Does type 1 diabetes affect your social life? If so, how?

[Type1Bri]

Yeah being T1 has had a great positive effect on my social life. Some of the best people I know are my diabuddies. This pic was taken at a recent www.t1dlondonmeetups.co.uk event

 

[NoKindOfSusie]

Good thing nobody told me about the problems with long haul flights, I've done five recently, another coming up on wednesday and no problems so far.

The problem is just being in interesting places and being invited out to do stuff and just feeling give-uppy and saying no to everything because it's just more trouble than it's worth. Can I go out to Pizza Rev (look it up, it's awesome) with everyone, yes, but will I be paying for it in toes in five or ten or twenty years time, probably. Thank god for the coffee bean and tea leaf and their wonderful low-carb teas.

 

[lmc]

Hello everybody!

I am currently a student at Canadian International School in Singapore. As a part of my recent assessment in Science class, I have been assigned to write an essay about hormonal therapies and their impacts on certain areas. I decided to choose insulin therapy since its very common and affects millions of people, which means I can study my topic easier. As part of my primary research, I decided to come to this forum, since I can trust the answers I get here. Anyways, to the point :-

I really want to know, especially type 1 diabetics, how does insulin therapy affect your daily life?

I would love everyone who uses the therapy daily to provide some knowledge and experience to me, all answers are appreciated!

Thanks a lot everyone

Stay healthy!!

People have mentioned diabetes burnout but not depression and anxiety. You are still looking after your diabetes but sometimes you just want it all to stop. Your unusual hypos scare you, it takes way to long to recover and you get scared of going out alone. The people who should help you, your diabetic consultant is not interested as you are depressed and dismisses anything you say and just tell you that you need counselling. Your hospital diabetic nurse tells you to see the community diabetic nurse who tells you you have been discharged. You rarely see the lead diabetic nurse as they told you that you had a TIA by phone when it turns out to be a bad hypo which your GP explains your blood sugar must have been so low you should not have been able to walk and talk.

Good diabetes care at hospitals seem to be pot luck. You changed from animal insulin to humulin back in the 90's and changed back a year later after losing hypo symptoms and having 1-3 hypos a day with no help or follow up for a year from diabetes team.

Every time you go to hospital they try to persuade you to change insulin. You have tried nearly every one there is without success and always go back to animal insulin. Every hospital visit and new consultant is the same. You are approved for insulin pump but cannot get one as diabetes nurse cannot get blood levels low enough, same reason approved for pump. Even, if you got a pump, they will not give you animal insulin.

Diabetic for 40 years since child, still waiting for chats about alcohol, contraceptives,travel. Only advice about pregnancy " Are you planning on having children? Diabetics are a nightmare when pregnant".

Proliferative retinopathy spotted by optician. Diabetic checks always irregular.

I have noticed that most people who say diabetes does not impact on their life seem to have been diagnosed as adults or have not had it most of their life. People my age had no pumps, glass syringes until AIDS no blood meters only urine tests until 20 years after being diagnoised

 

[NoKindOfSusie]

Update (at 6.30am because jet lag)

The TSA (American airport security) were fine, they were rude and abrupt but then they're rude and abrupt to everyone because they think they're really important... ANYWAY...

They're certainly a lot nicer than the average DSN since if you ask a question they tend to answer it.

So yes you can travel, it will not however actually be any fun, it will be like watching your own body travelling around the world while you operate it remotely. I didn't really have a social existence because socialising involves drinking and eating both of which are so screwed up and abnormal that it isn't enjoyable, it's a totally horrible miserable experience which just reminds you of how messed up you are. Then people will say "We're going out for a walk to..." and it really doesn't matter where they're going because if it's more than a mile and they choose to walk quickly you will end up being left in a bucket by the side of the road.

So you stay in the hotel. Why would there be depression and anxiety.

 

[NoKindOfSusie]

This is so not my experience. I have travelled to the US about 20 times since being diagnosed and found airport security polite at all times both when I had pens and, more recently, when I have a pump.
On average, I'd say my American airport security experience, is far better than the British equivalent.

Have to admit yup it was fine.

In Phoenix they seemed surprised I didn't have ice packs. I had already worked out that there are places on this planet I can basically never ever go again, since it's more than 30 degrees there and will destroy all the drugs, but Phoenix in December didn't seem likely to be that.

 

[catapillar]

Being type 1 has had literally emphatically zero impact on my social life. There is nothing I can't drink, I cant eat, I can't travel. I can do all of those things with no issues. I go out for dinner, I go out for drinks, I go round to friends for dinners, I cook for them, I get on planes. If you want to drink, drink, test your blood sugar occasionally through the evening if you feel like it, the only one who will notice is you, unless the drink makes you decide it's a good idea to stand up on the bar as you test. If you want to go out for dinner, go for it. There is nothing you can't eat because of type 1, you just have to inject for it. Again no ones going to notice you injecting at the dinner table and it will take you less that a minute to test and inject. If you want to travel, get on a plane. Security staff see hundreds of diabetics with pumps CGMs needles every day and they couldn't be less interested.

I think the only change made due to type 1 was when the girls organising a hen do (my friend getting married was a doctor and the bridesmaids were doctors) were very sweet and asked if I needed anything special on the weekend. I asked them it they could save the packaging from the evening spread they would be putting out before I arrived so I could carb count for it. It's hardly a massive imposition.

I've never had an issue from friends/colleagues I socialise with that I will occasionally test when out. If anyone I was socialising with did have a problem with it all that would show is that they aren't some one I want to waste my time with because I have no interest in socialising with ignorant bigots.

 

[Deleted Account]

I had already worked out that there are places on this planet I can basically never ever go again, since it's more than 30 degrees there and will destroy all the drugs,

I have travelled to many places above 30degrees many without fridges as I camp in the middle of nowhere and hike through the day. Using Frio pouches, I have never “destroyed” my insulin.

 

[Scott-C]

I have travelled to many places above 30degrees many without fridges as I camp in the middle of nowhere and hike through the day. Using Frio pouches, I have never “destroyed” my insulin.

I was in India in 1998 when it was hitting 48 degrees - even the Indians were complaining about the heat! Went up to Darjeeling to get away from it. Was away for six months, insulin lasted fine without seeing a fridge or a frio the whole time. Maybe they made insulin tougher in those days!

 

[NoKindOfSusie]

Maybe they made insulin tougher in those days!

Maybe, I have no interest in being the guinea pig to find that out.

I have family in India and oh well, they'll have to come to me in future. Which they won't. But whatever.

Helen I am not sure I really want to get into this but "it's hardly a massive imposition" is not the first thing I would have said.

 

[catapillar]

Helen I am not sure I really want to get into this but "it's hardly a massive imposition" is not the first thing I would have said.

I believe that was directed at me, as the quotes are my words, taken from post #46?

I'm not saying diabetes isn't a massive imposition, although that probably wouldn't be a phrase I'd use to describe it. What I was saying was the one time I can think of where diabetes did have an impact on my social life that impact was minimal.

It's interesting that you say you're not sure you really want to get into this, yet you seem to be perfectly content that every single comment you have made relates to not being able to do X Y or Z. It is not diabetes stopping you doing anything. It is you choosing not to do things. All the things you have mentioned: travel, eating, running, drinking are all perfectly doable with diabetes. If you want to, you have decided you don't want to. If you just got over yourself and got on with it then youd be getting on with it and the diabetes will be coming along with you. Yeah the diabetes might make itself a pain in the neck at times and there's a significant further mental effort required for the extra decisions but time wise it doesn't take time, it will be made to fit in around all the other stuff you are doing. You aren't your full time nurse because you have to test your blood sugar and inject. Youre just someone looking after youself. I bet you don't think of yourself as your own carer because you have to wipe your own bum and pull your own knickers up, yet if someone can't do that themselves the person doing it for them is called a carer. You have decided it's the end of the world and you've determined to be right about that by making the decisions that you can't do this or that. It isn't the end of the world and if you chose to look at it differently and not let it stop you doing things it won't be, but perhaps your personality type is on the pessimistic side you and you find it difficult to look at things in reality. Or perhaps the diagnosis was very traumatic and you need to explore counselling to deal with it.

You posting over and over again that you can't do this and that because of type 1 is harmful to me and every other type 1 because it perpetuates the completely incorrect assumption that I can't go for a run, I can't go out for dinner, I can't go anywhere over 30 degrees, when I can. And so can you.

 

[Jaylee]

I was in India in 1998 when it was hitting 48 degrees - even the Indians were complaining about the heat! Went up to Darjeeling to get away from it. Was away for six months, insulin lasted fine without seeing a fridge or a frio the whole time. Maybe they made insulin tougher in those days!

Lol, I was in Kodaikanal around that time.. Happy days!

 

[Scott-C]

Lol, I was in Kodaikanal around that time.. Happy days!

Indeed!

It's understandable recently dx'd being angry, cautious etc. etc. and thinking extended trips abroad are a thing of the past, I felt that way too for a while after dx, but after learning the rules, I figured out if I can treat a hypo here, I can treat it anywhere!

 

[NoKindOfSusie]

I believe that was directed at me, as the quotes are my words, taken from post #46

Yes you sorry.

All I say is that we both probably feel very differently about the amount of risk we are willing to take. Can I go out and eat pasta and ice cream, am I physically able to put it in my mouth, chew and swallow, sure, is that a good idea, no it isn't. I am doing what I am told. I don't know what you've been told, when I say I can't do something I don't mean you can't do something. It is already very clear that I am never going to be any good at this like the people who have had it all their lives and I'm not going to question you for a second. I am doing what I am told, avoiding fast carbs and I am still not getting the numbers they want. So taking further risks seems like a pretty bad idea. About running (or even walking too far or too fast) I can run about a fifth of the distance I used to at half speed before I run out of energy in a way that is really frightening. So fine clobber me, tell me I'm an idiot, I have people telling me to do certain things that just don't work and it is scary. I am doing my best. It will pretty obviously never be good enough but I am not going to be sitting in hospital in twenty years cursing myself for eating bad stuff.