• Guest - w'd love to know what you think about the forum! Take the 2025 Survey »

Struggling to cope with type 1 diabetes

Robinredbreast said:
Hi, I have my moments, but try to be positive, so plodding along.
Diabetes can be like riding a tiger, if you let go it can savage you, but if you hold on, it might steer you away from potential harm.
How are you feeling this morning ?
Click to expand...

I really really try to be positive sometimes when everything falls apart all in once it can be so overwhelming , I won’t hive up because I want to keep my eyesight aswell!

Yes it certainly is like how can you control what happens on the inside of your body to prevent potential harm to myself? Just so so difficult but I’ll get there!

I’m ok this morning my blood sugars are 20mmol and this is with little or no food I just don’t understand but I have corrected to bring them down and will start counting my carbs throughout the day! How are you doing today with it?
 

I awoke on a 7.5, had a cup of tea and read a chapter of my book, it's called Nemesis btw, very apt tested again and it went up to 10.7 !! so not a happy bunny
 
Hey lovely, I feel your pain. I’ve been there myself, diagnosed twenty years ago at 23 - and except for when I was pregnant with my son, I took the “la, la, la, I’m not listening” approach to my diabetes. With my fingers firmly in my ears. Terrible levels, felt dreadful all the time and was basically disabled by it, including a couple of near fatal DKAs, which still weren’t enough to shock me into getting to grips with it. There can be a very long grieving process with a diagnosis like ours - and I think we go through the classic stages of denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. I was stuck at the denial stage for a long time and have only really reached acceptance in the last couple of years.

I had my lowest point in January 2018 when after misreading the raw and cooked weights on a pack of dried spaghetti I took 50% too much insulin and had to get paramedics to help me. I joined the forum the next morning, looking for another way to manage things. I chose to try a low carb diet and follow the Dr Bernstein method. Since then, I’ve achieved basically non diabetic levels and maintained them for 15 months. In that time I’ve reversed the retinopathy and neuropathy in my feet, plus a few other complications - and now I’m able to work full time and I’m starting training to become a paramedic in September

All I’m saying is that a lot of it is fixable if you can get things at a good level. Good sugars will make you feel so much better. Happy to chat via PM if you need a friend x
 
Robinredbreast said:
I awoke on a 7.5, had a cup of tea and read a chapter of my book, it's called Nemesis btw, very apt tested again and it went up to 10.7 !! so not a happy bunny
Click to expand...

Oh my god what I would do to have blood sugars of 10.7!! absolutely amazing do they ever go higher??
 

Hello,

Thank you for your message <3

I will reply to this in PM? How do I PM you? Can you PM me so I can reply ?? Xxx
 

Hello,

Thank you for your message

I am slowly regaining hope and confidence with all your uplifting messages, I am now confident this dark place will slowly pass , I will definitely use the medical team and better my knowledge along the way - how is your diabetes are you coping better now?
 
Hi @Becks33 You can get 'Think like a pancreas' off Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Think-Like...ay&sprefix=think+like+a+pancre,aps,123&sr=8-1

I am on a pump now, I struggled with multiple daily injections and was doing a lot of work and getting no where, when I finally decided a pump would help more it then took me a further year to get one after being turned down, I also had to complete DAFNE (dose adjustment for normal eating) first. It was worth the wait but had to prove I was willing to put the work in to get one.

Stay positive hun, you will get there, the fact your here now talking to us means you want things to change and they will.
 
Hi @Becks33,
I know the dark places too. The fear, anxiety and the 'if only had not done this and that...'.

And the overwhelmingness of it all, the lessened choices and wondering what will happen next.

You too have reached a crunch time.

Stress certainly puts up my BSLs and I am a little mystified about why you do not have an insulin pump!
Perhaps you have to earn it! As shocking as that sounds you may have to pull out lots of stops to make that happen.

So - as a TID for 52 years ( not an oldie - still young in non-alcoholic spirit) and not as health professional advice or opinion:
as @endocrinegremlin says one step at a time.

Diet - Home page here under Type 1 lists and describes the various diet options - what is it you need to do?
Ask your team - Start to engage them with questions on diet to show you are reading and being serious - (including @Juicyj and @michita) post suggestions above, start with whoever you get on best with - and ask what to stop in your diet that is causing BSLs to rise too much and what to do in its place.

Stress_ if you value your eyes, ask one of the team about smoking .
If they say it needs to stop (and I bet they say so absolutely)! ask for help and start to find another way to relieve stress
such as yoga! As @JAT1 puts it, this is a wake-up call, as harsh as it gets but with support as per @kevinfitzgerald and @Robinredbreast this can be about stopping the present journey and starting a new path, as scary as that might feel.
Keeping occupied with whatever I could was something I needed to do: whether sudoku, macrame or learning other knot patterns, making paper kites, having some goals to one's existence to build on.
Maybe taking notes about what you are reading about diabetes so that you can refer back to them when seeing your team.
Listening to music, making up tunes - the key to real estate selling is location, location, location and for stress ? .....
distraction, distraction, distraction - our minds keep thinking whilst we are distracted, so no time lost !!

BSLs_ from my understanding the Libre device for UK needs to have you testing by finger-prick at least 11 times per day
Maybe something to add to the start list ? see @Circuspony, @michita and @Robinredbreast And being mindful of what @Jaylee says. Keeping track of results - a 'distraction' as well.

Insulin_ Carb counting sounds like a way to go to better get insulin and diet working together - there could be other courses on-line which could get you started earlier. perhaps @endocrinegremlin knows of such courses ??

Step by step; out of darkness into light - a rather different way of living but one where there can be enjoyment but not a such cost to you.
Best wishes and keep posting - word by word, sentence by sentence !!

Use humour.......We have all..........seek help rather......Read and take........ ..Balance is........Nuthing, absolutely
.........................made mistakes..........than guess..........notes all you can.............key.............nuthin' is impossible
... .... ... ... ....
 
Becks33 said:
Hello,

Wow 46 years I couldn’t even begin to imagine!
Thank you for your advice it’s greatly appreciated <3 how are your eyes now? Absolutely focusing on the now absolutely yes
Click to expand...
my eye injections were 6 years ago and my eyes have been stable since
 
Becks33 said:
Have you been able to reverse the damage? Or could they get worse? Is that due to your blood sugars?
Click to expand...
my sight is not tremendous in my left eye but i can see ok -- right eye is perfect vision
so i can still drive fine, i suppose they can always get wors , but it will be the longevity of living with t1d that is the culprit i guess.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Menu
Log in
Register
Cookies are required to use this site. You must accept them to continue using the site. Learn More.…