T1: What Happens If I Don't Take My Insulin?

What you are doing is not taking your life saving medication in order to avoid putting on weight. You say you are not doing anything wrong and I'm sorry you feel like you have to say that, but try to think about what you would say if someone you loved told you "I'm not taking the medicine I need to stay alive because I don't want to put on weight". I'm sure you would be really worried about them, you would want them to explain what they were doing to their diabetic nurse so they could get help to stop such risky behaviour.

There is a condition called diabulimia, it essentially an eating disorder when diabetics avoid taking their insulin to lose weight. It's a form of self harm. I'm sorry, I probably could/should be putting it more gently but deliberately avoiding your insulin for weight loss is a form of self harm.

Insulin does not make you put on weight - what you eat does. Insulin allows you to get energy from what you are eating and keeps your blood sugar in normal range. If you are limiting insulin to an extent that means you are losing weight what will be happening is when you eat your blood sugar will go up, but none of that glucose will get into youtr cells, your blood will literally thicken with glucose potentially causing venous damage to your eyes and nerves in your peripheries, your kidneys will work overtime to filter that extra glucose out of your blood, you won't be getting any benefit from breakfast and lunch, you will just be peeing them out.

If someone you love was doing that to their body, on purpose, I'm sure you wouldn't say it's only damage for half the day. You would tell them that their health is far more important than their weight.

It's perfectly possible to avoid weight gain or lose weight while taking your insulin. Eat healthily, get energy from your food, use the energy to exercise. If you carb count, you might consider low carbing (accompanied by balanced reductions in your insulin dose) to lose weight.

Does it make sense to you that someone would be willing to abstain from their life saving medication to lose weight, but not willing to give up a "cheat day"?

Be honest with your DSN about what you are doing, they won't tell you off, but they will try to help you get to grips with taking your insulin safely.

Hello @Alex_B

Not taking your insulin is a form of abuse, that's the honest reality of what you are doing. You may not see it this way but it's manipulating your insulin doses and whether you want to or not you need to inform your DSN asap. Losing weight is something that can happen now or anytime, but taking insulin is a medication required each and every day to keep you well, by not taking insulin you are putting your health at risk and raising the stakes of causing damage to yourself. Please do not put your health at risk here, forget losing weight, think about the type of damage you can cause, such as blindness etc, we all know deep down the risks but ignore the fact of losing weight, wouldn't you rather be healthy ?

Please take care and put your health first, it's vital you take your insulin during the daytime.

@Alex_B Its a very bad idea not to take your insulin properly. You need to take it as prescribed. If you don't, your blood sugar won't be controlled and you will have highs which will put you at risk of short term harm (thrush, urinary infections, sores, DKA) and long term harm (diabetic complications like kidney failure, blindness, nerve damage, etc).

Please look at the Diabulimia section here.

Insulin doesn't make you fat. If you want to lose a little weight, just eat a healthy diet consistently day after day, with the right insulin doses, and a moderate (ie not excessive) amount of carbs.

If you don't know how to carb count and adjust your insulin to match your meals, push to be taught this as soon as possible.

Please look after yourself and think. You need ALL your doses of insulin otherwise you're putting yourself in danger.

Edited to add - please speak to your DSN again if you're struggling with accepting your diagnosis. Please also ask for any help you need - carb counting courses, help with acceptance, chat with a dietician, etc Sometimes you need to push for help and state directly that you need it.

Type 1 is a pain but it's something that needs to be treated with respect and dealt with properly. To do that, you need to know as much as you can about it and get any support you need.

Hi @Alex_B I'm fairly new to dealing with this stuff but I know already its been a real emotional roller coaster for me. My sense is that the decision you feel like taking could be life limiting or potentially life threatening and so not something to choose without really being sure its the decision for you. Your diabetes, and your weight are just two aspects of the whole person that is you yet it sounds like right now they dominate everything. I know that in my Diabetic Clinic I can access psychological support, something I used when first diagnosed, that is very specialised and in my experience kind and supportive, maybe it would help to talk through all the stuff going on in your life right now with someone non judgemental? I'm glad you are using the forum(s) to talk about this stuff too.
Wish you well.

Alex_B said:

They don't care about me that's all. They don't want hear about my suicidal thoughts or anything else because they can't be bothered to deal with it.

Click to expand...

I'm sure they do @Alex_B , if your struggling emotionally and have thoughts of self-harm then you need to make your diabetes team and gp aware of this.

I see you were only diagnosed 4 months ago, diabetes is life-changing but you can still live a full & active life with the condition, some members on here have lived with the condition for several decades and still lead active life's, putting weight on post-diagnosis is quite normal and I'm sure in time things will settle down and your healthy eating and exercising will pay off, if you want ask your DSN if you can be seen by a Dietitian who will give you some pointers on diet and weight loss. Good luck.

I'm in a different position. I'm on low-carb diet and it's actually tough for me to put on weight.

Not taking insulin will increase the mid-to-long term risk of losing your vision, kidney function and the affect the nerves that control involuntary actions such as digestion, heart function, bladder control.

There are people with type 1 in their mid-twenties that have a screwed up digestive function and needing kidney transplantation because they made a habit of skipping injections to lose weight.

You're along the right lines, you just don't need to go so extreme.

Lowering your daily insulin will help you to lose weight but certainly do not stop taking your insulin.

A safe and effective way to lose weight with type 1 diabetes is with a lower-carbohydrate diet. That will result in lower daily insulin needs.

The other great thing about a low-carb diet is that it usually significantly improves blood sugar levels and this can make you feel more in control and could make you less likely to feel depressed.

Give it some consideration?

All the best
Ed


Edited by a mod

Hi

Sorry you are feeling so rubbish with weight issues and mental health struggles.

Let me just explain though.. Everybody interprets "eating healthy" differently.

To some having a jacket spud daily with a salad would be healthy. However, to some (me) that would be unhealthy. A healthier option would be salad with tuna or salmon and not the jacket potato.

Another example...some people think porridge is healthy as a breakfast option. I don't. It sends bloods out of control and gives me chronic constipation. My option and the same for others would be just scrambled eggs (no toast) or others may have blueberries with yogurt or cream.

What the NHS tells diabetics is healthy is not always healthy for ys as individuals.

Another example in my case waa people telling me to eat high fibre foods. That is the worst thing ever for me as an individual.

Have you changed your eating foods / times etc at all since diagnosis? Normally people tow the line with nurses etc and do as they advise but they treat people (and have to really) as this works for "average" people. This may not be right or tailored to you as an individual...

Please keep coming back and talking. We can help you...

Alex_B said:

I do eat healthy and I do go for walks every night with my mum. I have spoken to my diabetes nurse and they told me the same thing and I am getting sick of hearing about exercising and eating healthy, I am already doing that. I can't lose weight because I have been doing this since I got diagnosed.

I don't think it is a form about abuse, or self harm. They don't care about me that's all. They don't want hear about my suicidal thoughts or anything else because they can't be bothered to deal with it.

Click to expand...

I'm sure you are @Alex_B No one doubts you're working hard to cope with this condition. It's a huge shock to be told you have Type 1 and to realise you have to pay attention to it 24/7. It took me months to come to terms with it. I felt upset and angry.

If you feel your diabetes team aren't listening, maybe you could speak to your GP. Don't be worried about telling them exactly how you're feeling. They're used to dealing with things like this. Choose to speak to a doctor or nurse that you like and will be able to open up to.

As for the weight, I imagineyou lost weight before you were diagnosed. That may have happened slowly over a few weeks and then suddenly dropped a lot. Your body will still be recovering from that ordeal. Once things are settled, your weight should settle at a normal level for you if you eat a normal diet.

I've been diagnosed more than 20 years and my weight now is exactly the same as it was before I got diabetes. I don't diet. I just try to eat healthily day after day to give my body what it needs. I also aim to get my insulin doses as perfect as possible, so that it matches my body's basic needs and the food I eat.

Do that - set out a reasonable diet, match your insulin (get help doing that if you need it) and please speak to someone about how down you're feeling.

Take care x

P.S - Do check your ideal weight on a BMI calculator. If you're looking at your weight just before diagnosis, it may not be a good indication of what your healthy weight is. The figures you've given certainly don't sound excessive for a young adult man.

Hi. Never seriously reduce insulin to lose weight as the weight loss will be from your body fat and muscle and your blood sugar will just go up and up. You say you have healthy diet? Most NHS staff who say this don't know what they mean by it and some will quote from the dangerous Eat(un)well Plate. A healthy diet for a diabetic will have low'ish carbs and a reasonable amount of protein and fat as well as veg and fruit. Your weight gain with insulin is likely to be due to too many carbs.

I wanted to actually state too many carbs too!

Can you give us an idea of what you eat?

My hubby is 5'11 and think his nice weight for him is 12st 7lb with a nice 30-32" waist. First hubby was a painful thin 26" waist.

Like you I lost weight (female) and sunk to about 71/2 stone. I know now just how thin I must have been. I'm on average 81/2st now and still only thin and wanting to put weight on!

Do have a good look at what your BMI is. It's again only for an "average" person but there is a wide margin of what weights can be for age/height/male/female etc.

It is normal to lose weight pre diagnosis. I'm 30+ years on now and just realising how painfully I'll and thin I must have looked when originally diagnosed.

Please can you give us an idea of how many carbs you are eating on a normal day?
Whether you know about adjusting your doses?


We are genuinely trying to help but as others have said, the NHS Eatwell plate is not the best guidance to healthy eating.

Please come back and have a chat.

Alex_B said:

I do eat healthy and I do go for walks every night with my mum. I have spoken to my diabetes nurse and they told me the same thing and I am getting sick of hearing about exercising and eating healthy, I am already doing that. I can't lose weight because I have been doing this since I got diagnosed.

I don't think it is a form about abuse, or self harm. They don't care about me that's all. They don't want hear about my suicidal thoughts or anything else because they can't be bothered to deal with it.

Click to expand...

They care about you, that's why they're trying to stop you, what you are doing is essentially anorexia, if you gained weight since diagnosis that means you regained the weight you lost or would've gained. You don't have enough rnergy without your insulin and you are accumulating ketones and will go into DKA if you keep this up, this is extremely dangerous and you need to get help for this and your suicidal thoughts, I hope you have the best of fortunes with your life.

Alex_B said:

I've recently stopped having insulin during the day. I only have it at night, before my meal in the evening. I only do it to try and lose some weight because since being diagnosed I have put on more weight than I was before the diagnosis. I spoke to a diabetes doctor and he said that my weight should go back to what it was after the diagnosis, but I was 9st 1lb 2 months before getting diagnosed. I am now 10st and I hate it. I thought that if I dont take my insulin I would lose weight. I emailed my diabetes nurse about this and she said "have a healthy diet" which I do, everyone can vouch for it in my family, I hardly have any junk food and when I do it is only on a Saturday as a "cheat day" which is what I was told that I am allowed to have.

I don't want to go back into hospital or anything, I'm not doing anything wrong. I know they told me that I could be hospitalized again, but that was when I told them that I had stopped taking it full stop. Now I am only taking it at night time.

Just curious to know what happens if I only take my insulin and my background insulin at night?

Click to expand...

http://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/thr...end-whos-in-denial.104441/page-2#post-1204855
post #25

This happens to other people, though your stories and theirs don't match up there is a lesson to be learnt from this

http://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/category/diabulimia-support.77/

There is a support forum.

You can get through this, you can get through all of this

Be strong and fight on

Alex_B said:

I've recently stopped having insulin during the day. I only have it at night, before my meal in the evening. I only do it to try and lose some weight because since being diagnosed I have put on more weight than I was before the diagnosis. I spoke to a diabetes doctor and he said that my weight should go back to what it was after the diagnosis, but I was 9st 1lb 2 months before getting diagnosed. I am now 10st and I hate it. I thought that if I dont take my insulin I would lose weight. I emailed my diabetes nurse about this and she said "have a healthy diet" which I do, everyone can vouch for it in my family, I hardly have any junk food and when I do it is only on a Saturday as a "cheat day" which is what I was told that I am allowed to have.

I don't want to go back into hospital or anything, I'm not doing anything wrong. I know they told me that I could be hospitalized again, but that was when I told them that I had stopped taking it full stop. Now I am only taking it at night time.

Just curious to know what happens if I only take my insulin and my background insulin at night?

Click to expand...

I was in hospital getting diagnosed a month ago. On the bed opposite was a guy who'd been admitted with Diabetic Ketoacidosis for not taking his insulin. My wife's friend was airlifted to hospital at University for nousing up her diabetes and had to have (eventually) an organ transplant.

This isn't to scare you, but insulin saves your life. The Diabetic Support Nurses and Doctors have experience in setting doses that are good for you, and keep you healthy. I cannot think of a good reason to amend that regime unless you know exactly what you are doing.

And eschewing life-saving medication for short-term weight loss doesn't sound like a good reason to me. If you want to lose weight, then there are better/easier/safer/healthier ways than to stop medicating.

Best of luck; I've gained 5lb over the summer break so I need to do something pre-Christmas too.

John

Alex_B said:

What I eat on a daily basis is, Salad, Vegetables, Potatoes, Pasta, Fruit. I cut all the stuff that I use to love out, I have sweets and chocolate once every week which like I said before I was told that I was allowed sugar, as long as I up my insulin doses and don't go over the limit. This is what I was told to eat once I came out of hospital. I exercise regularly, go for walks, skateboarding, bmxing, and other activities. I do more exercise than most people my age.

Click to expand...

Ok : ) So can you give us a day's meals and snacks? So Breakfast (inc quantities eg 2 Weetabix with milk), Lunch, Evening Meal and Snacks.

I eat all the things you eat. There's nothing wrong with those foods. But if you can briefly write out a day's meals and snacks then it would be more informative and show quantities.

Also, do you know your BMI? Here's a calculator to use if you don't:

http://www.nhs.uk/Tools/Pages/Healthyweightcalculator.aspx

Edited to add - be patient for replies as its late in the UK now. Write when you can and you will get replies now or tomorrow : )

Without sounding patronising Alex_B wat age are you? With some folks its just a natural thing for ur body to change.
I put on 3stone wen diagnosed. I certainly felt awful about myself. Ive now lost that weight again but not once did i think about stopping insulin. It literally saves our lives. Its foolish to throw away your health like that over image. Did you read the daily mail this week (dont judge me), a 32 yr old man decided he'd not bother with his medication...choosing a very unhealthy lifestyle. Hes now blind and about to lose a foot. You have a choice at the moment...choose to take your meds, or choose a life riddled with complications.

@Alex_B,

Insulin is not the type of medication that should be thought as something that can be taken when it suits, its a fundamental hormone that the body requires 24/7.

Think about it as running a car with the oil low/empty and not topping it up, the car will run for a bit without a problem but the longer you run it with no oil the more damage gets done, chewing itself up, to the point where parts need replacing to continue, or eventually the scrapyard.