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Still Exhausted After 5 months

lizziewizzie

Well-Known Member
Messages
100
Location
West Midlands
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
Hey all,

I'm getting really fed up of feeling so tired all the time. Work is hard and my days off I spend either mostly in bed or on the sofa napping or just resting. On my days off even going to the shop seems to be a struggle.

I've given up drinking alcohol (day 35 today) and am following a vegan diet (95% of the time). I have started taking Vitamin B complex tablets to help, but so far nothing is helping!

The only other thing I can think of is I'm due a smear test (sorry guys!) and perhaps there is something else wrong in that department. I have booked in for next week to check this.

Does anyone else still suffer with this level of exhaustion or how long did you post diagnosis? I was diagnosed 19/12/15.

Thank you,
lizziewizzie
 
Hey @lizziewizzie yes exhausted all the time, but that's working, being a mum and a type 1 diabetic !

I would get your thyroid levels checked, I have an under active thyroid and if i'm not taking the right level of medication it impacts hugely on my mood and energy levels. They'll need to do a blood test but if you're tired all the time there will be a reason and it's common for type 1 and hypothyroidism to go hand in hand and will affect energy levels greatly, it sounds like you're doing everything else right so best to get your GP to investigate
 
Hi @lizziewizzie Yes, I'm tired too but, again, that's being a mum. When I was first diagnosed, I did notice I seemed to get a little more tired and I did feel slightly different, but if you're having to resort to naps and everyday tasks are hard, then I certainly think it's worth seeing your doctor.

@Juicyj has made a good suggestion about a thyroid test, and I'd also suggest you may want to have more general blood tests for things like anaemia. Obviously, there's nothing wrong with a vegan diet, but it can be more difficult to get all the nutrients you need when you take out some foods. You could also try a good quality multivitamin, if you aren't taking one already.
 
How long have you been on the vegan diet? Agree with @azure that there is nothing wrong with that but if the timing coincides with your tiredness perhaps it's a diet issue that is the cause? My own tiredness definitely varies a lot with changes to my diet.

Edited to add - I was diagnosed almost exactly one year before you and remember still being tired until Easter time; so it definitely takes some time to adjust. Also, type 1 is by its very nature exhausting mentally and I think that definitely takes a toll. The mental side of it alone is very draining.
 
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I too have been excessively tired for some time. It is not the tiredness of overworking or taking care of a family, done that, got the T shirt. There is the drain of depression, also the physical effort of doing something, the feeling of lack of oxygen. Lack of iron can also zap you, iron rich items include red meat, beetroot plus beers like stout or Guinness. When the blood sugars are out of wack I can hardly think let alone do anything. I wish I new what the solution was too, and I don't think it is necessarily due to diabetes.
 
For women only, One cause that also links in to anemia is blood loss as in heavy periods. This can be relieved with the pill. Another in the same vein is a tumour, now that I am going thro the menopause mine is now shrinking. It is checked with a scan and ultrasound. If it had been detected earlier in my life it would have operated on, It certainly affected my fertility and periods.
 
Thanks @Juicyj @azure @pinewood @brenda walker it's so nice having you guys!

I had blood tests about 2 months ago and all was fine, no anemia. I don't actually know if they tested my thryroid though, so I think I'll go and get that checked. I wish I could just take my own blood when I want it tested, it would make things a lot easier!

The excessive tiredness does not tie in with the new vegan diet at all, so at least I can rule that one out. I wonder if it is my depression? Now that I'm not drinking alcohol I feel a lot more stable in my mood though, so I wouldn't have thought it would be that. It may seem like I'm looking for something to be wrong. It's just that in all honesty, my body feels like it's slowing down and giving up, as if I'm close to dying. I know that sounds totally ridiculous and wont be the case, but that's the best way to describe how I feel.

Plan - have the smear test next Thursday. If feeling more exhausted by then, see the GP too and get thyroid checked. Otherwise I'll wait for the smear test results, if they're okay I'll get my thyroid checked then. In the meantime, start taking a multivitamin tablet as well as the B Vitamin Complex.

Also, as you said @pinewood, 5 months in and you still felt really tired, so perhaps I'm just expecting too much too soon.

Thanks again guys xxx
 
I could be wrong but I think you can approach your local pharmacist for a blood test. No harm in talking to him. These chaps are very knowledgeable.
 
Hi lizziewizzie, are you on Lantus perhaps? I experienced a period of unexplained exhaustion some two years ago and it ended abruptly when I was changed from Lantus to Tresiba. (I was rather disappointed the doctor had had me waste time with thyroid and anaemia exams, when the real 'culprit' had been under her nose all the time...)
A hug and best wishes
 
@Bic I am on lantus! I wonder if that's it. My day has just gone from bad to worse, I feel horrible and am now just getting moody at everything. I just want to hide away. I think I'm going to have to book an appointment with my GP. Thank you so much for the suggestion. x
 
You may just be short of Iron a lot of women get this. Usually can be tablets
 
Potentially. I was checked for anaemia 2 months ago and was totally fine. I don't get periods anymore and get plenty of iron in my diet so it's unlikely, but these things can change of course. I'm going to ask for a FBC and thyroid level check, but if they're fine I'm tempted to ask to change from Lantus. x
 
I was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes in the spring of 2004, but I was exhausted, my knees and other joints hurt so badly I was afraid of tripping on clumps of grass in my very even yard. My endocrinologist tested me and the results came back....
Pernicious Anemia & Autoimmune Thyroiditis & Celiac
Get some tests. I was crawling up the stairs with my newborn due to severe fatigue.
 
If you are getting checked for Pernicious Anemia they have to check for titers against your parietal cells in your stomach. These are the cells responsible for helping your body access the B12 in the food you eat. I was experiencing bloating, bowel changes, hair loss, severe fatigue, muscle cramps and my left leg would drag. It is important to take into consideration that I was also diagnosed with Autoimmune Thyroiditis (first) and Celiac (second) and then the pernicious anemia was diagnosed.
 
Hey @Nutty72 I'm so sorry to hear that Niamh is tired too. How is she coping with school? Poor thing! Have you spoken to her team about it at all?

@VirginiaEngland I have all the symptoms of Autoimmune Thyroiditis so maybe I should mention that. I think I'll ask for thyroid bloods and a full blood count.

Now I just have to wait for an appointment to come up on one of my days off work

xxx
 
We are up and down at school, with SATS next week I'm sure that will be a curve ball too. Hospital Monday will see what the team think, hope ur ok lovely X
 
Been to the doctors today who arranged bloods for next week. I then had to see the nurse for the smear test. She asked what was going on with my diabetes so I explained. She was really concerned so said she'd do the bloods then and there. She tested for vit d and thyroid and added on crohns and a couple of other things. Should hear back in 10 days.
42 days alcohol free today woohoo!
Thank you for all your support by the way. I don't know how I'd cope without you all here. Xxx

Sent from my SM-G920F using Diabetes.co.uk Forum mobile app
 
So, I had the blood tests done and the results all came back okay/negative. As did the smear. So what the hell is wrong with me?? It's getting worse. Work has been the only thing keeping me going as when I'm there it's not about me, so adrenaline and responsibility takes over and I get on with it. Even that is getting too much now though and I don't know how much longer I can go on. I got home from work at 4pm yesterday, fell asleep at 5.30pm and slept until 9am today. That's 15.5 hours sleep, it's ridiculous.

My latest plan is to change from 8units of Lantus in the morning and 6units at night, to doing all 14units at night. Perhaps if it is the Lantus making me so tired then at least it will be doing that while I'm asleep anyway. So I've started that today, fingers crossed it doesn't make me hypo in the night.

Anyone got any ideas on what's going on, or any personal experience with this exhaustion?

Thanks again,
xxx
 
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