teens I was the doctor's dream - the example they told others about for good diabetes control. Then I became a teenager...
I didn't drink heavily as a teen, but as I got older I had some problems in my life which led me to drink more and more and generally not look after myself. Not eating properly, 'forgetting' to do blood tests, not really caring about insulin and viewing my diabetes as a nuisance and something to avoid rather than manage. I think I started to 'manage' my diabetes using Lucozade. I would have an injection, then drink some lucozade instead of eating. Have never been a big eater since my teens and while I'm not underweight, I'm certainly quite thin for my age. I'm around 70kg normally, but this frequently falls to around 67kg when I'm having a bad patch - like now. I'm 5"11 btw.
When I'm having a bad patch, it tends to get very bad. My mid-twenties were a scary time least of all for me, but more for those around me who frequently had to call ambulances for me due to horrific hypos. To be honest sometimes when I'm feeling honest I wonder how the hell I'm still alive. My eating is a problem, I don't eat enough and this has been a problem since I was young. When I go home, my dad and mum try to feed me up and I just can't eat as much as them, I try hard but I get full so quickly. I know I don't eat enough, which is part of the reason I always carry a bottle of lucozade with me. I know that if I don't eat, I can top up with lucozade and I won't have a hypo. (My insulin dosages are generally quite low).
Some people will be reading this and saying "what an idiot", "grow up" etc etc and you're right in a way.
I have had a bad spell for the last few months. In the summer, I went on holiday and ended up in A&E in Hong Kong after collapsing on a street by myself. That was the first incident. Since then, I've had 2 more ambulances called for me. One ended up with me falling down a tube escalator and fracturing my collar bone. And this morning, I had another at a train station. In all but one of the ambulance calls I was alone and random people kindly helped me out.
It's so far beyond ridiculous, I just have constantly been frankly p**sed off about being diabetic and I do try hard to eat more but it's difficult for me. Appetite is a problem, I very rarely feel hungry.
Having a bit of a lengthy moan here, I hope it doesn't seem like I'm attention seeking, that is not the case. I just need to snap out of this and get a grip of myself. I'm waiting for a letter to get an appintment with a specialist diabetic nurse to get better control.
Has anyone else been diabetic for a long time (i.e. can't remember not being diabetic) and had similar issues? Clearly I'm in a bad way and not manging this in any way shape or form and I need to get it sorted out.
Please send your advice (also feel free to be strong with your words, I need it - no one around me knows how bad it is, I keep it a secret and hide it well).
That was a ramble..
Thanks
Kev
I'm 30 years old, was diagnosed Type 1 at around 18 months old. When I was a kid and in my early teens I was the doctor's dream - the example they told others about for good diabetes control. Then I became a teenager...
I didn't drink heavily as a teen, but as I got older I had some problems in my life which led me to drink more and more and generally not look after myself. Not eating properly, 'forgetting' to do blood tests, not really caring about insulin and viewing my diabetes as a nuisance and something to avoid rather than manage. I think I started to 'manage' my diabetes using Lucozade. I would have an injection, then drink some lucozade instead of eating. Have never been a big eater since my teens and while I'm not underweight, I'm certainly quite thin for my age. I'm around 70kg normally, but this frequently falls to around 67kg when I'm having a bad patch - like now. I'm 5"11 btw.
When I'm having a bad patch, it tends to get very bad. My mid-twenties were a scary time least of all for me, but more for those around me who frequently had to call ambulances for me due to horrific hypos. To be honest sometimes when I'm feeling honest I wonder how the hell I'm still alive. My eating is a problem, I don't eat enough and this has been a problem since I was young. When I go home, my dad and mum try to feed me up and I just can't eat as much as them, I try hard but I get full so quickly. I know I don't eat enough, which is part of the reason I always carry a bottle of lucozade with me. I know that if I don't eat, I can top up with lucozade and I won't have a hypo. (My insulin dosages are generally quite low).
Some people will be reading this and saying "what an idiot", "grow up" etc etc and you're right in a way.
I have had a bad spell for the last few months. In the summer, I went on holiday and ended up in A&E in Hong Kong after collapsing on a street by myself. That was the first incident. Since then, I've had 2 more ambulances called for me. One ended up with me falling down a tube escalator and fracturing my collar bone. And this morning, I had another at a train station. In all but one of the ambulance calls I was alone and random people kindly helped me out.
It's so far beyond ridiculous, I just have constantly been frankly p**sed off about being diabetic and I do try hard to eat more but it's difficult for me. Appetite is a problem, I very rarely feel hungry.
Having a bit of a lengthy moan here, I hope it doesn't seem like I'm attention seeking, that is not the case. I just need to snap out of this and get a grip of myself. I'm waiting for a letter to get an appintment with a specialist diabetic nurse to get better control.
Has anyone else been diabetic for a long time (i.e. can't remember not being diabetic) and had similar issues? Clearly I'm in a bad way and not manging this in any way shape or form and I need to get it sorted out.
Please send your advice (also feel free to be strong with your words, I need it - no one around me knows how bad it is, I keep it a secret and hide it well).
That was a ramble..
Thanks
Kev