Seeking Guidance on Managing Diabetes During Peri-menopause

[Bluemarinejosephine]

Dear Friends,
I hope this message finds you well.

I am reaching out primarily to my female friends in this forum to seek your valuable advice on a personal matter.

I suspect that I may be entering the perimenopausal phase of my life, unless my eating disorders are affecting my menstrual cycle. My GP has scheduled some tests to provide clarity on this matter.

If any of you are currently experiencing or have gone through peri-menopause or menopause, could you kindly share how this transition has impacted your blood sugar levels and management? Additionally, did you need to make any adjustments to your insulin dosages?

I am a Type 1 diabetic with good glycaemic control (85% within target), currently using the Omnipod Dash. However, I am contemplating a switch back to a basal/bolus regimen, as I find the pump somewhat inconvenient, stressful, and tiring for me.

Your insights and detailed advice would be greatly appreciated. I am eager to be well-prepared for this new phase in my life (if indeed this is the case for me), as I am quite concerned about its potential effects on my diabetes management and overall health.

Thank you for your time and support.
Kind regards,
Josephine​

 

[Juicyj]

Hi Josephine - sign up to the Menopausal Mithers group on X it's a very useful resource to discuss all things meno, I am peri and was experiencing massive BG swings and although temporary i've had issues with BG swings since t1d diagnosis but peri meant these were irregular, I got my Dr to prescribe me HRT and since then it's been no issue. With hormones you can only correct/adjust with what you can see and when it happens with no warning it means playing the 'is it hormones/infection/illness/something I ate/temperature/exercise/something else' game which is really frustrating. Try to track this with a diary so you have a record of events surrounding the changes, always useful when discussing with your team but also join the group too - very useful.

 

[ellesangel]

Great question and looking forward to reading the answers and suggestions. I'm also going through the menopause and ironically some of the eating advice for it is similar to eating as a diabetic as in eating lo carb. I'm definitely finding it tough but slowly moving in the right direction. I'm hoping to go to a menopause cafe event this Wednesday though think that there could certainly do with being more of these events.

 

[Chris24Main]

don't mean to butt in, I'm clearly not heading for the menopause, though my wife is, but just to say, don't be too surprised about the similarities, it isn't in any way ironic, because it's all tied to hormones, and balancing the hormones you need at any given time.

 

[Bluemarinejosephine]

Great question and looking forward to reading the answers and suggestions. I'm also going through the menopause and ironically some of the eating advice for it is similar to eating as a diabetic as in eating lo carb. I'm definitely finding it tough but slowly moving in the right direction. I'm hoping to go to a menopause cafe event this Wednesday though think that there could certainly do with being more of these events.

Thank you for your response. I have been following a low-carb diet for several years since my diagnosis. Despite my dietician’s recommendations to gradually reintroduce more carbohydrates, I’ve found that a low-carb approach has been the most effective for managing my blood glucose levels and preventing both hyperglycemia and hypoglycemia.

Recently, however, I’ve noticed that some low-carb foods which used to work well for me no longer do. I’ve started experiencing gastrointestinal sensitivities, headaches, brain fog, and lethargy after consuming certain foods. This includes seemingly simple items like lettuce, celery, and other vegetables such as kale, aubergines, and courgettes. Additionally, I now have reactions to soy-based products like tofu and soy milk, as well as nuts, seeds, and items containing emulsifiers, such as coconut milk and almond milk yogurts. While these reactions aren’t severe, they do cause discomfort.

At the moment, I’ve found some relief in following a carnivore diet. Though it’s very restrictive and certainly not a long-term solution, it’s the only approach that seems to calm my system for now. I recognize this isn't ideal, and my dietician is not particularly supportive of this choice, but I’m treating it as a temporary measure while I navigate these changes.

I hope the café event provided you with some valuable insights. I’d love to hear about your experience if you'd like to share!

Kind regards,
J

 

[the-mental-one]

I have been perimenopausal for maybe two years, been doing ok with my blood sugars for 20 years and then suddenly this year it's all gone wrong.
My gynae wants me to have a full hysterectomy because they found a lot of fibroids, at least one is large, and two large cysts on my ovaries, and said I have to do better with my blood glucose levels but also said I'm probably struggling with that *because* of the peri, just like with women who are pregnant have issues.

They've been talking about HRT as a way to help control my blood glucose, might be worth talking to your doctors about that as a possibility if you're having issues with things going through peri, it doesn't have to only be *after* you hit menopause that you can take HRT.