• Guest - w'd love to know what you think about the forum! Take the 2025 Survey »

Husband in hospital newly diagnosed

B

becksbe

Newbie
Messages
1
Hi there,
My husband found out yesterday he has diabeties as he has been losing weight and has dry mouth since Christmas. His blood sugar level was 30 so pretty high so they took him into hospital. He has been on insulin and his level was down to 4 this morning. They havent confirmed what type it is yet but one doctor thought it could be type 1 because of his age but he is 40??

How do they determine which type it is??
And does anyone know what the procedure will be now how long do they usually monitor you for ?
Does the training of insulin injecting take long ?

Any advice would great just not sure how long my husband will be in hospital for and want to get him home so we can tackle his new routine together.

Cheers Becks
 
Hi Becks

Try not to worry too much.

The rapid weightloss and dry mouth are more likely to symptoms of Type 1, but wait to see what they say. The fact that they have started him on insulin indicates that they may suspect this. Is he relatively slim (or was he before he lost the weight).

I was diagnosed Type 1 back in NOvember and started insulin then. I am managing fine: it's a lot to get used to but I'm sure that together you'll be able to get through this.

I just managed to avoid being admitted to hospital, and was shown how to inject insulin in about half an hour (this sounds quick, but really it's all that it takes).

Good luck!



LJ
 
It's likely to be type 1 if it came on fast with bloods that high. That's what happened to me anyway. I was in hospital for 2 days. Once he's stabalized and advised by a diabetes nurse and dietician he should be ok to leave. There's plenty of good books and info (on these forums too) it's a steep learning curve but you'll be an expert in no time and he'll be fine. Try not to worry about it too much as you can live perfectly normally, just takes a little more awareness of how you live.
good luck, tim
 
Hi Becks,

Age is less of a factor than most people think. Statistically someone diagnosed under age 25 is more likely to be Type 1 and over 25 more likely to be Type 2. But each year many children are diagnosed with Type 2 and adults with Type 1.

Hopefully the hospital will ensure that your husband knows how to inject correctly before they discharge him, but your GP practice may have a diabetes specialist nurse who can also advise. While he is in hospital they will probably undertake a variety of tests that will determine whether or not he is type 1 or 2. These include an HBA1C blood test, tests for ketones in the urine, tests on lipid levels and tests on his autoimmune system.
 
I was in hospital for three days ,diabetic nurse taught me how to inject etc and saw dietician .It will take time to adjust ,lots of useful info on this site . welcome by the way:)
 
if it helps any with the injecting question, I started giving myself injections only 2 or 3 weeks ago, which as a total needle phobic was tough at first. I had a tutorial at the doctors and luckily a friend who could do it for me at home the first couple of times, but now its fairly straight forward. I could definitely refine my technique but now its almost stress free, more or less pain free, and has all become easier much faster than I could have anticipated.
Good luck with the new situation, its certainly overwhelming at first and quite harrowing with the ongoing discussion of complications and so forth, but ultimately manageable and doable.
Best wishes to you both
bruce:|
 
Hi Becks
One thing I can assure you of, thats that your husband feels a whole lot better toay than he did yesterday with a sugar of 30.
I was always led to believe that a type 2 diabetic was someone who could still produce some insulin of their own but not enough, where as a type 1 couldn't, hence the need to inject. I'm not sure age is relavent, I was in my 20's when I was diagnosed with type 1 and my uncle was in his late 50's.
My initial learning stage in hospital Was for 3 days.
Don't panic, thousands of us have been through it, and on here is a good place to come if your worried about anything, your husband too. Living with diabetes on a daily basis, no diabetic exactly the same, there is a lot of experience here. As well as people going through the same stage as your husband.

Take care, Russell
 
Hi Becks, I was exactly like your hubby, dry mouth, weightloss etc. When I was admitted, 12 months ago now, I also was 40 and when I was told by the Consultant that I was type 1 - I was in total shock because I thought I was to old! But I quickly found out that Diabetes can strike at any age.

My consultant also told me that I may still be producing a little insulin but not enough - hence the type 1. It did take my a while to come to terms with things, and I decided that I wanted to find out as much as I could, so I bought a book 'Diabetes for Dummies' which I found invaluable.

Try not to worry :)
 
A couple of weeks ago i had a bg of 30.5 & 31 i am a type 2 diabetic but after a few hours it was back to 24 which has been the norm for me but it sounds like your husband is type 1,i didnt call anyone as i felt ok but earlier this week my blood pressure went up to 233/112 so my Doctor put me on more medication
 
<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by rogervansteeden</i>
<br /><blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by </i>
<br />A couple of weeks ago i had a bg of 30.5 & 31 i am a type 2 diabetic but after a few hours it was back to 24 which has been the norm for me but it sounds like your husband is type 1,i didnt call anyone as i felt ok but earlier this week my blood pressure went up to 233/112 so my Doctor put me on more medication

sorry i forgot to sign in
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></font id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></font id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
 
Back
Top