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some advice

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dietfizzy

Active Member
Messages
39
Location
manchester
hi everyone, ive been on here a couple of times and got some great advice. i just wanted a little more. i am t1 been diagnosed since april this year. i was diagnosed after having a routine blood test (which i wasnt going to do) after feeling unwell for 3-4 months and losing some weight. it was a massive shock to me as no one in my family suffers with diabetes 1 or 2 so i didnt really know much about it. my husband has been great very supportive my kids brilliant always checking up on me, even my mum in law phones me constantly to see if i am ok. but my side of the family seem so not interested in it, its not even funny any more... when i was diagnosed i had ketoacidosis but my mum and sisters (we have a strained relationship) never came to see me or have ever asked how i am.
am i making a bigger deal out of this i think its a huge thing to deal with and though i am coping quite well its very early days... i spoke to one sister on the phone last night and we some how got on to the subject of my diabetes only briefly, and she said make sure you check your eyes thats what it affects!!! i didnt really say much but i think they have no idea what is involved day to day or the impact it can have on your life. i just wanted to get someones else's opinion am i making a big deal out of nothing or is this life changing and a huge thing to get my head around i am begining to feel like a drama queen ! any advice will be appreciated
p.s i dont want any special treatment from them just a little support
thanks dietfizzy
 
Well if its support you want you have come to the right place. It is life changing. Yes you do have to make changes. Yes you are going to have your down days its all a part of it. There are some great people on here that have me in stitches (they dont know it though) I have been lucky in the support from my family except for my daughter who has told me it is only type 2 and not important....I have now written to her saying when she is a registered nurse or doctor and have had published papers on her research then she will be qualified to tell me anything. It can be frustrating but at least here we are all in roughly the same boat.

take care
 
thanks yes it can be frustrating... i was just windering how many of you have stupid remarks made like it because you eat too much sugar, even i person i know thought you could catch it x
thanks again for the advice x
diet fizzy
 
We all get silly remarks from people, well-meaning or not. One of my colleagues said to me "oh well now you can't have sugar in your tea or on your cereal" and tutted at me. I informed her that I didn't anyway and never had! In fact I ate very little sugar! :roll: So many misconceptions.
 
I totally agree,
ive had the usual,u must have eaten a lot of sugar etc etc, i know how u feel about family,my hubby,kids,mum and dad are great but thats only from what ive learnt them, i do think if people dont understand something then they make up their own mind
my sis in law asked me how many sugars in tea i said none im diabetic ,she said she didnt know i couldnt have sugar lol, we have had to understand it all, but till it happens to you diabetes is just a word :D
 
Its a huge deal and dont let anyone tell you any differently. Especially if you've only recently been diagnosed (and yes 7 months is still new relative to the rest of your life).

The amount of ignorance about it is astounding - people have a vague notion about it and it usually involves sugar.Only the other day I had to reassure a colleague that eating too much sugar wont cause it. For me, who's also type 1, Ive had lots comments about how unexpected it was for me to get it given i've always been so 'healthy'. Type 1's are in the diabetic minority statistically and virtually no one Ive met knows it's autoimmune in origin. Lots of people also think that type 2 becomes type 1 (understandable mistake i suppose when insulin comes into the equation).

I knew quite a bit about it but didnt appreciate how complex insulin use is, or control of bg. I thought that you just injected insulin, and ate regularly and that would be all. No longer under any illusions! I suppose thats maybe why your family think its not a big deal - you've got insulin, you probably look well and are getting on with it so - no biggie. They wont understand things like the lack of freedom to eat, lack of choice or how food shopping at Christmas can induce strange feelings of melancholy (bloody Thorntons!!). The amount of people with diabetic 'stories' also makes me laugh. It usually involves amputations, blindness, heart bypasses etc. Luckily I've usually known the subjects of the stories and in 98% of the cases they have never taken care of themselves (unless daily boxes of chocs or bottles of vodka are medicinal -how I wish! :D )

I've found that the best way to remedy that is to educate those who need to know. If people are asking to be told then that's half the battle.

Take care
L
 
thanks everyone for your comments... i think that i will just get on with things, do what i am doing every day thanks again for the support
diet fizzy xxx
 
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