I am so scared. First assisted hypo.

[pinkpolo121]

Hi on Sat I suffered /experienced my first assisted hypo as I was fitting/ screaming completely unresponsive. I'm now scared that this is going to happen to me again but I won't have my partner or mother to help me. I feel like crying and I don't know who else I can talk to about it. My diabetic nurse is completely useless and really unsuportive

 

[Brunneria]

@pinkpolo121 Oh love, I'm so sorry. Hypos are frightening at the best of times, but needing assistance must be terrifyin

I would love to help, but I'm a type 2, controlled by diet, so have never experienced such a bad hypo and can't offer you any suggestions.

Hopefully a T1 will be along soon. I'm sure there are many who have had similar experiences.

 

[noblehead]

Hypo's can be unpleasant @pinkpolo121

As you say your diabetes nurse is useless and supportive I take it you mean your gp surgery DN, if this is the case and your struggling with things at the moment ask your gp to refer you over to the care of your local hospitals diabetes clinic, they are more specialised in dealing with type 1 related issues and will be more supportive than your DN.

In the mean-time try and monitor your bg levels more closely and keep plenty of fas-acting glucose to hand in case you feel the symptoms of a hypo coming on.

Do come back and ask for more help if you feel you need to, there's some great type 1's on the forum who are always ready to help those who need advice or support.

 

[smidge]

Hi on Sat I suffered /experienced my first assisted hypo as I was fitting/ screaming completely unresponsive. I'm now scared that this is going to happen to me again but I won't have my partner or mother to help me. I feel like crying and I don't know who else I can talk to about it. My diabetic nurse is completely useless and really unsuportive

Hi pinkpolo - so sorry to hear that - I've not had to go through that yet and it absolutely terrifies me. I know it would knock my confidence badly as I'm sure it has yours.

I guess the thing to focus on at the moment is avoiding it happening again and rebuilding your confidence. Do you know why it happened? Did you take the wrong insulin or the wrong amount of insulin for example? What is your control like usually? If your control is usually tight, perhaps you could run your BG a little higher for a short while to get some peace of mind? If it's usually a bit erratic, perhaps you could cut the carbs a bit so that you can lower your doses so that you don't have so much active insulin on board at any one time? Maybe you could also set your alarm to wake you up overnight for a while so you can test to make sure everything is OK?

Whatever you decide to do, make sure you speak to a hospital diabetes team so that you are not facing this alone.

Smidge

 

[Dizzy1960]

Hi, i've been type 1 for 19yrs and have only ever hypo'd like this when someone is there, it must be something subconciously as anytime i hypo and on my own my symptoms waken me!! Try not to stress about it though i know its hard but i had more hypos the more i stressed about it. For a while after me and my husband got together i set my alarm every 1.5hrs during the night to check my levels, please don't try things like this it doesn't help, only makes u more stressed!!!! Good luck I'm sure things will settle soon x

 

[lizdeluz]

I'm sorry you've had a scary hypo experience. As @noblehead said, it will be a good idea to have a chat about your fears with your hospital diabetes nurse team and/or consultant. You can feel more confident about being able to cope with hypos if you make sure you have a little hypo kit with you at all times: a small pencil case, say, with a bag of jelly babies or some glucose tablets. The minute you start to feel 'wobbly' , or preferably before you get to this point, head off the hypo with a couple of jelly babies or a glucose tablet. Then test to see what your blood sugar level is, and whether you could have avoided going hypo by injecting a bit less insulin.
If you are newly diagnosed, this might sound difficult, but you will get used to doing this in due course, and life, believe me, will be just fine.

 

[himtoo]

hi pinkpolo121
a hug or 2 from me first [[hugs]] and i would have that cry too if you want -- I have cried many times over things like this , but I suppose I have been doing it for 43 years.
but the most important thing is to think about how can I ( you ) not let this happen again. the suggestions received are very good above and it is really important to "listen" to your body and not ignore what it is telling you. I always do random testing if I feel not quite right -- ( i do test about 8-10 times per day ) and often catch myself at 4.0 - 4.3 just before hypo

I think talking to the DSN at your hospital is a really good idea too

and finally -- we are all here for you from now on whenever you need somebody to talk to .

 

[Heathero]

Bless you, how frightening for you. I have had type 1 for 48 years. Have had several assisted hypos as a child/ last one in 20's. However I am still alive. As others have suggested ensure you check your blood sugar, if unsure re how much insulin you need give less it is easier to adjust via correction dose. Have you thought about a pump, I am changing to one and hypos are much less likely to occur? I am not managed by Gp but by diabetes clic I agree they have more knowledge and understand concerns. It does get easier believe me.

 

[JRW]

What's an assisted Hypo? I read it as deliberately having a hypo.

 

[donnellysdogs]

What's an assisted Hypo? I read it as deliberately having a hypo.

It's a hypo when you need assistance from somebody else.

 

[petdell]

Assisted hypo means you need assistance ie, a third party to help you recover , and if your type 1 and never had one your very lucky , and if your T2 you never will. To pink polo I would say ,if you have unpredictable blood sugars highs lows with no real pattern, always carry quick acting cars, it's amazing that 6 wine gums can prevent you from turning into a raving looney. They must be Maynard of course. Over 35 years I have had many assisted hypos because my sugars changes are so drastically , so always carry food always carry blood test it stuff and test every couple of hours and don't let it get you down.

 

[donnellysdogs]

First off....

These things happen. We all have different reactions.

Although it is horrible for us, it is also horrible for persons helping. However, they will know in the future what signs to look for should it happen again.

The main thing is here though.... To stop it happening again. So you need to identify what caused it. There are plenty reasons that could cause it.... Heat, not eating enough, too much insulin, exercise etc... Have you been able to work out the cause?

Also, the faster your levels are dropping the more severe the hypo can be....

How did the person assist you? Did they know what to do?

 

[Heathero]

Jelly babies work faster tan wine gums or sugared drinks easier to drink fast if flat. Some use coke lucozade etc. personally I dislike them hence jelly babies or fruit pastels if in hot climate.However as advised knowing the cause helps Alcohol can cause hypos as inhibits insulin absorption and later higher dose of insulin occurs.Not sure of your age. But hope this helps.

 

[JRW]

Assisted hypo means you need assistance ie, a third party to help you recover , and if your type 1 and never had one your very lucky , and if your T2 you never will. To pink polo I would say ,if you have unpredictable blood sugars highs lows with no real pattern, always carry quick acting cars, it's amazing that 6 wine gums can prevent you from turning into a raving looney. They must be Maynard of course. Over 35 years I have had many assisted hypos because my sugars changes are so drastically , so always carry food always carry blood test it stuff and test every couple of hours and don't let it get you down.

I'm guess I'm lucky, even if <2 I still sort myself out.

 

[donnellysdogs]

Liquids and sweets can only be given if still conscious... Please remember this... Glucogel should be a back up in your fridge... It can be rubbed in to your gums...