Living On Your Own In A Flat Tpye1

Out of interest how often have you been told to blood test? Some will probably disagree but more times is better for the picture it gives you of your day, waking, before jab, hour after food, mid morning mid day, mid afternoon, before tea, hour after tea, mid evening before bed, tedious but will show you what's happening, and that knowledge will help you along.

Keep Dextrotabs to hand!

Hi @BrixtonType1 ,

You may feel in the early stages of a low a little mentally confused? A little like walking into a room for something & forgetting why. You maybe doing a simple task & it feels like astrophysics..?
Your eyesight may blur or there maybe shimmering dancing LED like lights in your field of vision? Maybe a little light sensitivity & or colour blindness?
This is of course could be followed up with the classic sweats & shakes..

Not every hypo is the same in my experience. (42 years of.) Though some similar "signatures" do manifest..

A month of being diabetic is early days. You have my sincere empathy. I'm certain as you gain more confidence, you will find your own path...

Keep posting & asking as you go...

BrixtonType1 said:

I make sure it a high 10 before sleep

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That's a good plan in these early weeks for reducing the chances of a night hypo. You'll get more confident going to sleep at lower levels as time goes by but it's a good call when starting out.

10 should be safe enough but for a bit of added reassurance, it can be useful to have a small snack like cheese on toast or some oatcakes just before bed. Food like that will break down and be absorbed slowly because of the fat in the cheese, and oats break down slowly anyway, so they'll give a slow drip-feed during the night, which can be good for sorting out a few things, like basal being too high, honeymoon randomness. You might end up higher than you'd like with unbolused toast but better safe than sorry in these early days when the family is away.

Try to avoid drinking alcohol - some of the messiest hypos I've ever had were because of a few too many beers on a Friday night in my first six months. That's not to say never drink again, far from it, just take it easy for a few months till you've picked up more of the basics.

I'm not saying this next bit to scare you, just to make you aware that bad night hypos do happen, so it's as well to have an understanding of what they involve.

If it all still goes wrong and you find yourself waking up in the middle of the night, dripping in sweat and not knowing where you are, those can be deeply confusing and unpleasant situations - your brain will be working in weird ways but rest assured that your liver will already be at work releasing stored glucose to raise your blood sugar (the sweat is caused by adrenaline being released to tell the liver to do that) so help it along with the dextrotabs you'll already have on the mattress. Don't keep them in the kitchen or nearby, keep them on the bed - in a bad hypo, you don't want to be stumbling around looking for them. Try to keep in mind that although it seems like a pretty grim situation at the time, your liver is already getting you out of it, and getting some sugar in your face will get you back on the rails but just be patient as the glucose takes time to get into stream. You'll likely still feel lousy for a while, because even though bg is up to a decent level, there will still be adrenaline swimming around and that can make you still feel washed out.

It's highly unlikely you'll have a really bad night hypo going to sleep on 10 with some cheese on toast inside you, but it's as well to be aware of the possibility for the future. I think it's surely happened to pretty much all of us at one time or another, but we all get through those sort of situations. They are a big risk for the very young and the very old, but for a 44 yr old, not so much.

@BrixtonType1 ,

Regarding hypo treatment by the bed.
Do you use or set an alarm? Put your hypo treatment sweets or sugar drink where the alarm is stationed. (Hopefully next to the bed.) Muscular memory, you will learn to reach for the hypo food/drink as you would when the alarm kicks off.. In the possible event of a low..

You will learn your own "auto pilot" plan of action if & when something goes on the "skids."

You’ll be fine. I’ve lived on my own in a flat for 8 out of 10 years that I’ve been type 1. I’ve never needed help with a hypo. I’ve had s couple of times I’ve had a bad night hypo but always make sure to keep lots of dextrose and water and testing kit by bed, with a light too and my phone. I’ve needed 111 a couple of times when been generally ill and blood sugar gone crazy because of that. But it’s not an issue day to day. Friends and work colleagues all know I’m type 1 and what that means.

By the way I live close to you and would always be happy to talk if helpful. Do remember what it was like when I was diagnosed and this forum was the only contact I had with other type 1s. U

Robinredbreast said:

I have been a single parent for many years and I often thought about hypo's and looking after a baby/young child.
Make sure you check your BS before bed, I know some member's have a snack before bed, but I have never done this. Keep hypo treatments within easy reach, probably easier for you as you live in a flat and you could always set an alarm to wake you during the night to check your level. It is more difficult living alone with type 1, so have you asked any of your diabetes team for any help or advice about this ?
ps I used to live in Brixton London, many years ago.

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I’m due to have a baby in about 4 weeks and I’m t1 diabetic. I’m going to be living alone and concerned about how I’ll manage this.

Dizzylish78 said:

I’m due to have a baby in about 4 weeks and I’m t1 diabetic. I’m going to be living alone and concerned about how I’ll manage this.

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Morning @Dizzylish78 , firstly congratulations on the imminent birth of your baby, such an exciting time, but also a little scary too. I did have hypo's at home and I breast fed my baby, so you need to eat more, as breastfeeding uses up a lot of energy and always check your blood glucose, even if baby is crying for a feed when you feel you must test, it only takes a short time to do and have hypo treatments in most rooms. Your body goes through so many changes in pregnancy and giving birth. Is your family about, mum or dad who could pop in and see you, (also to phone you in the morning and at night) to help out or a best friend to lighten the load as it is very tiring Also get in touch with your DSN and ask for advice. A good thing would be to make a larger batch of food and then freeze individual portions, ready for you to defrost and then heat up. My 'baby' will be 18 in a couple of months and it has gone so quickly.
Please keep in touch and wishing you all the very best X

Here's an helpful link :- https://www.tommys.org/pregnancy-in...r-2-diabetes/after-birth-type-1-or-2-diabetes

Dizzylish78 said:

I’m due to have a baby in about 4 weeks and I’m t1 diabetic. I’m going to be living alone and concerned about how I’ll manage this.

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Dont worry you will be fine.
Always have lucozade near my bed and have some supper always that will keep you safe.
It is hard I know type 1 for 48 years so I feel for you but you can cope and you will.
The forum is great as you know there is always someone on here that can give you the support you need.
I text my sister every morning to save her worrying and then she knows I am okay and then you will be fine.
I live alone and love it now I have coped on my own for 10 years but with the support I have done it.
I am proud and so should you be take your time and enjoy your life.

Sent from my BLN-L21 using Diabetes Forum mobile app

Robinredbreast said:

Morning @Dizzylish78 , firstly congratulations on the imminent birth of your baby, such an exciting time, but also a little scary too. I did have hypo's at home and I breast fed my baby, so you need to eat more, as breastfeeding uses up a lot of energy and always check your blood glucose, even if baby is crying for a feed when you feel you must test, it only takes a short time to do and have hypo treatments in most rooms. Your body goes through so many changes in pregnancy and giving birth. Is your family about, mum or dad who could pop in and see you, (also to phone you in the morning and at night) to help out or a best friend to lighten the load as it is very tiring Also get in touch with your DSN and ask for advice. A good thing would be to make a larger batch of food and then freeze individual portions, ready for you to defrost and then heat up. My 'baby' will be 18 in a couple of months and it has gone so quickly.
Please keep in touch and wishing you all the very best X

Here's an helpful link :- https://www.tommys.org/pregnancy-in...r-2-diabetes/after-birth-type-1-or-2-diabetes

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Thanks so much for your response - my first baby was 18 earlier this year - very scary! I was originally mis-diagnosed as t2 and only recently found out I’m actually t1 so still getting my head round it all and currently injecting insulin 5 times a day but that should calm down after the birth. I don’t currently have any family or many friends where I am so planning on moving house later in the year as I need the additional support. It’s just very stressful trying to get the house ready to put on the market etc and physically draining packing everything up etc so a lot to deal with currently

BrixtonType1 said:

Hi Mel 44 I do live alone but I’m now staying with family to cope I’m on levemir morning and evenings and novorapid with meal have dextro at hand diagnosed a month now not sure if I felt a hypo yet notice feeling a bit rough when getting low just looking for good advice

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OK, I will start this by saying not everyone thinks this is a good idea and I am sure health care professionals may be a bit unhappy with my suggestion.
But I will go ahead and suggest it - you can decide.

When I was first diagnosed, one of the best bits of advice I received from someone with type 1 was ...

Have a controlled hypo.
That's it.
When there are other people around you, deliberately take 1 unit extra of fast acting insulin.
Keep your dextrotabs close to hand and experience a hypo so you know what to expect when it is unexpected.

For me, this took away the fear of the unknown and gave me the confidence I could manage if/when it did happen.

I’m in Sydenham...

helensaramay said:

OK, I will start this by saying not everyone thinks this is a good idea and I am sure health care professionals may be a bit unhappy with my suggestion.
But I will go ahead and suggest it - you can decide.

When I was first diagnosed, one of the best bits of advice I received from someone with type 1 was ...

Have a controlled hypo.
That's it.
When there are other people around you, deliberately take 1 unit extra of fast acting insulin.
Keep your dextrotabs close to hand and experience a hypo so you know what to expect when it is unexpected.

For me, this took away the fear of the unknown and gave me the confidence I could manage if/when it did happen.

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Where I come from, in 1960's/1970's, this was always done for T1 in hospital before you went home from your diagnosis admission. I haven't heard it mentioned much on the forum before. Maybe it was an area specific thing?

Struma said:

Maybe it was an area specific thing?

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I've sometimes wondered whether it was maybe just to keep the medical students entertained - "right, folks, let's see if we can make this guy sweat...."

BrixtonType1 said:

That all sounds a bit much for me right now. I feel in good control but I’m not sure I’m ready for that now.

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One thing to bear in mind about hypos is that it's not like an on/off switch. It's not like one minute you're fine and the next you're on the floor (although that can happen with longer term folks who have lost hypo awareness).

Sure, some hypos involve fast drops if you've seriously overbolused which can be difficult to catch, but, those aside, there's usually a gradual decline so there's time to pin it with some sugar. Might not stop it till below 4 but at least you'll have some sugar in you so it'll mitigate it.

You can also get teched up with things like libre, which monitors levels continuously, so if you wave the reader past the sensor on your arm periodically, you can see levels starting to drop and head it off with some sugar before the hypo even happens.

Bling it up with a transmitter, either blucon or miaomiao, or use dexcom, it'll even ring your phone to alert you if you're heading towards a low.

No, it was something that I experienced as well, aged 10. The ward sister admitted afterwards that they had increased my insulin by one unit to make it happen. There were no doctors or medical students around at the time and nobody came to stare. It was all animal insulin at the time in August 1964.
I just became aware that I was feeling hot, a feeling I ignored for a few minutes. It was within visting hours, so my mother was there. I excused myself from a conversation with another child and told my mother I felt hot and strange. After a couple of questions, she told me I had to tell the nurses if that happened and went to inform a nurse herself. I was handed a mug of milk (7 ozs of milk was 10g of carbohydrate) within about 90 seconds. That was the standard hypo treatment at the time. They had not described any warning symptoms to me in advance. I think they believed it would be more useful for a child to actually experience a hypo in a controlled situation. I still believe they were correct. I suspect someone was watching through the window in the sister's office, waiting to spot a problem. There were at least another four nurses within twelve feet of me all afternoon, so I reckon they had thought this out carefully in advance.