Does anyone else with T1 not ever test?

[crushersmum]

I have a T1 son aged 17 who does not ever test - Does anyone else with Type 1 NEVER test & manage ok?

He was told to cut down tests to just once a day by his medical team, about 3 years ago so he did ( he had been testing regularly 3-5 times a day until the day he was told to stop) and as he was not allowed to test, got very good at guessing his sugar levels so when they suggested that he ought to go back to more frequent testing - he didn't and became so good at guessing, that he has now stopped testing entirely.
He has only tested 3-4 times a year since 2009 now, & only when he is ill. The rest of the time he is far better controlled, no hypos and hardly ever angry and grumpy that he used to be when he was high when he was still testing ( his readings were usually 20-30 in the months prior to giving up testing - as again the stupid medical team told him to not adjust insulin if he was high, as "insulin dose is based on body weight not blood sugars" - which is why the same team thought that he didn't need to ever test - but again maybe there are other medical teams giving the same advice to type 1s & it was not just gross incompetence locally.

Thanks - it has been worrying me for a year or two now that he never tests, but as he has had such disasterous advice from his medical team previously, I do not want to ask them.

 

[Anonymous]

To me, that sounds dangerous. Your body gets used to whatever level you have as long as it's not extremely high or low. He could walk around with a bs of 9 for instance and feel fine but in the long run that number isn't good. Also, being a teenager his insulin need should change. I'd get another team for your son, you can't work with someone you don't trust. Now, go find that meter

 

[the east man]

I have a T1 son aged 17 who does not ever test - Does anyone else with Type 1 NEVER test & manage ok?

He was told to cut down tests to just once a day by his medical team, about 3 years ago so he did ( he had been testing regularly 3-5 times a day until the day he was told to stop) and as he was not allowed to test, got very good at guessing his sugar levels so when they suggested that he ought to go back to more frequent testing - he didn't and became so good at guessing, that he has now stopped testing entirely.
He has only tested 3-4 times a year since 2009 now, & only when he is ill. The rest of the time he is far better controlled, no hypos and hardly ever angry and grumpy that he used to be when he was high when he was still testing ( his readings were usually 20-30 in the months prior to giving up testing - as again the stupid medical team told him to not adjust insulin if he was high, as "insulin dose is based on body weight not blood sugars" - which is why the same team thought that he didn't need to ever test - but again maybe there are other medical teams giving the same advice to type 1s & it was not just gross incompetence locally.

Thanks - it has been worrying me for a year or two now that he never tests, but as he has had such disasterous advice from his medical team previously, I do not want to ask them.

Look at the news on the homepage of this website

 

[phoenix]

The rest of the time he is far better controlled, no hypos and hardly ever angry and grumpy that he used to be when he was high when he was still testing ( his readings were usually 20-30 in the months prior to giving up testing

Do you actually know that he is well controlled?
Is he having regular HbA1cs and if so is it at least under 7.5% (the target for people at high risk of hypos, though many people consider this is still quite high)
http://www.diabetes.org.uk/hba1c