Type 1: Ashamed Of Diabetes

[rockape37]

Well your a normal diabetic person thats a fact.
Looking around the restaurant or where ever you are may draw more attention to you. Just crack on and do what you have to do so as not to compromise your health.

To be honest i have only seen 1 diabetic take their insulin twice and it was tge same person my wife and i met at a friends wedding. I'm sure someone somewhere has tested their bg andd taken insulin and i just haven't seen it.

I understand what you mean about people at your table being half way through their food and you've only just finished testing yoyr bg, carb counting and injecting, its something you have to do. As already said most people these days don't really give a d*m what you are doing and most people sitting around your table tend to show an interest to which in some cases you can impress them with your knowledge of diabetes.

Regards

Martin

 

[therower]

Proud to be diabetic and all the trimmings that go with it.
However I do have one dilemma when I eat out.
Where to do my air shot?
Under the table? Sometimes OK if just me and the wife, I can usually avoid her legs, but in a group someone may get home stinking of insulin.
Above the table and in the air? I have some manners ( opinions vary).
On to a tissue and back in pocket? Even if I do remember to take the tissue out of aforementioned pocket I still end up with smelly jeans/trousers.
Chosen option to use the corner of serviette and leave on plate for disposal is even brought with danger, especially when the wife inadvertently decides to use MY serviette to wipe HER mouth. On the rare occasion this happens the night usually ends quite abruptly.

 

[Diamattic]

I don't make any kind of deal about testing or injecting. I do turn toward my husband to inject though. I don't hide it but I don't make any issues out of it. Nobody has ever said anything. If they did I would say ' it's not heroin, it keeps me alive. Lucky for you that you don't have to do it.

I usually look them straight in the eye and whisper 'heroin' and give them a wink myself lol but ya know i like to mess with folks sometimes lol

I find its best to just be as open as possible with testing and injecting. I have also noticed if you talk about something unrelated the entire time you prick and get your result and put your meter away, it creates a wall that people usually don't cross with questions because they would have to abruptly change topics to point it out. If you are just sitting quietly to yourself testing, it leaves an opening for someone to ask you what you're doing which is usually worse then them watching and not asking.

I was out to dinner last week and had everything out on the table and was premeal testing while the waitress was talking to me about a question I had on the menu (whether a new fish plate was any good or not) and by the time she was gone, i had tested and figured out my injection and knew what i was ordering and the conversation had moved on and besides a couple glances at what i was doing no one brought it up!

 

[noblehead]

However I do have one dilemma when I eat out.
Where to do my air shot?

Just do it below the height of the table, you don't have to draw-up too many units to do a air shot, just enough to see a steady flow of insulin

 

[Ledzeptt]

Adding to my earlier point, I was in a very busy Pizza Express last night. I was injecting at the very moment the waiter came to take our food order. He could clearly see what I was doing, but didn't "bat an eyelid" and spoke to me whilst I carried on.

Nothing to stress over.

 

[Bluemarine Josephine]

Hello my beautiful friends, I hope that you are all very well today.
I believe that, just like with everything else in life, the public handling of diabetes depends on the circumstances.

For example, when on a business lunch/dinner, I prefer to have a carbs-free meal and skip the injection. I excuse myself in the beginning of the meal, go to the ladies room to get my blood sugar reading so as to know my exact level, and then return to proceed with a grilled steak and salad. In the case that I need to correct, I do it with my next meal.

If, I am dining with friends, again, it depends on the circumstances. For example, everyone might be very comfortable with my diabetes routine however, if we are in the company of children or if there are children sitting at the nearby tables then, I will not inject in public. I do understand that, like many other things in life, diabetes is a matter of education but, I prefer to leave this education to the parents and I would never force the image of an injection to someone else, particularly to a child.

Having this in mind, I need to emphasize that I have an almost spiritual relationship with my diabetes.
I know that many of us are very comfortable injecting quickly and in public… For some, it is as easy and normal as breathing.

But I need privacy… and I need to take my time. Injecting is almost a 5-times-a-day ritual for me.

I need to feel calm and collected, on my own and deeply connected with myself. To find the right spot to inject that will not hurt or bruise (because I do not want to damage my skin like this… although it does occasionally happen no matter how much I try.) and while injecting, I need to close my eyes and remind to myself (like a little prayer or a mantra) that this, is not an obligation; this is not a burden nor a restraining commitment. This, is a promise. A promise that I will do the best I can to help my body and my mind stay healthy and strong. Every injection is a gift to myself; a bond, an agreement, a gesture of trust.

As for my friends, they can start with their meal and even finish it by the time that I return to begin mine.
I deserve all the time that I need and no one’s steak is more important than my own personal time for this.
They can even have coffee and dessert by the time that I finish injecting… After all, most probably, I won’t have dessert…

So, my suggestion would be to set your priority; nobody's dish has so much priority as for you to feel guilty for the time that you need for yourself.

Love & hugs to all of you and warm wishes for a pleasant weekend ahead!
Regards
Josephine

 

[ElkBond]

Just do it below the height of the table, you don't have to draw-up too many units to do a air shot, just enough to see a steady flow of insulin

Where do you do your airshot? When I was first shown the nurse just airshotted it spraying the insulin wherever.

My process is, screw on needle, remove from clear cap, take green cover from needle (using teeth most times) airshot 2 units into clear cap, place green cover in cap, inject, then return needle pushing into both the green cover and clear cap.

I have this down to a T, no random insulin spray, done in less than a min (sometimes!).

 

[noblehead]

Where do you do your airshot? When I was first shown the nurse just airshotted it spraying the insulin wherever.

Much the same as you @ElkBond, dial-up 2u then hold the pen upright and fire away

Never returned the needle to the clear plastic holder, that went in the recycling and the needle in the sharps bin, but it's surprising how discreet you can be when injecting, many a time on MDI (and eating out) my wife would ask if I'd injected when I already had.

 

[ElkBond]

Much the same as you @ElkBond, dial-up 2u then hold the pen upright and fire away

Never returned the needle to the clear plastic holder, that went in the recycling and the needle in the sharps bin, but it's surprising how discreet you can be when injecting, many a time on MDI (and eating out) my wife would ask if I'd injected when I already had.

Yer I wondered if the return to cap thing was just me, it started when I first went out and about, I put all my used needles (with the caps back on) in my case with all my other D stuff. I didn't fancy carrying loose needles about.

Anyway, apologies for trying to take post off topic. I will contribute instead.

I wouldn't say I was ashamed, I just only let it known if it comes up in conversation. Family and work colleagues (small firm) and a couple of close friends know. In fact I am due to meet some friends and not one of them knows so that may well crop up. Might see how long it takes.

 

[noblehead]

Yer I wondered if the return to cap thing was just me, it started when I first went out and about, I put all my used needles (with the caps back on) in my case with all my other D stuff. I didn't fancy carrying loose needles about.

Anyway, apologies for trying to take post off topic. I will contribute instead.

I wouldn't say I was ashamed, I just only let it known if it comes up in conversation. Family and work colleagues (small firm) and a couple of close friends know. In fact I am due to meet some friends and not one of them knows so that may well crop up. Might see how long it takes.

The needle cap would go back on so the needle wasn't exposed, just thought it was a shame to waste the outer needle holder by putting it in the sharps bin to burn.

Like yourself I don't broadcast my diabetes but not ashamed of it and happy to speak about it if someone asks; btw your not taking the thread off-topic as it's all relevant to the OP's concerns.

Have a nice evening @ElkBond

 

[mc9]

Proud to be diabetic and all the trimmings that go with it.
However I do have one dilemma when I eat out.
Where to do my air shot?
Under the table? Sometimes OK if just me and the wife, I can usually avoid her legs, but in a group someone may get home stinking of insulin.
Above the table and in the air? I have some manners ( opinions vary).
On to a tissue and back in pocket? Even if I do remember to take the tissue out of aforementioned pocket I still end up with smelly jeans/trousers.
Chosen option to use the corner of serviette and leave on plate for disposal is even brought with danger, especially when the wife inadvertently decides to use MY serviette to wipe HER mouth. On the rare occasion this happens the night usually ends quite abruptly.

Try doing the air shot onto a napkin or onto the top of your kit

 

[Aisling]

I spent so long worrying or embarrassed about what people thought I put their needs before mine (pretending not to be a diabetic or not going anywhere). Now I don't think about others if I'm out my health is more important.

 

[jharding]

I find going out to eat stressful with others because being a diabetic i have to 1) check my bg 2) look at the food for a while to try and caluclate carbs and then 3) take my injection. by this time the other person has already started eating before i even check my blood sugar normally and it really isn't easy to work out how many carbs are in my meal, and takes more than 1 second. i just feel really awkward and embarrassed and bad for the friend who has to see me doing all this. i know this is an illness and it's not my fault i have diabetes but still i feel bad that i cant just be normal and eat in a normal way like them, and maybe even make them feel uncomfortable about me injecting at the table (i don't know)

also im really embarrassed about the state of my finger tips. they have tons of little black spots on them from blood testing and i don't want them to be a glaring sign that i have something wrong with me. does anyone else feel the same way?

No. I wear my MedicAlert style bracelet. My friends know. A couple of my fingers are dotted. But being diabetic is not something I had any control over. It's happened. As I said to my wife when my little girl was diagnosed, there are lots of parents getting diagnoses in Childrens' Wards where there isn't the management and expectation of a normal life. One of our old neighbours has a child with a extremely rare terminal illness that has robbed this girl of everything. Diabetes is a serious condition, but it's manageable and my little girl (and me) will live healthily to a ripe old age if we get it right.

I have a monitor that calculates insulin dosage from carbs. So when I'm eating out, I will often do my blood check shortly after ordering. I know what I've ordered so I can make a guess how many carbs; the app MyFitnessPal is good for that. And then I can work out how much to put through before anyone has their plate. And then when the first plate is brought out, I go and inject, either at the table or in a quiet corner. It takes 20 seconds and I've injected before my companions have worked out where the Tomato Ketchup is and put it on their chips.