Type one with extreme fear of hypoglycemia - please help

[mylittlepuds]

Hi everyone.

I was diagnosed with T1 diabetes aged 28. I'm 31 now and have had one diabetic pregnancy and I'm now on my second.

I have an extreme fear of hypos. My levels must remain very tight whist pregnant (7.8 mmol within an hour and a half after eating) and I find if I hit target I inevitably hypo. If I do have low blood sugar - which I do have about twice a day - I really, really panic and have to force myself not to over treat. I'm on a continuous glucose monitor and that makes no difference to my confidence.

Pregnancy is supposed to increase your resistance to insulin but I'm still very, very sensitive to it. Say I have porridge for breakfast, if I have 4u instead of 3u I'm looking at a major hypo. This feeds my fear as T1s know choosing how much insulin to give yourself, even with carb counting, involves a lot of guess work. If I do give myself 1u too much my levels can absolutely plummet and fast - and I find it so, so scary.

My biggest fear, obviously, is death from a hypo. It can happen. A friend's dad died of a hypo that was later put down as 'diabetic complications' but the truth was he'd had too much insulin. And from my own experience I see every day how powerful insulin is.

It's getting to the point where I panic thinking i've somehow taken my insulin twice and despite being in a CGM I test my levels upwards of 20 times a day. I spend my whole day on edge.

I do suffer with anxiety but the diabetes is making it so much worse and seeing though there's no cure I can't see a way out. I eat extremely healthily and exercise and basically do everything can in my power to make my levels as predictable as possible.

I realise I have huge issues and I'm not sure what the way forward is. Any advice at all would be appreciated.

 

[SamJB]

Hi
I completely understand, I suffered with really bad anxiety for a few years after I was diagnosed. I had a couple of fits from hypos which completely terrified me. I was testing very frequently, sometimes within 5 minutes of the previous test. I became agrophobic because I didn't want to have another fit whilst out of the house.

I'm completely fine now, but still feel panicked inside when hypo. Ive learned that I can always get out of a hypo and I always carry sugar and my meter with me. The final nail in the anxiety coffin came when I switched to low carbing a few months ago. I always had a fear of injecting lots of insulin in case it sent my hypo. Now I inject such small amounts and I can't remember the last time I went hypo. I comfortably sit in the 4s for most of the day and I would have been totally panicked being in the 4s a few years ago.

Dont think your on your own, I think its fairly common to be anxious about hypos cos they're bloody horrible!

If you've got any other questions then ask.

 

[mylittlepuds]

Thanks so much for the reply. I have started low carbing too and it does help as I'm injecting a lot less, but like you say when I see an hour after eating I'm at 4 I really panic and think I'm looking at a really bad hypo I can't get out of! It's taking a lot of getting used to.

It really helps to know I'm not the only one with these fears so thank you so much for taking the time to reply.

 

[SamJB]

No problem at all, I know exactly what you're going through. When you're next hypo just need to think to yourself...you've had sugar, you've got out of hypos before and you'll get out of this one. Next time you're anxious, try your best to think rational thoughts. Its difficult at first and it takes time but becomes the norm eventually.

 

[Riri]

Hia - another poster who fully understands where you're coming from so you're not alone. Last year I was testing upwards of 20 times a day easily - it had almost got to the stage where I would need to test every quarter of an hour or less after boluses for food. Like Samj with less carbs I started to have to inject less - I did lose weight too which was a plus as I was about 3 stone overweight. Gradually with time and I started to gain a bit more confidence and seeng that my sugars would always come back up after glucojuice helped. I still panic at low sugars but I say to myself that as I'm testing regularly I will always catch dipping blood sugars in time. Some small coping strategies like this helped me. I also phone either family or friends if I am panicky low and ask them to phone back in 10-15 minutes if I go low - again knowing that someone is aware of the situation helps keep me calmer. All the best and hope this is of help. :thumbup:

 

[mylittlepuds]

Oh it's SO nice to know I'm not alone in this!! Such a relief. I was beginning to think I was a hopeless case! The low carb thing is really helping and that's my motivation to stick to it. Injecting less insulin = less panic. Thanks for posting - I really, really appreciate it and it makes me feel better knowing I'm not the only one that goes through what seems like impossible times with diabetes. As much as they love you friends and family can't understand it either.