Diabetes, Lost Control

[kelp84]

Hi,

I have had type one diabetes for 17 years. I normally have it under ok control (tend to keep between 5 and 10) but I think I only manage this because I do blood tests about 8 or 9 times a day.

Lately, I have been on a diet and managed to lose about a stone, it has been hard as I have obviously had to change my insulin dose gradually as I eat less.

I am having two big problems that I really would like advice on...
First, whilst I have been growing up I have always been advised that exercise helps to bring down sugar levels. This doesnt seem to be the way for me, everytime I go to the gym I seem to spike up, into the 18's and 19's... Is this normal? I am sure this hasnt happened to me before.

I seem to just be running so high lately, and now I have started suffering with really tight muscles in my legs and I am not sure if this is related to my levels being high,

I have started trying to keep a diary of what I am eating and insulin I am taking, I used to see a doctor about my levels, but have recently been moved to see a nurse and she doesnt seem as supportive...

My Hb1ac has raised from 7.6 to 8.4 as per my last check and my control of levels has deteriorated since that was taken,

Any advice anyone can offer me would be really useful, as you can imagine these high levels are really starting to get to me

Thanks

xx

 

[ebony321]

Hi,

It must be frustrating to see your BG's getting higher after being well controlled!

can i ask how old you are?

do you carb count and adjust your insulin according to how much carbohydrates you eat?

do you add extra units of insulin to correct your higher doses?

when you exercise do you eat/drink anything beforehand?

Are your level's contantly high? or do they seem to rise overnight aswell as after exercise, then seem to struggle to get them down during the day?

is it possible for you to make an appointment with the doctor you used to see to see if he can offer better advice and care than the nurse you've been referred to?

alot of questions i know but if you can answer them then maybe it might be easier to pinpoint where your BG's are being affected.

 

[kelp84]

Hi,
I am 25, I have been giving myself extra insulin when my BG has gone up but I am trying not to do that now as I just end up chasing my levels all over the place, and this doenst really help me to fix the original problem of why i am high in the first place!

I do not carb count as such, I think because I have had diabetes for what feels like forever I kind of know what insulin to do with what food, however I dont always get this right, and I suppose it could just be a case of taking the whole thing back to basics and starting again! I have started to keep a diary of what I am eating and how it is affecting me, I am hoping to see a pattern so I can take action and try to sort this out!

I try to test my blood before the gym, and If I am below about 7 I will normally have something, however this isn't happening much at the moment For instance earlier I was 11.8 when I went into the gym, I spent 40 mins on cardio and 10mins on weights, I could feel that I was going high as I felt like I was running in mud as all my muscles started to go tight and my mouth was dry. When I came out I did a blood test and I was 18. This is frustrating as I am trying really hard to get fit and the easiest thing would be to just give up the gym, and in times gone past I have done this, and I end up piling on the pounds, I am determined not to do this this time, as I know there are plenty of diabetics who exercise often and they can't all be putting up with such High levels.

This is when it is hard, as I dont like to eat when I am high, but obviously I will not just totally skip meals, so I injected (novorapid) and ate a salad and chicken (with some rice to stop my levels droping too low as I had taken insulin) So now my levels have been over 18 all night, and like you said this is then carrying over to the morning, where I am starting the day high, and so I am sometimes even struggling to get up as I feel so lethargic.


I am going to make an appointment to see my doctor, but I have been through this all before and I find the appts useless without a good blood glucose diary so I am going to keep track for a couple of weeks so we have something to discuss.

In the meantime I am doing a ridiculous amount of blood tests which is obv making my fingers a bit sore Also whenever I am high my gums start to hurt, which is so weird, I have never seen that anywhere before, but it is def my levels that do it, as they dont hurt when I am ok and I even went to the Dentist to see if there was anything else wrong there!



It is so nice to just have people who understand how all this feels to talk to, and any advice you can offer is really greatly appreciated!

Kelly

x

 

[ebony321]

Hi,
I am 25, I have been giving myself extra insulin when my BG has gone up but I am trying not to do that now as I just end up chasing my levels all over the place, and this doenst really help me to fix the original problem of why i am high in the first place!

I do not carb count as such, I think because I have had diabetes for what feels like forever I kind of know what insulin to do with what food, however I dont always get this right, and I suppose it could just be a case of taking the whole thing back to basics and starting again! I have started to keep a diary of what I am eating and how it is affecting me, I am hoping to see a pattern so I can take action and try to sort this out!

I try to test my blood before the gym, and If I am below about 7 I will normally have something, however this isn't happening much at the moment For instance earlier I was 11.8 when I went into the gym, I spent 40 mins on cardio and 10mins on weights, I could feel that I was going high as I felt like I was running in mud as all my muscles started to go tight and my mouth was dry. When I came out I did a blood test and I was 18. This is frustrating as I am trying really hard to get fit and the easiest thing would be to just give up the gym, and in times gone past I have done this, and I end up piling on the pounds, I am determined not to do this this time, as I know there are plenty of diabetics who exercise often and they can't all be putting up with such High levels.

This is when it is hard, as I dont like to eat when I am high, but obviously I will not just totally skip meals, so I injected (novorapid) and ate a salad and chicken (with some rice to stop my levels droping too low as I had taken insulin) So now my levels have been over 18 all night, and like you said this is then carrying over to the morning, where I am starting the day high, and so I am sometimes even struggling to get up as I feel so lethargic.


I am going to make an appointment to see my doctor, but I have been through this all before and I find the appts useless without a good blood glucose diary so I am going to keep track for a couple of weeks so we have something to discuss.

In the meantime I am doing a ridiculous amount of blood tests which is obv making my fingers a bit sore Also whenever I am high my gums start to hurt, which is so weird, I have never seen that anywhere before, but it is def my levels that do it, as they dont hurt when I am ok and I even went to the Dentist to see if there was anything else wrong there!



It is so nice to just have people who understand how all this feels to talk to, and any advice you can offer is really greatly appreciated!

Kelly

x

I agree it does no good to constantly chase your BG's all day as i used to do the exact same thing!!

Have you heard of the DAFNE course? it's a 5 day course that teaches you to carb count so you adjust your insulin according to what you eat, it also goes through exercise, illness, alcohol etc. and i know ALOT pf people have found it extremely useful!

when i went there was people who had diabetes nearly 50 years, so it really doesnt matter how long you've had diabetes, like you say it's stripping everything down and working from step one, as trying to correct everything at once can be very overwhelming!

i also agree you shouldn't quit the gym, quitting is never the answer and you should be able to do anything any body without diabetes should, and of course exercise is important so it's great you go to the gym and you sound very dedicated to that (wish i was :lol: )

It is nice to have people who understand what your going through to talk to! thats another reason why i loved the DAFNE course!

When correcting your BG's work with the idea that one unit of fast acting insulin with bring it down 2-3mmols (i like to say 3 to be safe ) but don't use more than 4 at a time.

Only if you feel confident in doing it though, when i was first told this i was very dubious about it. but it does work for most people! then at least when you are correcting your insulin you have something to work with and it's not so much guess work.

although you have had diabetes for a long time asyour finding as your body changes and time goes on what worked for you say a year ago might not work so well anymore.

I've never experienced sore gums with high BG's, but alot of people experience different symptoms with high and low BG's!

Definately make an appointment with your GP, sooner you look into things the sooner you can get back on track

I would definately lookinto the DAFNE course, just ask your GP and he/she should be able to give you details so you can decide wether it would be something you would benefit from,

theres even a website, http://www.dafne.uk.com/

hope some of this helps you in just a little way!

 

[kelp84]

You have no idea how much you have helped! It is just nice getting advice from someone who knows what it all feels like!

So how long have you had diabetes?

x

 

[ebony321]

You have no idea how much you have helped! It is just nice getting advice from someone who knows what it all feels like!

So how long have you had diabetes?

x

Awwe it's no problem at all! i remember how many people went out of their way to help me when i was first diagnosed and felt totally overwhelmed!!

I was diagnosed january 09 so about a year and a half now, feels like forever though