Starting to go into a panic

[lollyann1]

I was coping with T1 well and had a positive Hba1c result but I am finding if anything starts to go really wrong when I am due for Novorapid then dinner I am starting to go into a panic. It is horrible and is becoming a habit. Any advice please? I suppose It's a behaviour changing policy to start working on

 

[JAT1]

If I were you, when I feel panicky, I would take a BG meter reading to see if I was going hypo.

 

[lollyann1]

If I were you, when I feel panicky, I would take a BG meter reading to see if I was going hypo.

Yes, I agree, although a panic moment can feel like a Hypo

 

[Dixon1995]

Yes, I agree, although a panic moment can feel like a Hypo

Hello what makes you go into a panic? Is it the fact of having to take your novorapid before your meal quick enough or something like that? How do you mean, sorry if I missed it in your first post

 

[lollyann1]

Hello what makes you go into a panic? Is it the fact of having to take your novorapid before your meal quick enough or something like that? How do you mean, sorry if I missed it in your first post

Yes, it's all about the timing between injecting Novorapid and eating my food. I feel it is all too much of a rush

 

[Dixon1995]

Yes, it's all about the timing between injecting Novorapid and eating my food. I feel it is all too much of a rush

You shouldn't worry to much, Novorapid takes 30 minutes to start working. But you need to take it before eating meals, well it is recommended. It's annoying, I am on Novorapid too and it's the worst having to do the injection while everyone goes off to eat. But I prefer it now, I have my own plate ontop of my own set of scales to properly count my carbs and then inject, if my food cools down I bang it in microwave for 30 seconds, it doesn't usually cool down. Sometimes I will decide what im having beforehand such as 150g beans, 100 grams chips and 100g sausage for example, and then wind it up on my Novorapid just before tea is ready, with any corrections I might need to take. Just 5 minutes before tea is ready, I can inject and know ive covered the correct amount.

 

[lollyann1]

You shouldn't worry to much, Novorapid takes 30 minutes to start working. But you need to take it before eating meals, well it is recommended. It's annoying, I am on Novorapid too and it's the worst having to do the injection while everyone goes off to eat. But I prefer it now, I have my own plate ontop of my own set of scales to properly count my carbs and then inject, if my food cools down I bang it in microwave for 30 seconds, it doesn't usually cool down. Sometimes I will decide what im having beforehand such as 150g beans, 100 grams chips and 100g sausage for example, and then wind it up on my Novorapid just before tea is ready, with any corrections I might need to take. Just 5 minutes before tea is ready, I can inject and know ive covered the correct amount.

Thanks. I was told that it only took 10 minutes before Novorapid began to work!

 

[Dixon1995]

Thanks. I was told that it only took 10 minutes before Novorapid began to work!

Hello sorry, Novorapid does start to lower blood sugar between 10-20 minutes after injecting, sometimes 30, but because you are eating your meal after injecting, there is no need for a mad dash or to feel like you have a limited timeframe, because it works most effectively an hour after injecting, in most people.

 

[lollyann1]

Hello sorry, Novorapid does start to lower blood sugar between 10-20 minutes after injecting, sometimes 30, but because you are eating your meal after injecting, there is no need for a mad dash or to feel like you have a limited timeframe, because it works most effectively an hour after injecting, in most people.

Thanks. I am really going to have to work on a behaviour changing tactic. As already mentioned in one of my previous posts it has almost become a very bad habit to start to feel a bit of panic after injecting Novorapid before I eat.

 

[Dixon1995]

Thanks. I am really going to have to work on a behaviour changing tactic. As already mentioned in one of my previous posts it has almost become a very bad habit to start to feel a bit of panic after injecting Novorapid before I eat.

I know it can cause some anxiety issues. You could try listening to nice relaxing music to take your mind of it. I find its best to look at the needle going in as the brain realises what is happening and can anticipate it better. Try and use slow breathing excercises to relax before injecting your medication, try take your mind off having to inject the insulin. Try learn not to think about things going wrong or that something may happen, as this will make you worry more.

And if pain is an issue, the slower you inject, the more painful it can be, in most cases.

 

[Antje77]

Injecting right before you eat might well cause a spike after eating, because the novorapid doesn't work so fast. But if injecting and waiting makes you so anxious at the moment, why not inject at the table when the food is in front of you? You can always go back to pre-bolusing when you feel more comforable.
I used my meter a lot to find out how long before eating I should inject ideally (30-50 minutes, in my case, when I was on novorapid).
Good luck!

 

[alphabeta]

Hello, I have the exact same issue and only this week I started to pre bolus after 9 year of having diabetes. Here's my strategy for overcoming this fear. Now I use a slightly faster insulin than NovoRapid which is Humalog but no big difference. Prepare your food on the table ready for eating. Get your pen, inject and wait 2 minutes (set a timer on your phone). After you feel comfortable with 2 minutes, probably after 3 days or even 7 days, make it 4 minutes, and so on. Personally, I do not need to wait more than 10 minutes as I tested a lot and I found out that insulin goes alongside with my food so barely a spike.
This is an approach from a psychology perspective and this technique is called exposure where you expose yourself to your fears GRADUALLY until you overcome them or at least be less anxious. As harsh as it may sound, you can't hide from your fear, you have to face it and defeat it. The first times can be hard but after a while, you develop a sense of trust to how your system will react. I'd like to hear what @kitedoc has to say about this.

 

[kitedoc]

Thank you @ alphabeta and Hi @lollyann1. From experience as as T1D , not as professional advice or opinion:
We are educated and instilled in the mantra of "eating food and injecting insulin go together". And woe betide anyone who does one without the other!!
But are we robots to be so commanded? Or to be subjected to dire warnings as a means to make us, robots, do as we are told, with no explanation, flexibility, understanding that even Tin Man and Tin Woman have hearts???
(and how do you inject if you have a robot's exterior?? - I leave that for the educators to find a way to 'soften' their approach!!
I used to worry when eating out because I had no definite way of knowing the time interval between ordering a meal and when it would arrive. And so when do I give my short-acting insulin?
What helped me was to allow myself to be a human guinea pig:
# to test my BSLs at home, before and two hours after a meal say on a quiet weekend, for each meal and, if need be, doing a finger prick reading after say, 30 minutes after a meal, to reassurance myself at least once that nothing catastrophic would happen BSL wise (and writing them down as a reminder and reassurance for when I was started to worry about timing of food and insulin)
# counting carbs so that I had a basis for how much Novorapid I was to inject.
# varying the time interval between injection and start of the meal, scary I know, but with one's trusty glucose meter and food nearby there is measure of control (and as others have suggested music, looking at the internet, doing sodoku, doing but not using crosswords! etc) and as reassurance, setting an alarm on the mobile phone to remind me when the time interval between injection and eating is up. Intervals: 20 minutes, 30 minutes and 40 minutes.
And it is true I could merrily inject (well, no, that is not merry but one gets used to it (and if you have qualms about injections themselves @lollyann I hope you seek help for this) and I delve into music etc and sometimes forget that I had not had the meal to follow the injection! So the alarm was the reminder and reassurance that I would not forget.
And eating out, if the interval between injection and food arriving was too long, I would order an orange juice or request quick preparation of dessert and eat that whilst waiting for the entree etc,
Now, looking at the drug company figures on when Novorapid usually starts to work (20 minutes plus) and when it reaches a peak of BSL lowering action might be quoted as 1 1/2 to 3 hours.
This variation in peak effect used to worry me, until I have done my own BSLs and knew what MY pattern was.
The relative thought was: This is my body and I am the driver - not others.( the mobile phone alarm reminder etc is like the sat nav as well as having the cheeky comments from 'back seat drivers' (partner, family etc).
To relax: breathe slowly in and out ( when stressed we hold our breathe and our thinking and ability to cope well stops with it)
The alarm is on (check!), you have put a rubber band on your finger and written on the back of your hand EAT etc.
On with the show !!! Best Wishes, Humour is the best medicine !!!

 

[lollyann1]

I know it can cause some anxiety issues. You could try listening to nice relaxing music to take your mind of it. I find its best to look at the needle going in as the brain realises what is happening and can anticipate it better. Try and use slow breathing excercises to relax before injecting your medication, try take your mind off having to inject the insulin. Try learn not to think about things going wrong or that something may happen, as this will make you worry more.

And if pain is an issue, the slower you inject, the more painful it can be, in most cases.

Thanks very much for your advice