Very Bad Sugar Levels.

[crazybabe09]

Hi, I am having mega health problems with my sugars going up all the time, I am having problems with eyes, kidneys, feet, and its really hard to keep my sugars low, I have missed some of my insulin with having a busy lifestyle and a family growing up.
I don't always check my sugar levels too, so I know I am making my health bad with not looking after myself, I think I have been indenial for too long when I used be very strick with everything but I wish I could turn back the clock so I sort my health out before its to late. I am so angry with myself for letting get this way too.

 

[lilibet]

Hi Crazy babe

Im sorry you are having such a bad time but coming here is proof that you dont want to carry on like this and as first steps to taking control go, its a pretty good one

As you already seem aware, many of the problems you have are caused by having high sugars over a long time.The good news is that with better control you can make some of these better, over time (depending on severity etc.) though it will take a change of routine and attitude from you.

There are lots of people here who have been in the same boat as you in terms of denial and letting control go, and lots of people here who may still have that road to travel (am only dx 5 months but given I may have a 40 year diabetes career, who can say If i will behave myself for the WHOLE 40 years). So dont feel bad, or stupid, or annoyed with yourself. Just decide things need to change and they will

Firstly - please DONT not take your insulin. Like it or no (are you type 1, you didnt say) it keeps us well and in fact alive. I know how easy it is to forego routine with a busy life but you need to put yourself first. How can you continue to take care of them if by not taking care of you there is a risk of making yourself unwell. Also, start testing again!!

Secondly - what insulins are you on? Have you had support to use if 'properly' Do you have a diabetic team at your disposal?

Thirdly- What is your diet like. If you are eating things you know you shouldnt, then you need to try and stop. If you think you are eating ok, you might be surprised by some of the things you have been told its ok to eat but lots of diabetics wont because it will raise blood sugar. Give us an idea and we can offer some practical suggestions

So, decide to change, cut yourself some slack for the old diabetic you and look forward to the new diabetic you. Baby steps hun, and these will lead to giant leaps over time

Take care

L
x

 

[fergus]

Well said Lilibet.

CrazyBabe, most of us have been where you are right now and turned it around. You can do it too, and we'll give you all the support we can.

All the best,

fergus

 

[crazybabe09]

Thank u lilibet,
I will take small steps to get my life back on track , I am a single mum , 46 yrs old with 3 girls and 2 grandchildren , I do feel quilty for not doing my blood sugars regular and I have had my eyes tested and found there is diabetes in the back of my eyes which frighten me as I would love to be able to see all my family grow up.

I am taking my insulin but if I tell my dr they will go mad at me for not taking it and I am not sure how much I am supposed to take as I been avoiding for to long and I never told anyone about till I came here and put how I was trying to cope with all.

I am on Humalog 3 times a day and amount I am supposed to be on is about 30-36 depending on my B.S levels, I am on lantus at bedtime and its about 30-36 depending how high my B.S levels would be so u can see I am very scared of what its doing to me and on top of everything I had a really bad kidney infection in the last week as well. I had my feet checked to and there is problems with them too.

I haven't eaten much with feeling lousy and I am lactose intoralance as well as being a diabetic so my diet has to be a very healthy one but even then I have messed that up too.

I would be very grateful for any help in sorting this out before I do serious damage to body. I would love to live alot longer.

Thank u again for replying to my letter as I didn't expect anybody to respond to it, I will start to listen to my body in future. Thank u from Denise

 

[crazybabe09]

Hi Fergus,
I am very grateful for ur support too, I going make changes my life for the better and I will stick to it too and knowing other people have had similar problems to me and I am going to see my diabetic nurse this week to make sure I am on the right track for myself and my family. Thank u again for the support.

From Denise

 

[lilibet]

Hi Denise

Glad you have decided to take the bull by the horns. Although some health profs can quite frankly be a pain in the pancreas, I do think they work best when people are struggling with their diabetes (not so good when your doing better than theyd like though - she said cynically!)

If you are on basal (Lantus) insulin and bolus (Humalog) then this gives you lots of flexibility to eat when you want if you are very busy (as long as the lantus keeps you steady) and in theory you should calculate your humalog to food rather than be on fixed doses all the time. If you havent had help to do this then dont worry, over time you can find out by experimenting a bit with food and then testing. Your nurse might still have you on fixed doses when you leave the clinic and if you are comfortable with this and need that routine just now then thats ok.

However do ask her about any courses for carbohydrate counting in your area as its all carbs, not just sugar that affects your blood sugar. If you manage your carbs then you might be able to cut insulin doses a bit but dont do too much too soon if you are not up to it

If you cant take time to do this then have google a look at BDEC and also DSOLVE.
Dont be put off by the all success stories too as I know how daunting it is to be desperate to be a good diabetic but when you read others stories you think 'I'll never be able to do that!'.

You might not right away, but you will get better. Promise!

Let us know how you get on at your clinic

x

 

[alaska]

Hi crazybabe

Sounds like you're in a place not too dissimilar to where I was at the turn of the year.

• * Blood sugars were a lot of highs with some big lows as well.
  * My type 1 wasn't a priority. I would put work and friends and family first.
  * Injections would be up to 2 hours late and some weren't being done because I was trying to get so much other stuff done.

I think a few basic things could help

Do you have anyone you feel you can rely on to check how your type 1 is doing?
I didn't have anyone in my family who knew enough about diabetes to help. However, I have a friend who I can rely on to just keep an eye on me. I actually put my results on the internet so my friend could see. It's made me much more aware of... well myself really. I'm now interested in looking after myself.

Do you write/ type your sugar levels up?
I didn't use to. I would just go from one day to the next checking blood sugars only when I didn't feel well to check if I was really high or low.
One of the best changes I made was to write my levels down. This little change had a really positive effect on my motivation and self esteem.

I only write up my levels about once or twice a week but it helps a lot. It makes me think about what I'm doing and that makes a really big difference. Writing the results once a week only takes about 10 minutes. The benefits of this will be really surprising. This will help reduce some stress and anxiety, I promise.

This one's more rhetorical, but do you put your diabetes first?
I wasn't doing this. Like I say above, I was doing injections after eating and then doing some work or chore and completely forgetting about my injection.
Recently I've made a conscious effort to do my injections before eating. It doesn't take any more time and again, the benefits on how you feel about yourself will be really noticable after only a few days.

Three ways to feel better
1. find someone you can trust to talk about your type 1 with - if you don't feel you have anyone suitable, you could use this forum to talk things thru. the people here have been really helpful.
2. write your results down - find a method that's right for you. you can use a diary (just a normal diary will do) or you could write them on the computer. see what works best for you.
3. put your diabetes first when it comes to injections - inject before eating. it's a small task but has big benefits for how you feel.

Give yourself 30 days
Say to yourself, "I'm going to see if I can do the points above and i'm going to try to do it for 30 days."

"I may have some difficulties and I may make mistakes but i'm going to stick it out for 30 days."

I did this and my levels got a lot better, but in my second week my levels started to get worse again. in the past i would always give up at this point and think it's not working and i'd go back to how i was.

but this time, i told myself, "i'm going to at least try to make the 30 days. i'll keep going and at 30 days we'll see if anything's got better."

after that 2nd week things did get a bit better and i felt like i'd just got over a big step - I hadn't given up!

See how you go and just give us a note at some point to let us know how you're doing. the guys here have been a real comfort to me lately.

best wishes
Alaska

 

[Jen&Khaleb]

Hi there,

I am really supportive to people who are looking to improve there lifestyle and take care of their diabetes. I do find it hard to read (stories of neglect), though, because I know how much effort and lack of sleep I get as a parent taking care of my son's blood sugar. I suppose I am the same as you really. Sacrificing my sleep, exercise and own nutrition to take care of another. I have put on about 5kg since my son's diagnosis, mainly from eating **** because I'm tired. I am also a single parent of 2 children. My youngest, who's 2, has Type 1 and Down syndrome. Anyway, I hope you get back on track soon and don't get a hard time from the medical department. I once came home crying after an appointment with an endocrinologist. My problem with the doctors is that they don't actually live with diabetes in a household day in/day out.

All the best taking back control and having a long and healthy life with kidneys, eyesight and limbs intact.

Jen.

 

[Stod]

Crazybabe,

I've been type1 for 30+ years and the key to everything, is SUGAR CONTROL. You MUST take regular injections and try and stick to regular food intake. I know it's not easy, but it cannot be avoided. The health problems - eye, peripheral neuropathy, etc all result from uncontrolled high sugars. If you have a good fast acting over a reliable basal insulin, with small food intake every 2 to 3 hours you should achieve a stability which will even out your hba1c.

Best wishes amd take care...