So many problems!

[Desync]

Hey people, I'm new here!

I just wanted to explain my problems.
I'm T1, and it's completely not in control, my blood sugar is always high.
I'm always missing doing my Insulin and I only ever do my night time one, for obvious reasons. I've always had trouble keeping up a routine. It's really because I could never accept it since I was diagnosed.
But I really need to get some kind of advise, I thought I'd ask on here since my Doctor has given up on me and my nurse, they was gonna work with me but they haven't contacted me in a while.

Thanks for reading, and for more information if you want to.

 

[DiamondAsh]

Hey people, I'm new here!

I just wanted to explain my problems.
I'm T1, and it's completely not in control, my blood sugar is always high.
I'm always missing doing my Insulin and I only ever do my night time one, for obvious reasons. I've always had trouble keeping up a routine. It's really because I could never accept it since I was diagnosed.
But I really need to get some kind of advise, I thought I'd ask on here since my Doctor has given up on me and my nurse, they was gonna work with me but they haven't contacted me in a while.

Thanks for reading, and for more information if you want to.

Hi there... please don't neglect your diabetes any longer... it comes with a lot of complications which can arise when sugar levels are high. Some damage can be reversed but some not. Keeping it in control is the key to a healthy life for you. Not looking after yourself will reap its own rewards in time. You need to stick to a routine, it needs to become a way of life for you. You have a long life ahead of you. Get to see your Doctor as soon as possible and listen to what he says. He might give you poor dietry advice but you can learn about the correct diet from this forum. Show him a willingness to kick this thing into touch. It's not really that bad (until you neglect it) even then you can feel fine but the damage is being done to your body. Then wham bham! outta the blue you are suffering a diabetes related complication which could be one of many things, or two or more.

This forum is a good place for you to be. Lots of good info etc. Hang around, chill out and get your questions answered.
You won't be alone cos we're all here. Let us help you but DON'T neglect your health.

When were you diagnosed?

 

[parameswaran]

Hi,
I agree with "DiamondAsh". You have to accept the condition and "respect" diabetis. If you can follow your Doctor's advise, you need not fear the diabetes. You can have long healthy life. I am type 2 diabetic for more than 25 years and dont have any other health problems. You need to monitor your BG frequently till your familiar with your condition and once it is under control you can reduce the frequency of BG monitoring. You need to have regular check-ups for checking the health of kidney, liver, heart, eye etc..

 

[kimkennedy89]

Hello, welcome to the Forum. I hope that like me, you find this page a great support network as well as a place to speak to people in the same boat as yourself

I have over the past 6 years struggled with various aspects of being T1. I became diabetic due to a viral infection and my body attacking itself. No one in my family is T1 and I didn't know any one else with T1 (until the forum)

Please don't neglect yourself any longer, I know how dreadful it feels to constantly run high, the thirst is never ending and the exhaustion is difficult to deal with day in/out. The knock on affect on your body can be catastrophic, (I'm not gonna talk about all the possible complications that could happen due to not having an insulin regime as I'm sure you've heard it all 100x before) but I'm sure like me, you think that none of it will ever happen to you, but you're punishing your body continuously and eventually something's gotta give.

Speak to your diabetic specialist nurse or consultant about you're ongoing struggle, they can and will do so much to help and support you. It's 18 months since my last real struggle, I'm not saying every day is rosey, because being T1 is an ongoing battle and journey. But, I'm in a far better place now than what I was a year and a half ago.

Take care x


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[noblehead]

As everyone has said you need to accept that you have a life-long condition and it needs to be treated with insulin, once you realise this you will be in a better state mentally to move forward.

If your under the care of your gp ask for a referral over to your hospitals diabetes clinic where you will be seen by a specialist consultant or DSN, once there they will discuss matters with you and work out a way to deal with the problems you are experiencing, after a while they may put your name down for a carb counting course such as DAFNE (google for more info).

There's a book that's often mentioned on the forum and it's absolutely brilliant for those who are type 1, it's called Think Like a Pancreas by Gary Schiener and it will teach you how to manage your condition more successfully and deal with the little problems that come our way.

Good luck Desync!!!!

 

[Desync]

Hi there... please don't neglect your diabetes any longer... it comes with a lot of complications which can arise when sugar levels are high. Some damage can be reversed but some not. Keeping it in control is the key to a healthy life for you. Not looking after yourself will reap its own rewards in time. You need to stick to a routine, it needs to become a way of life for you. You have a long life ahead of you. Get to see your Doctor as soon as possible and listen to what he says. He might give you poor dietry advice but you can learn about the correct diet from this forum. Show him a willingness to kick this thing into touch. It's not really that bad (until you neglect it) even then you can feel fine but the damage is being done to your body. Then wham bham! outta the blue you are suffering a diabetes related complication which could be one of many things, or two or more.

This forum is a good place for you to be. Lots of good info etc. Hang around, chill out and get your questions answered.
You won't be alone cos we're all here. Let us help you but DON'T neglect your health.

When were you diagnosed?

When I was 11 or 12. I can't really remember.

 

[Desync]

Hello, welcome to the Forum. I hope that like me, you find this page a great support network as well as a place to speak to people in the same boat as yourself

I have over the past 6 years struggled with various aspects of being T1. I became diabetic due to a viral infection and my body attacking itself. No one in my family is T1 and I didn't know any one else with T1 (until the forum)

Please don't neglect yourself any longer, I know how dreadful it feels to constantly run high, the thirst is never ending and the exhaustion is difficult to deal with day in/out. The knock on affect on your body can be catastrophic, (I'm not gonna talk about all the possible complications that could happen due to not having an insulin regime as I'm sure you've heard it all 100x before) but I'm sure like me, you think that none of it will ever happen to you, but you're punishing your body continuously and eventually something's gotta give.

Speak to your diabetic specialist nurse or consultant about you're ongoing struggle, they can and will do so much to help and support you. It's 18 months since my last real struggle, I'm not saying every day is rosey, because being T1 is an ongoing battle and journey. But, I'm in a far better place now than what I was a year and a half ago.

Take care x


Sent from the Diabetes Forum App

Yeah, but it's seems like they don't wanna work with me. The nurse said she was gonna help me out, sort out a plan and all this but I haven't heard anything of her for months now.

 

[kimkennedy89]

Yeah, but it's seems like they don't wanna work with me. The nurse said she was gonna help me out, sort out a plan and all this but I haven't heard anything of her for months now.

That's not great Desync, when I was first diagnosed I was put under the care of a local hospital but was having problems with my doses and night time hypos ect. Left message after message on the answer machine of my DSN but heard nothing back. Ended up going to my GP and explaining what was going on, I was referred to another hospital in the local area who fully took over my care and have helped me out continuously since.

Maybe you could do something similar? Visit your GP and make them aware of your current battle, most GP clinics have a nurse who mainly deals with T2 diabetics, she'Ll be able to offer you supporting the meantime while this all gets resolved


Sent from the Diabetes Forum App

 

[Desync]

That's not great Desync, when I was first diagnosed I was put under the care of a local hospital but was having problems with my doses and night time hypos ect. Left message after message on the answer machine of my DSN but heard nothing back. Ended up going to my GP and explaining what was going on, I was referred to another hospital in the local area who fully took over my care and have helped me out continuously since.

Maybe you could do something similar? Visit your GP and make them aware of your current battle, most GP clinics have a nurse who mainly deals with T2 diabetics, she'Ll be able to offer you supporting the meantime while this all gets resolved


Sent from the Diabetes Forum App

My GP, I don't even wanna get started about him. The last time I went to him, he kept telling me about all the complications I would have instead of working with me.

 

[kimkennedy89]

that's horrible! I know as a medical professional they have to make you aware of certain complications...but still the aim should be to get you help and support with your diabetes and insulin regime. How long have you been diabetic?


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[Desync]

that's horrible! I know as a medical professional they have to make you aware of certain complications...but still the aim should be to get you help and support with your diabetes and insulin regime. How long have you been diabetic?


Sent from the Diabetes Forum App

Since I was 11 or 12, I'm almost 18.
So it's been out of control for a while now.

 

[DiamondAsh]

Since I was 11 or 12, I'm almost 18.
So it's been out of control for a while now.

A lot of any damage that may have been caused could be reversed if you gain control now. (IMHO) You are now at an ideal age to crack this thing. You will be doing yourself a favour in the long run because a sugar-free diet is one of the best anyone can follow, diabetic or not.
Doctor's leave a lot to be desired when it comes to diabetes control in their patients. Just make an appointment and explain that you are having difficulty controling you BG levels and you would like a review to see if there's anything else you should be doing/taking etc. If they have a 'dig' at you about not working with them in the past, just acknowledge it and say you have had a wake up call and you want to crack this thing now, 'cos you are only young.
You are not the first young person to throw caution to the wind and neglect your condition so the Doc's have seen it all before.
Listen to what they say and then report back to us here

 

[noblehead]

My GP, I don't even wanna get started about him. The last time I went to him, he kept telling me about all the complications I would have instead of working with me.

Hence why you need to be seen by a diabetes specialists, gp's are fine but they are not experts in diabetes by any means.

 

[kimkennedy89]

I'm sure with the right support network you'll be back on track in no time not sure how things work where you live but up here in Scotland I had to get the referral through my GP to change the hospital whose care I was under.

I hope to hear better things from you soon regarding your diabetes and the support you're getting from your consultant/DSN


Sent from the Diabetes Forum App

 

[Desync]

I'm sure with the right support network you'll be back on track in no time not sure how things work where you live but up here in Scotland I had to get the referral through my GP to change the hospital whose care I was under.

I hope to hear better things from you soon regarding your diabetes and the support you're getting from your consultant/DSN


Sent from the Diabetes Forum App

I'll update this when I find out more, thanks for the support.

 

[michaeldavid]

Hello Desync,

I like the name.

I became diabetic aged 25. (I'm now 56.) And I just thank God it didn't happen ten years earlier - I would have missed all that late 70s music.

My condition hasn't always been well controlled, but it is now. And I believe I can expect to see no long-term complications. So I'm fairly sure that any damage done by your few years of relative neglect might yet come to nothing.

But you need to take control quickly and carefully. And really it is a piece of p*ss.

I don't have to do any of that 'carb counting'. Yet my condition is exceptionally well controlled.

There are some details on my Profile page, and in my recent postings. I would be happy to answer any questions.

If you like to drink alcohol, please don't: it might kill you.

But you can smoke cannabis, if you like.

And I like your T-shirt, too.

 

[Desync]

Hello Desync,

I like the name.

I became diabetic aged 25. (I'm now 56.) And I just thank God it didn't happen ten years earlier - I would have missed all that late 70s music.

My condition hasn't always been well controlled, but it is now. And I believe I can expect to see no long-term complications. So I'm fairly sure that any damage done by your few years of relative neglect might yet come to nothing.

But you need to take control quickly and carefully. And really it is a piece of p*ss.

I don't have to do any of that 'carb counting'. Yet my condition is exceptionally well controlled.

There are some details on my Profile page, and in my recent postings. I would be happy to answer any questions.

If you like to drink alcohol, please don't: it might kill you.

But you can smoke cannabis, if you like.

And I like your T-shirt, too.

Hi, I don't drink alcohol.
I only smoke, I'm meant to do carb counting and all that, but I don't.
I find it too hard to understand, no one really has taught me, or showed me how it's meant to be done.
I really do wanna get it in control, but it's just seems like so much work.

 

[michaeldavid]

I too find 'carb counting' hard to understand. But mercifully, I don't need to attempt to understand it.

I have a thoroughly unorthodox method of control: I only take a small amount of long-acting insulin, last thing at night. (This prevents my blood sugar rising overnight.)

What I do is called 'feeding the insulin'. I take the fast-acting insulins Actrapid and Novorapid, and I eat stuff to counteract the effect of that insulin. (Most important is the rye bread: see my profile.)

When I go to bed at night, the effect of that fast-acting insulin is all but exhausted. So I go to bed knowing that I'll sleep safely.

Crucially, I test my blood sugar a lot. But mostly I use the visually read strips for this: Betachek Visual or Glucoflex-R.

My method of control is not hard work. It's very simple.

But if you want to safely exercise such control, you would need to speak to a doctor or diabetic specialist about a change of regimen.

And they may not take kindly to such an idea. You may need got be persistent. And you would need to show understanding. But that isn't too difficult either.

 

[michaeldavid]

So, when I wake each morning, my blood sugar is pretty well normal.

I'm no longer diabetic!

In effect, that's what my regimen amounts to: it makes for a far more effective - and safe - cure for diabetes than does the orthodox method. (DAFNE is daft.)

Of course I know that as soon as I start to eat (and even drink my coffee with frothy milk first thing) my blood sugar will begin to rise.

Okay, so I'm diabetic again.

But that's no problem: I've taken my insulin.

And the trick is to see that with this medical condition, things are precisely back to front.

What I mean is that for those who aren't diabetic, their pancreas releases insulin as and when they eat or drink stuff. And that insulin serves, very precisely, to make use of and/or store away the body's fuel: glucose.

But you and I, we take the insulin FIRST. And then we eat.

But that insulin we just took does not, of its own accord, match up with the food we eat - as happens in the case of the non-diabetic's naturally produced insulin.

Rather, we need to eat food in order to match the effect of that insulin, as and when it comes into effect.

And in order to do that effectively and safely, we test our blood sugar quite a lot.

In effect, this is like glancing at the fuel gauge in a car when driving: we definitely don't want to run out of fuel. But neither do we want to put too much fuel in the dodgy fuel tank. (In effect, diabetics have a fuel tank which they cannot fill: that excess glucose just stays in the blood stream, which is very unhealthy indeed.)

I mostly use the visually read strips, because they're simpler and cheaper. And I don't use those clunky, spring-loaded gadgets to get the blood sample. I just gently jab myself with a bare lancet. (I don't throw it away after just one use, either.) Nothing could be simpler.

The visually read strips can be cut with scissors, too. That makes them cheaper still. (It also makes the requisite blood sample smaller.)

But the use of the meter-read sticks is very important first thing in the morning and last thing at night: you want to know precisely how things stand at those times in particular.

I tend not to eat much animal fat. If I eat a lot of meat or cheese then my blood sugar will rise later in the day, or in the evening, or overnight.

But I do eat very well. And most important is the rye bread. This is what allows me to SAFELY keep my blood sugar near normal all the time.

I'm particularly careful about what I eat in the evening. If I eat an evening meal, then it will be a very early evening meal. And what I definitely don't want is to have high blood sugar at bedtime.

But as the evening progresses, there is still insulin active within me, even though its effect is lessening. So I keep an eye on my blood sugar, and I'll eat fruit, or a potato crisp or two, or three, or four (but definitely not too many of those), or I'll eat a biscuit, or have some fruit juice, or maybe some cake.

I eat, on and off, throughout the day. And I eat very well.

But I do not eat normally. And I firmly resist any temptation to do otherwise, or any effort on the part of others to try to make me do otherwise. Because, after all, I am not quite normal.

Just as I don't want high blood sugar at bedtime, neither do I want anything more than the bare minimum of insulin active within me at bedtime. That's why I don't take any so-called 'basal' insulin. I have a very strong feeling that the effective medical imposition of these basal insulins is a misguided effort to make 'normal eaters' out of those who need to take insulin.

But you are the one who's in charge. So you decide the way you want to eat, and (preferably with medical advice) take your insulin accordingly. But you must always be very careful about making changes.

Incidentally, the Actrapid insulin I take (first thing, and also at 11.00am) is a bit slower acting than the Novorapid I also take (at 4pm). For me, the effect of the 11.00am insulin and the 4.00pm insulin runs out together at midnight.