Hi
I have just joined this group and thought that I would share my experiences of Type 1 diabetes in the hope that I can find someone in similar circumstances.
My mother was a also a Type 1 and was diagnosed in her early 50's. With this in mind, I tried to avoid developing the condition by leading a relatively healthy lifestyle (I have never smoked, drink alcohol in moderation and have tried to keep my weight down). In 2011 and in my mid 50's during a particularly stressful period (employment looking very uncertain plus having the responsibility of looking after the affairs of an elderly aunt) I began to recognise the symptoms of diabetes. Extreme thirst, tiredness and general lethargy coupled with a major shift in my eyesight (I went from a -1.5 prescription to a +2.5 prescription in a period of about 4 days - this was scary). A blood test confirmed that I had developed the big 'D'. After this initial diagnosis, I was treated for Type 2 and started on 1 Metformin tablet per day. This had little or no effect and I rapidly progressed to the maximum x4 tablets per day. Again no affect. Gliclazide tablets were also introduced but, again, no real affect. Glucose levels at this time were ranging between 15 and 30 mmol and I was rapidly losing weight. In 6 months I went from 11 stone to 8.5 stone.
After this initial 6 months and with no progress with Metformin and Gliclazide, I was formally diagnosed with Type 1 and introduced to Insulin. Initially I was prescribed with NovoMix30 to take twice a day but this did not give me the flexibility to control my glucose levels effectively. I was later to discover that I seem to be very sensitive to insulin. I am now using both Lantus (background insulin) and NovoRapid (short term insulin) and have recently completed a 'carb counting' course which I found very useful although still trying to get it right.
As I mentioned previously, I seem to be very sensitive to insulin. My current regime requires (theoretically) just 0.5 units of NovoRapid for 10 grams of carbs. Because of my sensitivity, I was issued with a special injection pen which could be used to inject insulin in 0.5 unit measures. If I require to take correction doses of NovoRapid because of high glucose levels, I currently apply the correction factor of 1unit NovoRapid to drop my blood glucose by 4mmol :crazy: My Lantus (background) dosage is currently just 9 units and this seems to be working OK.
It seems that my sensitivity to insulin also means that my glucose levels also rise very rapidly too. I have found that the biggest cause of increased levels is stress. Even very minor stresses can dramatically make my levels rise very quickly. Are there any other forum members in this kind of situation? If I move from a stressful situation to a relaxed situation, my glucose levels can easily drop 6 to 8 mmols in the space of a couple of hours :? Again this can be quite scary.
I would be interested to hear from any forum member who finds themselves in a similar situation.
Richard
I have just joined this group and thought that I would share my experiences of Type 1 diabetes in the hope that I can find someone in similar circumstances.
My mother was a also a Type 1 and was diagnosed in her early 50's. With this in mind, I tried to avoid developing the condition by leading a relatively healthy lifestyle (I have never smoked, drink alcohol in moderation and have tried to keep my weight down). In 2011 and in my mid 50's during a particularly stressful period (employment looking very uncertain plus having the responsibility of looking after the affairs of an elderly aunt) I began to recognise the symptoms of diabetes. Extreme thirst, tiredness and general lethargy coupled with a major shift in my eyesight (I went from a -1.5 prescription to a +2.5 prescription in a period of about 4 days - this was scary). A blood test confirmed that I had developed the big 'D'. After this initial diagnosis, I was treated for Type 2 and started on 1 Metformin tablet per day. This had little or no effect and I rapidly progressed to the maximum x4 tablets per day. Again no affect. Gliclazide tablets were also introduced but, again, no real affect. Glucose levels at this time were ranging between 15 and 30 mmol and I was rapidly losing weight. In 6 months I went from 11 stone to 8.5 stone.
After this initial 6 months and with no progress with Metformin and Gliclazide, I was formally diagnosed with Type 1 and introduced to Insulin. Initially I was prescribed with NovoMix30 to take twice a day but this did not give me the flexibility to control my glucose levels effectively. I was later to discover that I seem to be very sensitive to insulin. I am now using both Lantus (background insulin) and NovoRapid (short term insulin) and have recently completed a 'carb counting' course which I found very useful although still trying to get it right.
As I mentioned previously, I seem to be very sensitive to insulin. My current regime requires (theoretically) just 0.5 units of NovoRapid for 10 grams of carbs. Because of my sensitivity, I was issued with a special injection pen which could be used to inject insulin in 0.5 unit measures. If I require to take correction doses of NovoRapid because of high glucose levels, I currently apply the correction factor of 1unit NovoRapid to drop my blood glucose by 4mmol :crazy: My Lantus (background) dosage is currently just 9 units and this seems to be working OK.
It seems that my sensitivity to insulin also means that my glucose levels also rise very rapidly too. I have found that the biggest cause of increased levels is stress. Even very minor stresses can dramatically make my levels rise very quickly. Are there any other forum members in this kind of situation? If I move from a stressful situation to a relaxed situation, my glucose levels can easily drop 6 to 8 mmols in the space of a couple of hours :? Again this can be quite scary.
I would be interested to hear from any forum member who finds themselves in a similar situation.
Richard
