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

Just Been Diagnosed Type 1 Aged 10

Hello and welcome GlitterSparkles and hello Dad!
 
Hi and welcome @GlitterSparkles,( love your name btw). Not nice joining this type of forum at such a young age, I hope you will get support at school and I'm sure your parents are keeping an eye on you with love and support.
Lots to learn and cope with, but i'm sure you will do just fine. This may help, diabetes is just a small part of who you are and don't let anyone or anything stop you from having a normal happy life.
Always have your Glitter and Spatrkle. Take care
 
Hi @GlitterSparkles and Dad,
Welcome to a place of vast experience and help for you and your family. Not forgetting all the expertise you already have from your health team. One thing we diabetics learn and i am sure your dad will agree is that in any situation 'Hope for the best, plan for the worst' whether it be about a family outing to a place to eat, a sportsday or holidays. We learn to adjust for the occasion and allow for the unexpected, like all those super-heroes.
We also learn when to try something , like climbing a (small) mountain, and when it is better to try something less risky.
Enjoy your journey ( says muggins here after being diabetic on insulin for 51 years). And despite all the injections i do not leak like a sieve !!
 
Hi @GlitterSparkles ,

Welcome to the forum.

No dream is beyond reach in the waking realm. It's only the challenges that strengthen us in the quest..

Hi Dad. I thought I'd aim a little motivational "sound bite" your way too! Feel free to ask any question.
 
Hi @GlitterSparkles,

Welcome to the interesting world of Type 1! I'm an old bloke now and grew up with stainless steel/glass syringes with needles suitable for a vet!! Things have come along a long way since then, so hopefully you'll continue to be as awesome as you were before the diagnosis.

Here's a few pearls of wisdom from me:

  • If you're not quite sure where your blood glucose is, test, just to be sure.
  • Make sure you tell your friends and all your family - your teachers etc etc. Nothing to be embarrassed about!
  • Diabetes has the honour of living with you, not vice versa - never be sad about it, it just makes you even more interesting to your pals. Don't be a victim, be an inspiration (no doubt your friends and family know this already!)
  • Jelly babies are the way forward for hypos. The dextrose inside them is a type of sugar that works quickly, and they're easy to work out: 2 is 1 CP or 10 grams of carbohydrate in old-fashioned language.
  • Don't hide away when you want to do your insulin. Devices these days (NovoPens etc) can be super discrete to use behind a McDonald's table (not that I'm condoning fast food at all!)
  • And finally, this is the ultimate excuse to get your parents to get you a smartphone - great for looking up how much carbohydrate is in things when you're not quite sure. (Sorry Dad! )
Wishing you all the best, I've lived with diabetes for more than forty years and am still here and still smiling!!

Cheers,

Richard
 
Hello @GlitterSparkles and Dad, and welcome!

I was diagnosed Type 1 at exactly the same age, and I'm now 39 with an 11yo daughter, so I can identify with both of you. I agree with what @rimibar said; don't ever be embarrassed about it, instead be loud and proud! I can remember in Year 6 we were all asked to make a big hanging display about ourselves, and I made mine all about diabetes. When I started in Year 7, I was very shy and tried to hide it, but that was a mistake. After that, I was quite open about it. I always used to inject in public, never worried about other people looking.

I think the biggest lesson I've learned is that you have to control your diabetes, or it will end up controlling you. In other words, try to be as proactive as you can about self-care, otherwise the symptoms and effects can have a big effect on you. This is easier said than done, and we all have good days and bad days, just like non-diabetics, but the more you look after yourself today, the more grateful your future self will be.

There is masses of support for kids and parents, and it's better now than ever.
 
Hi @GlitterSparkles and Dad. Welcome to the forum.
Pretty scary time for you and your parents at the moment with a lot to take in.
I have been T1D for 46 years, things have come a long way in that time.
Any questions you or your dad have ask them here as there are some very helpful people here who are always willing to help out.
 
Hi @GlitterSparkles and dad I was diagnosed with diabetes at the age of 14 don’t let diabetes bother you I used to hate having to get the injections but it does get a lot easier. If you have lows maybe try a glass of coke (full sugar) but try drinking it through a straw as it will be better for your teeth. Hope this helps
Ziggy
 
thanks
you
 
Hi @rimibar I remember those days of boiling up the glass syringe and needles on the stove and transporting them in a butter dish filled with methylated spirits. I can recall my father getting hold of a horse needle and putting it in the be boiled up ! scared the life out of me !! The young 'uns do not know what they are missing !!
Says I, 51 years on that funny stuff called insulin here the land of Australia.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Menu
Log in
Register
Cookies are required to use this site. You must accept them to continue using the site. Learn More.…