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I am really Struggling and Need Help

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I have an 18 month old baby, I'm type 1 and I massively struggled post birth to get any sort of normality to my blood sugars. Your body goes through this massive thing and then your hormones are all over the place, lack of sleep, stress.... Its no wonder our diabetes plays up. As you know, you would have been insulin resistant in your last trimester and I presume you immediately reduced your insulin doses to prepregnancy levels once little one was born. Unfortunately, our bodies aren't the same as they were prepregnancy so there is a huge amount of adjusting that needs to happen as well as caring for your new baby. It's ****** hard!

I agree with some previous posts that it is most likely your background insulin causing the issue, because unless that is correct it's very difficult to know what your Carb ratio should be. You also may have a different Carb ratio for different times of the day..... I'm so gutted for you that you aren't getting the help you need from your health care team. Makes me feel very lucky!

I also would reiterate what someone else has said and please don't reduce your insulin, especially with ketones present. Not without speaking to a diabetic specialist. Do you use correction doses? Are they at the correct ratio? As in does one unit actually bring it down 3mmol, or whatever your ratio is.

Something else to bare in mind, if you are self managing and happy to do so, whatever you change (doses etc) takes at least 48 hours to show any real effect. So wait a couple of days to see of the change, if any, before changing anything else.

Hope that helps. You're a super mum doing it with type 1, remember that!

edited by mod for language
 
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What a really informative reply
 
I understand what you are going through, I recently ended up in hospital in resus with DKA and was very ill because I just wanted to give up because nothing was working, whilst in hospital I developed pneumonia and it took me weeks to recover. It gave me the kick up my **** to start asking for help, asking questions until something changed for the better, it wasn’t a quick resolve and I still find the whole thing overwhelming but I am now my own advocate as I never want to bein the hospital under those circumstances again, make a plan, good luck x
 
Ketones of 2 are dangerous for a type 1, DKA can be life threatening. I don't know how it works in the UK, but in the US you could go to emergency but better yet usually is an urgent care. I've not ever had ketones or been sick, but some people get pretty sick at lower levels than others. I'm not trying to scare you but it's a type 1 potentially serious problem.

I am a type 1 on a pump and CGM. If you can afford it get a Libre, it is so much easier, you just scan and know your number. especially with a child keeping you busy it will make it easier.

Unfortunately for us type 1's for no apparent reason BG's can go up. It could be hormones, a hidden tooth infection (happened to me) stress. You have to go back to basics and make sure you carb count and give the proper dosing which can also change over time. It is so much easier to prevent the high than dealing with it when your BG is raised. It takes me a lot more insulin to make it come down than to just control it before it can. I think everyone has already said this previously.

I am by far not a low carber , I eat what I want and dose for it, but I do eat low carb if my sugars are high and won't come down, because if you start at a higher number and add to it and it's already being stubborn it can end up disastrous. I'm a vegan so my go to's for that are seitan, almond butter on a piece of toast, or even just a protein drink, I have a vegan one that's 20 grams of protein and only 8 carbs.

Squawk and scream for some help. Crying when you talk to them usually works. It doesn't sound like a good situation, and we want to get along with people, but the squeaky wheel thing works.

I'm sorry to hear you're going through this.
 
I want to add that sometimes switching insulin brands help. I know novolog didn't work as well for me as humalog does. Apidra had a longer acting time period and I would bottom out in the middle of the night from it. But I have ran across other people that one kind of insulin stopped working for them and they switched and were then fine. Keep in mind when you switch it's a new learning curve on dosing.
 
Hi. I have struggled with my diabetes type 1, n mental health. I actually got some help from diabetes UK, as they have a line where you can talk to someone. May be worth looking at. Wish you the best of luck.
 
Hi
I was exactly the same.
If possible if you can find out if they run a DAFNE Course. Also are you on the basal/bolus regime? Without these you won't be considered for a pump.

I've had a pump for 16 months and it was the best thing I ever did with my hba1c bein down to near on normal however it does mean counting carbs everyday.

I've had a couple of times where things have gone a bit wrong with the pump however That's why the DAFNE Course is necessary.

It is very difficult to get a pump because of the funding necessary it took me 13 years but don't give up just do everything necessary as not only do they have a responsibility to you but also your baby.
 
ejaz_hussain said:
Eat low calories carb and observe fasting for 8 hours.
Click to expand...
A T1D cannot simply switch to eating low carbs. Everyone fast for 8 hours. Even if you sleep at midnight and have breakfast at 8 am you have fasted for 8 hours. Even that can be dangerous for a T1D if the insulin the night before has not been properly judged
Switch to a low carb, high fat or keto diet for a T1D whose BSL are consistently high is clearly beneficial, but it has to under medical supervision to ensure that the type and dosage of insulin is correct. That is especially true of fasting and then only after the body has been adapted to a ketone diet. If your are on time restricted fasting then you need to aim for day 14 to 16 hours a day, 3 or more days a week to really enjoy the benefit of fasting and possibly activate stem cell generation.
 
Everyone, can we please remember that the Original poster is struggling with control- this is not the place for debate on the pros and cons of Keto, it is time for simple supportive suggestions - @Kimberleyart1 has had a number of suggestions and she can come back to ask for further info if needed on different diets/insulin resistance/ opinions / support.
 
It's not about eating low carbs it's about measuring the carbs she is having and responding properly with the insulin doses and regularly checking he BG.
I was on mixtard insulin whilst I was pregnant and my BG was very similar to hers. I was put in touch with a situation to make small changes, and then put on Basal Bolus which didn't work because at that time there wasn't any courses available to teach people how to do what is necessary.
Suggesting KETO diets and things like that is probably the worst advice you can give as Basal Bolus requires carbs to work.
Also being pregnant causes insulin to resist because the body thinks the baby is a foreign body rather than something that should be there.
 
Hello. I have had 3 kids with type 1 and do remember the early years of struggling to look after my own needs as well as babies/toddlers. You sound stressed and in need of support which seems to be lacking in your area. I met fellow t1s via my dafne course and the monthly get togethers were and are great (11+ years on). In the absence of that support, Diabetes UK careline can at least inform you of what support you are entitled to and provide a sympathetic ear.
As others have suggested I'd start with the basal based on your post baby body not on the rates you had before. Having data about how your blood sugar behaves when you are eating zero carbs will be useful and if you get that right you won't always be chasing your tail with correction doses.
Pump funding is rationed. I got one because I had a bigh ish HBA1c and did exercise which made my sugars more unstable. I do find it useful because I can have a basal rate which varies by the hour and can set up multiple profiles e.g. PMT week!
I also get a Freestyle Libre and this is on prescription though I had to say I tested plus 8 times daily and would aim to reduce my JBA1c by 0.5%.
If I hadn't gotten funding my consultant made the sensible suggestion to self fund and wear the sensor for 2 weeks at a time then 2 weeks' normal testing to make the cost less across the month.

I think we're all wishing we could come and give you a hug and some hope but the virtual versions will have to do! I am sure you are focussing on your child as a good mum must do, but you really need to fight for some support from whomever you can (GP, Health Visitor and partner or family as well as the diabetes team).
 
I have to disagree. T1D are the same as everyone else except that they have to regulate for themselves their own insulin and their carb intake. The suggestion that a T1D can eat what ever carbs he or she likes and just deal with it through more or less insulin is plainly nonsense. Excessive carbs and frequent eating leads to the same end result in a T1D as it does to a non-diabetic, insulin resistance and eventually insulin related diseases including neuropathy. retinopathy, kidney and heart issues, possible Alzheimer, amputations, etc. I know from friends how difficult it can be to regulate insulin when your are not insulin resistant. I imagine it is substantially more difficult when you become insulin resistant, in which case the text books don't and can't tell you the exact dosage you need. The goal for everyone, including T1D is to maintain a level of basal and bolus insulin to ensure BGL to the recommended 4-6 mmol/L. It does not take much carbs and insulin to maintain that status quo. Virtually everything has carbs or, as with protein, can be turned into glucose by your body when needed. In addition both basal and bolus insulin can be adjusted to accommodate a protein diet. I accept that it cannot be easy for a T1D, but then nothing relating to insulin is easy for a T1D. A low carb high fat or keto diet provides a stable basis from which low insulin levels can be maintained. It will also help with a host of gut and other body functions which will assist with keeping hormones stable. Clearly if the T1D is pregnant, then other considerations come into play, but after the pregnancy, when hormones remain altered, regulating diet and insulin must surely be essential, otherwise it will take longer for the body to recover and achieve hormone stability.
 
The OP has had lots of useful suggestions and the thread has now wandered into different areas. Please start another discussion if need be but this is not helping the poster with her control.
 
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