Advice needed

[Motty54]

Hi everyone,

My son was diagnosed type 1 diabetic in Feb 2018 ( he is 5 years old and autistic)... for the past week he has refused everything to eat and after a few mouthfuls and working himself up he has been sick... same again tonight ( I didn’t inject him for meal as I knew he would do this again and has been sick again)... He appears perfectly well in himself, no stomach bugs etc... my question is... could this be a severe anxiety to do with diabetes or could there Actually be a serious health issue?! He is seeing his consultants on Monday!

 

[Scott-C]

Hi, @Motty54 , I'll tag @Mel dCP , who I think has mentioned she's on the autistic spectrum, so may have some insight into this.

It's not something which I know about, so am likely completely out the ballpark, but. I wonder whether he's making an association between meals and injections, refusing to eat so he won't get injections?

If that's playing a part, some parents have reported recently that their kids have found this gadget a bit more reassuring:

https://www.tickleflex.com

 

[Antje77]

I don't know, but a 5 year old who hasn't eaten or kept food down for a week sounds pretty close to an emergency to me.
Good luck, hope you'll find out what's wrong soon!

 

[LooperCat]

Oh, poor little chap. I am on the spectrum myself, but this isn’t an issue I’ve experienced - also, I was diagnosed as an adult, so could clearly understand the care that I needed. Having said that... I always found the fingerpricking completely sensorily overwhelming, and would go weeks or months without testing because it was just too much. Luckily the Libre came to my rescue, and now I know what my levels are so I can dose correctly.

It could well be that he’s associating food with injections, perhaps try a low carb meal like an omelette that wouldn’t need a jab for - and tell him that it’s a meal he doesn’t need it for well in advance. He may accept the food then.