Diabetes Burnout.

[FootyMum16]

I've only been diagnosed since December, but by April i had halved my figures. Now, however, i think i am in burnout. I just cannot bring myself to care at the moment and i am so frustrated with food. I think now the hotter weather has hit, i;m finding it tough, i am SOOOOOOOOOO fed up of salad, normally i would graze throughout the day or have a ploughmans etc and apparently i cant do any of that because, you know, carbs & pastry. I have limited time to cook/eat because of my lifestyle, and lets be honest, who wants to cook when its hot outside (no we do not have a BBQ)
I have half an hour for lunch when i am working, and i dont have time to cook/batch cook as we are out 6 days out of 7 for my daughters clubs which can take all day on weekends for tournaments. I'm at my wits end and often find myself on the verge of tears.

 

[debs248]

I've only been diagnosed since December, but by April i had halved my figures. Now, however, i think i am in burnout. I just cannot bring myself to care at the moment and i am so frustrated with food. I think now the hotter weather has hit, i;m finding it tough, i am SOOOOOOOOOO fed up of salad, normally i would graze throughout the day or have a ploughmans etc and apparently i cant do any of that because, you know, carbs & pastry. I have limited time to cook/eat because of my lifestyle, and lets be honest, who wants to cook when its hot outside (no we do not have a BBQ)
I have half an hour for lunch when i am working, and i dont have time to cook/batch cook as we are out 6 days out of 7 for my daughters clubs which can take all day on weekends for tournaments. I'm at my wits end and often find myself on the verge of tears.

Sounds weird given the hot weather but would soups be helpful? They're easy to cook, quite quick to make, easy to make low carb and if you're really short of time there are good ones available ready made. Some can even be eaten cold, I have enjoyed this one cold from the bottle like a smoothie

 

[KennyA]

I've only been diagnosed since December, but by April i had halved my figures. Now, however, i think i am in burnout. I just cannot bring myself to care at the moment and i am so frustrated with food. I think now the hotter weather has hit, i;m finding it tough, i am SOOOOOOOOOO fed up of salad, normally i would graze throughout the day or have a ploughmans etc and apparently i cant do any of that because, you know, carbs & pastry. I have limited time to cook/eat because of my lifestyle, and lets be honest, who wants to cook when its hot outside (no we do not have a BBQ)
I have half an hour for lunch when i am working, and i dont have time to cook/batch cook as we are out 6 days out of 7 for my daughters clubs which can take all day on weekends for tournaments. I'm at my wits end and often find myself on the verge of tears.

Have you tried any of the low-carb "bread" that's around? Not like real bread but serves a purpose for sandwiches etc.

Today I had a low carb bagel (around 6g carb) with pastrami and cream cheese, and a couple of pickle spears. No carb apart from the bagel. Omelettes are very quick to make with any or all of salami, ham, scallions, salmon, tomato, cheese (not supermarket cheddar, life's too short).

I also keep a supply of Lidl's German and Polish sausage - maybe 1g carb per 100g, fine cold but heats up nicely and does well hot, particularly fried with onions and covered in melted grated cheese. And Heinz now have a very low sugar ketchup - it's a bit runnier than standard but added to the sausage, melted cheese, mustard....

 

[saucequery]

I think I've got everything burnout.
I've been migrated from "legacy benefits" to universal credit, and got my first statement for my first UC payment. Looks like transitional protection has gone out the window and my benefits are going to be about £200/month lower. Opened my post and found out that I no longer qualify for full council tax support because I'm now on UC, so now have an extra £30/month to budget for.

I've just had a **** it all moment and had a sandwich and quarter of a slice of chocolate cake for tea.

I'm fed up of constantly thinking about food, what's ok to eat, what I actually *want* to eat, whether I've got my basal insulin right, whether my ratios are right, having to explain why I'm not having snacks at groups I go to, talking and thinking about diabetes, and of course actually having diabetes.
And obviously self sabotaging a la dinner tonight.

 

[debs248]

I think I've got everything burnout.
I've been migrated from "legacy benefits" to universal credit, and got my first statement for my first UC payment.

That happened to me at the end of last year and I seriously believe the stress of it all made me diabetic.

Looks like transitional protection has gone out the window and my benefits are going to be about £200/month lower. Opened my post and found out that I no longer qualify for full council tax support because I'm now on UC, so now have an extra £30/month to budget for.

That sounds crazy. How do they expect people to live?

I've just had a **** it all moment and had a sandwich and quarter of a slice of chocolate cake for tea.

Understandable. I hope you enjoyed it.

I'm fed up of constantly thinking about food, what's ok to eat, what I actually *want* to eat, whether I've got my basal insulin right, whether my ratios are right, having to explain why I'm not having snacks at groups I go to, talking and thinking about diabetes, and of course actually having diabetes.
And obviously self sabotaging a la dinner tonight.

One sandwich and small cake is self care, not sabotage. Obviously don't do that at every meal.

Can you distract yourself with eg some favourite music? Personally I find a good cry helps but we're all different.

Hugs and hope things look a bit better soon.

 

[Hopeful34]

I've been migrated from "legacy benefits" to universal credit, and got my first statement for my first UC payment. Looks like transitional protection has gone out the window and my benefits are going to be about £200/month lower. Opened my post and found out that I no longer qualify for full council tax support because I'm now on UC, so now have an extra £30/month to budget for.

Have you queried that with DWP? That's an awful lot of money to lose. Also, it's worth checking on work and benefits website, as there's a lot of helpful info and guides for different situations.

 

[Sally66]

I've only been diagnosed since December, but by April i had halved my figures. Now, however, i think i am in burnout. I just cannot bring myself to care at the moment and i am so frustrated with food. I think now the hotter weather has hit, i;m finding it tough, i am SOOOOOOOOOO fed up of salad, normally i would graze throughout the day or have a ploughmans etc and apparently i cant do any of that because, you know, carbs & pastry. I have limited time to cook/eat because of my lifestyle, and lets be honest, who wants to cook when its hot outside (no we do not have a BBQ)
I have half an hour for lunch when i am working, and i dont have time to cook/batch cook as we are out 6 days out of 7 for my daughters clubs which can take all day on weekends for tournaments. I'm at my wits end and often find myself on the verge of tears.

Sorry to hear this but totally understand how you feel. This hot weather is not helping at all. Like you, I too feel exhausted and overwhelmed at times. In times past I’d say talk to your GP or diabetes team but I know for many this is almost impossible these days. Lots of us on here to talk to though so keep reaching out.

 

[Prancy]

I've only been diagnosed since December, but by April i had halved my figures. Now, however, i think i am in burnout. I just cannot bring myself to care at the moment and i am so frustrated with food. I think now the hotter weather has hit, i;m finding it tough, i am SOOOOOOOOOO fed up of salad, normally i would graze throughout the day or have a ploughmans etc and apparently i cant do any of that because, you know, carbs & pastry. I have limited time to cook/eat because of my lifestyle, and lets be honest, who wants to cook when its hot outside (no we do not have a BBQ)
I have half an hour for lunch when i am working, and i dont have time to cook/batch cook as we are out 6 days out of 7 for my daughters clubs which can take all day on weekends for tournaments. I'm at my wits end and often find myself on the verge of tears.

Self care can be a lot of work and require a lot of energy. I’ve managed type 1 for over 24 years and feel fortunate I’m still pretty healthy and vital. I realize everyone is busy, but have you considered a weekend get-a-way or retreat? I realize that might not be feasible for everyone. I took one with friends to a lovely lake/mountain resort over a year ago and it changed my life. I’m not sure if it was the scenery, animals, nature, music, friendships, etc. But, I left that place with renewed dedication to my health and fitness. I have posted on this site about it before, because it was a real life changer for me. Inspiration just seemed to appear during that retreat.

I am a survivor and the joy I can get from life is so precious. So, every day I have mobility, energy and good function I am inspired to nurture it with diet, exercise and focus on health. I don’t have much family support but my friends cheer me on. And, support from the online diabetes community is priceless! I’m so grateful for that.

I might also suggest to gather a list of songs that inspire you and make a playlist so you can play them throughout the day. One of my favorites is High Hopes by Panic At The Disco. It’s on You tube.

Hope things are getting better!

 

[saucequery]

Thanks @debs248 and @Hopeful34
I think I've got the transitional protection bit sorted out now, just waiting for them to deal with my housing element.

Still beyond not managing the D word. I've got a constant background worry that if my basal's wrong then everything else is going to be out of whack.

I'm hesitant to speak to the diabetes service, they just seem to tell me that my libre looks great, they're normally dealing with people who have persistent dangerous levels of lows/highs, and sound like they've run out of patience with me.

I've tried to get some mental health support with all the anxiety around this/feeling suicidal at times but got told I'm too unwell to access the specialist diabetes psych team, but don't fit the criteria for general support. Instead I got a referral to a health and wellbeing coach - phone appointment for the assessment - who just banged on about how he's helped people lose 50kg and get their health back on track that way.
I'm 8 1/2 stone. I haven't bothered making a further appointment.

I want to stop the feeling that I really don't want to be here any more. I want to stop being scared of food. I want to not be on insulin. I want to not wake up tomorrow - I don't feel like I can cope with another week of this, let alone the rest of my life. At the moment I've got a cat that gives me a reason to try keep going, but she's not going to be around forever. My life is just * empty * (no friends/family, feel like I've lost the capacity for joy) and I can't see any way it's going to get better, just worse.
Think I'm going to give the chocolate cake self comforting a miss tonight and just have a big snotty pity party cry.

 

[debs248]

I think I've got the transitional protection bit sorted out now, just waiting for them to deal with my housing element.

That sounds promising, I assume it's backdated and you'll get a lump sum eventually.

Still beyond not managing the D word. I've got a constant background worry that if my basal's wrong then everything else is going to be out of whack.

I'm not on insulin but I'd agree that getting basal right is fundamental to stability/ management. Someone on the forum likened it to the foundations of a house - if the foundations are wobbly, everything you build on top will be extra wobbly as a result.

I'm hesitant to speak to the diabetes service, they just seem to tell me that my libre looks great, they're normally dealing with people who have persistent dangerous levels of lows/highs, and sound like they've run out of patience with me.

If your libre looks great to them, perhaps your basal is good enough?

I've tried to get some mental health support with all the anxiety around this/feeling suicidal at times but got told I'm too unwell to access the specialist diabetes psych team, but don't fit the criteria for general support. Instead I got a referral to a health and wellbeing coach - phone appointment for the assessment - who just banged on about how he's helped people lose 50kg and get their health back on track that way.
I'm 8 1/2 stone. I haven't bothered making a further appointment.

He sounds like a bit of a knob, maybe tell whoever referred you that he wasn't suitable and ask for someone else? In some parts of the country you can self-refer for mental health support, and there are charities which offer support too.

I want to stop the feeling that I really don't want to be here any more. I want to stop being scared of food. I want to not be on insulin. I want to not wake up tomorrow - I don't feel like I can cope with another week of this, let alone the rest of my life.

It's tough, but it can get better. Maybe break it down into smaller units of time - get through an hour, then a day etc. It won't always look so bleak.

At the moment I've got a cat that gives me a reason to try keep going, but she's not going to be around forever. My life is just * empty * (no friends/family, feel like I've lost the capacity for joy) and I can't see any way it's going to get better, just worse.

That is pretty much the definition of depression. If you tell your GP about these feelings they will have to refer you for help. Or you may be able to self refer.

Think I'm going to give the chocolate cake self comforting a miss tonight and just have a big snotty pity party cry.

I find a good cry very helpful. All those emotions flood out and are washed away along with the stress hormones. A good laugh can work too but harder to achieve when depressed. If your cat likes being stroked that is also very comforting.

I offer a virtual hug, you are going to get through this, one minute/ hour/ day at a time.

 

[saucequery]

Thank you x
I've spoken to my GP (he's who referred me to the MH services, who then referred me on to health and wellbeing ) and we've changed my antidepressants from sertraline to citalopram and seeing how it goes. Had a huge mh crash on Sunday, which I put down to my period unexpectedly popping up on Monday - deliberately took too much bolus, and then ate my way back when my cat started fussing at me - reckon that if I go, she'll just get put down rather than rehomed and that's not fair on her.

I accessed one of the local Mh charities last year and got told not to worry if I didn't feel like eating all my lunch etc, I don't have to- I had to explain repeatedly to them that taking insulin kind of means I do have to..

Still ****** about with the basal and bolus ratios. Had a few unnerving episodes where my BG keeps dropping even after snacks and i feel like the very hungry caterpillar (took half a can of coke, 2 jelly babies, a cappuccino and then going nuclear with a kitkat to eventually get from 3.8 up to 7 after lunch the other afternoon).

Dropped my abasaglar down a unit yesterday, this morning's fasting BG was 8-ish; doubled my usual bolus for breakfast and got to just about under 7 before lunch.

Libre alarm went off an hour ago, checked and it was 5.2 - had a mini ice cream @ 14g of carbs and it's still going down - now 4.8 :***:
Think I'm going to swallow my pride (and a few more carbs) and try speak to the diabetes service again tomorrow (and ask them to go gentle with me).


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