how can I support best - young persons perspective

[Littlefootsy]

Hi ,
This is a parent - my 19/nearly 20 yr old son is newly diagnosed with Diabetes type 1 - has so much more going of his life -including a mental health breakdown that meant that he had to suspend his studies at a top unie. We now know that the onset of diabetes type 1 wouldn't exactly have helped him - and probably contributed to his breakdown - the diabetes only became apparent several months after the breakdown but he'd now we know being showing sypmtoms for at least a year before hand. He was recovering from the mental health issues but the diabetes has now meant he has an even bigger battle coming to terms with his situation. he's been encouraged to try to focus on getting on with life but he is finding it very hard to think about the next week let alone wheather or not he goes back to unie - or anything else. his confidence has been very knocked,.

Any advice at all as to how I can help him/what I can suggest, how I can support and encourage best / where he could go to get help and support.

He already has lots of professional support but he wants to do so much by himself and there are long gaps in time between his appointments. And I see him struggle so am trying to help him make life easier .

He seems to struggle to do the practical things and he gets cross if I suggest these - so I figure he needs lots of emotional support. however I also understand that he needs to get a few practical things done to make life less stressy.

Any guidance /insight very welcome.

 

[TorqPenderloin]

If he's like me, he probably needs to talk about it to someone who understands....by that, I mean speaking to people who actually live with type 1 rather than a doctor or professional who has knowledge of the disease.

He's at one of the most difficult times of his life right now, and I was "Lucky" to be diagnosed in my late 20s after university (we call it College here in the USA).

He probably needs reassurance and confidence that with solid management he can live a normal life just like anyone else. Part of that will likely involve topics that he may not want to discuss with a family member or professional, but are integral parts of having a positive college/university social experience.

The fact of the matter is that at that age, you put in so much work, but don't yet see the benefits so it's hard to give consistent effort. Diabetes certainly is no exception.

In short, he needs to find others who are thriving with T1 and understand what he's going through at this point in his diagnosis and with life in general. I'd encourage him to join here and suggest that you try not to monitor his activity on the forum and let this be one of his "Safe places" where he can ask questions and share his feelings without worry it will negatively affect his day-to-day life.


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