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

unusual behaviour

D

dave34

Newbie
Messages
1
Hello I am new to this forum and to be honest I have little knowledge on the subject of diabetes,
I have a friend /work colleague who has over the past 6 years or so been a very nice , fairly quiet, efficient sort of person.
About 5-6 months ago they had their meds changed and more recently their behaviour has become unusual and most unlike their 'normal' self, as a friend I want to help them but they have for the most part become almost unapproachable, complaints also have been made from various people about their behaviour/attitude and they have also appeared very 'touchy' and somewhat 'stressed'.
Obviously as a friend I don't want to see them like this or worse still that their position suffer due to other peoples ignorance.
In short could this be a side effect from med changes or something else to do with their condition.
I cannot give many details as they very rarely talk about diabtetes and how it affects them not even sure if it's type 1 or 2, however I can say they are male in in their late 20's.

please help if you can, normally they are one of the nicest people you could wish to meet always willing to help with anything and to be fair I think I/we owe it to them to be understanding and helpful.
 
Hi
Very hard to say without more detail. Meds can cause changes in theory , i suppose

Certainly people can become transiently belligerent during hypos but this shouldnt be a long standing change I wouldnt think

Ive also heard others link change in personality (depression etc) to some insulin changes but its mainly anecdotal as NHS dont seem to acknowledge it

Maybe that he is struggling mentally with diabetes or life is just geting him down?
 
It is possible that the change of meds is responsible. I developed a violent temper amongst other side-effects of some insulin that didn't suit me at all. I had a hard time getting specialist nurses to acknowledge I was having problems, adding to the frustration. Bad temper is also a known sign of hypo (when blood sugar drops too low) or dramatic swings in blood sugar levels. It could be that the new medication is proving difficult to adjust and hence causing more frequent hypos or different hypo symptoms.

On the other hand, maybe your friend is suffering from stress (whether due to diabetes or not) or some other condition/situation that you aren't aware of.

It's hard to advise without knowing more about your friend. Maybe the best you can do is "be there" for him and provide opportunities for him to open up to you.
 
Hi,

I will agree with LittleSue, regarding the med changes. Most drugs can cause side effects & Human insulin is of no exception, etc.

Just be there for him & try and get him in a position to talk. Like us all, we will all get to a peak & then let it all out! This will probably do him good.

He could also be thinking that if he does ask for advice or talk, he will have admitted to himself that he is a failure & has let himself down. This again, could be one of the main reasons for not talking.

I hope this helps abit.

Please let us all know of the progress.

Regards,

Steve
 
i totall agree with all of the above. i find that if i dont get any signs that i'm having a hypo & my sugar is below 3.0, my partner knows instantly that i'm having a hypo as my behaviour changes. it can go 2 ways, i'm either hysterical laughing & hyper or i can be agitated & arguementative, none of which i remember. i get embarrassed when my partner tells me what i've said/done. another reason for you're friends behaviour could be unstable sugars. if he's not taking care of himself then this can cause mood swings as you are very tired, have on energy & feel horrid. hope i've been helpful!
 
Back
Top