Emotional Impact of T1

SurreyDad · Nov 20, 2016

Lifeissweetenough said:
You sound like a really supportive and caring family. I have type 1 and I'm also mum to 2 grown up boys. All I know is type 1 is hard to get ones head around for anyone. Whilst your daughter is coping more than admirably on a physical level, of course she is bound to feel confused/ overwhelmed by the disease. These are big feelings that that the best of us find hard to cope with and I'm sure she can't find the words to know and express herself- especially at such a young age. Her response sounds absolutely natural under the the circumstances. As to counselling? Personally, im a little wary of more 'emotional' prodding, poking and labels at this stage. Don't underestimate a big cuddle (which I'm sure come in ample supply anyway) and someone saying 'I know' without getting too bogged down by the spilt milk/ wrong shoes that your daughter is appearing to get upset about. The tears might well not have anything to do with the 'minor' issue but are a welcome outlet to help her cope with bigger anxieties she can't express at the moment. If things remain tricky and it's hard as a family- have you thought about family counselling? It might help your daughter feel as though you are all in this together as opposed to feeling it's all her- do you know what I mean? Good luck x

Thank you.

We had a bit of a chat with her this morning and I think she is actually fine. She said the injections are a bit annoying, but didn't seem to fussed otherwise - haha!!

As I mentioned before, perhaps we read too much in to her behaviour. Her over reactions are usually when she's had an argument with her sister... perhaps it's her way of dealing with it or trying to keep out of trouble!!

SurreyDad · Nov 20, 2016

meg7024 said:
Hello,

I wasn't diagnosed at 7 years old. I used to get upset for 2 main reasons:

1. I was different from all my friends and family, it wasn't as simple as just going to a friends house to play, it envolved injections & worrying my friends parents. At school having a biscuit or something when the other children couldn't wasn't fun, it was embarrassing. Other children don't understand what diabetes is so you are seen as the "Ill" girl or the outsider.

2. My parents were upset. Of course who wants their daughter to be diabetic?! I could see/sense the strain diabetes put on my parents from all the worry and stress. Luckily I injected myself after a few days of being diagnosed so that helped as they hated doing that. Having a child is worrying enough so add diabetes into it & they will be worried, of course a small parents duties.

To solve this I attended hospital events where I met other children (I still speak to them all to this day) and I also went to diabetes uk trips- a overnight stay with activity, fun and plenty of doctors to look after you. Then I began to feel less alien.

Secondly, don't let your little girl see you're worried and don't single her out. I'm 22 now and diabetes controls my emotions a lot. Give her a normal, happy life and don't let diabetes take control of her childhood.

Apologies if this doesn't make much sense, ironically I feel a little hypo!

Hope this helps good luck.

Thanks for sharing your feelings.

We're quite lucky that she goes to a fairly small school and has lots of friends. She's been very open about her diabetes since diagnosis and has taken books in and answered questions. Her friends even know to keep an eye on her at play times!

That said, I'm sure she does feel different, but hopefully not in a negative way.

We treat her as normal and act like diabetes isn't too big a deal... there's been times where she'll try to get out of tidying up because of diabetes and we'll tell her to stop being ridiculous!

We've asked if she would like to meet some other kids with diabetes and she's said yes, so we'll look in to that.

isjoberg · Nov 20, 2016

SurreyDad said:
Thanks for sharing your feelings.

We're quite lucky that she goes to a fairly small school and has lots of friends. She's been very open about her diabetes since diagnosis and has taken books in and answered questions. Her friends even know to keep an eye on her at play times!

That said, I'm sure she does feel different, but hopefully not in a negative way.

We treat her as normal and act like diabetes isn't too big a deal... there's been times where she'll try to get out of tidying up because of diabetes and we'll tell her to stop being ridiculous!

We've asked if she would like to meet some other kids with diabetes and she's said yes, so we'll look in to that.

I was diagnosed at 18 months so never had to go through realising I had diabetes, it was just something that I grew up with. But when I was 7 I went to a diabetes camp and it was amazing! One week of getting to Jan out with other diabetics and being away from my parents without fear of things going too wrong, plus doing general camp fun activities and being taught how to control my blood sugars in little ways (e.g. It would always sky rocket after abseiling cause of the excitement ) if you get a chance / if she would be interested, I would highly recommend looking into a kids camp as it's a really fun experience and puts you in touch with other diabetics, and for once you are in a situation where everyone has diabetes!

isjoberg · Nov 20, 2016

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Mei_lahn · Nov 20, 2016

Hi there, I'm 39 and was diagnosed T1 earlier this year. Reading your post and other comments led me to wonder how much of your daughter's recent behaviour is connected to the diabetes and I would like to think that most of the fear and anxiety associated with the reality of the responsibility of managing this disease is not yet present or something she is consciously aware of being only 5. As we all know, low or high BG levels affect behaviour and moods. However one thing I have noticed and experienced is that even when my level is normal, I do find that if something doesn't quite work out for me or has gone a little bit wrong, it feels like and IS a mini trauma and I am so emotionally overwhelmed by it, it feels like so much anger just has to erupt and I need to vent almost like my 2yr old, where no amount of reasoning can immediately make it better or right, and I just can't think rationally; I can only be emotional and I can only process these emotions by going through the motions. Afterwards I can look back and think I just had a tantrum rather like a toddler, don't know why it triggered such an exaggerated response but it did. I think it must feel rather like someone who has hormonal problems who can recognise they are a bit Jekyll and Hyde.
I recently read something that connected a 2yr old's behaviour (which is often very emotional) to the huge amount of changes in the brain and I guess what I'm trying to say is that your little one's behaviour could be connected to changes psychologically and physically as a result of the diabetes but it could also be down to her physical development and changes that come about as she discovers the world as a 5yr old. And my approach would be to deal with it and try to approach it from various perspectives. I know as an adult dealing with the changes, it gets a little frustrating when others around me always ask me "if I think something is as a result of or connected to the diabetes" because I don't want the diabetes to define me, or to be an excuse or the cause of everything and I suspect the older she's gets the more she might feel the same way...
I'm in awe of all those that have managed diabetes for several years and from childhood and also for all the little T1s who are so brave. And now that I know what it takes to manage this all day every day, I can see how hard it must also be to be a parent or carer of a diabetic child as I know how much we worry about our kids even when everything seems to be right and normal! I wish you and your family all the best. My first post on the forum and sorry it's such a long one!

snowleopard · Nov 21, 2016

mahola said:
It could be down to the diabetes or it could just be her age. At 5, girls really start to show their true personality. And temper.

And I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but it doesn't get any easier. Hormones have a lot to answer to. I have 2 girls, one with diabetes who's 11. The other a teenager.

Having 3 children and 7 grandchildren, I can assure you that sort of behaviour is entirely normal. It might be related to BS changes but making special allowances because of her condition might have the effect of giving her permission to behave badly. In your shoes I would treat her just like any other child.

SurreyDad · Nov 23, 2016

snowleopard said:
Having 3 children and 7 grandchildren, I can assure you that sort of behaviour is entirely normal. It might be related to BS changes but making special allowances because of her condition might have the effect of giving her permission to behave badly. In your shoes I would treat her just like any other child.

She's not acting badly, that's the thing... she just gets way too upset for a relatively minor thing!

Gpad · Nov 23, 2016

I wouldn't over analyse the mood swings too much, I was diagnosed at 7 and I'm sure I had good days and bad days, kids tend to live in the moment and if something annoys them then everyone will know about it, but it'll be forgotten about an hour later!

AmandaD · Nov 23, 2016

Your little girl is a superstar!! I have a five year old girl and the sulks and tantrums and stomping has nothing to do with diabetes its to do with being 5!!!! As long as you are sure she's isn't hypo or anything her moods could be the result of her age. She has a lot going on in her head anyway and diabetes has been added to that, it's a lot for a little person, hell a big person too to deal with.

Engineer88 · Nov 23, 2016

I re

rockape37 said:
These days i think we are always looking for some sort of medical reason for a particular behaviour. Your little girl is only 5 yrs old, still growing and still learning, mood swings can be very much part of that.

I personally wouldn't have thought that at 5 yrs old would be able to understand enough about diabetes for it to get her down.

Your a worried parent and i do understand your concerns for your little girl.

Regards

Martin

member asking my mum at about 6 if diabetes would kill me, and she answered maybe. Dont underplay a childs emotional needs or ability, they understand so much more than you think.

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