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What if I didn't inject myself?

E

Emil_Einarr

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I have been a type Ⅰ diabetic for a tad over seven years and, since the onset on my, more or less, negligable neuropathy in my right thumb, forefinger and middle finger early last year, I have been seeking answers to this pain-in-the-bum disease. Modifications to my diet and lifestyle have been rendered. Cool showers and ice cold water dousings alleviate and even subdue the sensations (I am not yet experiencing actual pain, however, the affected area does tend to get, annoyingly, warm on occasional nights, warm enough to wake me out of my sleep), often, for months. In recent years, I have taken up an interest in strength training (callisthenics and simple sledgehammer exercises) and Russian boxing and I was wondering— "If I were to not inject myself with any insulin, 'fast' or 'slow'-acting, and relied, strictly, on heavy physical exertion, be it deliberate training and / or manual labour, water and natural glucose regulators such as cinnamon, would my glucose regulate itself?" I would appreciate any input.

P.S.: It may sound like wishful thinking, but I have, sufficiently, researched this disease as well as what may be the cause of it and what can help it, so I am not new to understanding Diabetes (in fact, I am far from it). You can consider this thinking outside of the box, so to speak, and an attempt to attack the affliction from a different angle.

P.P.S.: My diet consists of meat, vegetables, dairy (most of the time, plain) and fruits (I have to work on cutting fruit consumption down).
 
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Hi @Emil_Einarr :)

You should never stop your insulin - it's potentially very dangerous.

Before insulin was discovered, Type 1 was a terminal illness. Even people put on starvation diets all eventually died.

Your body needs insulin to function properly. Even if you eat minimal carbs you will still need insulin.
 
Hi. Yes, if you are a standard T1 with virtually no insulin production and took no injected insulin you would die fairly quickly due to DKA and acidic blood quite apart from almost total organ damage. Not recommended.
 
It SEEMS like it could work if you think about how your BS lower during exercise, but you need insulin to survive and if your body makes none and you inject none then you won't survive very long as your cells won't be able to absorb the glucose they need to function properly.
It would be a real test to determine IF you still have insulin production. If you did, then it might work provided you work hard enough long enough every day for the rest of your life lol

From what I can recall the longest I have heard of anyone surviving without insulin as a T1D was 5 years, but they were severely malnourished, and had very little muscle mass.

I would expect that you could survive with only a once a day Lantus injection if you low-carbed and worked off the carbs you did eat, or maybe every other day.... Its really about getting some insulin so that your cells can still function. It would take some experimenting to figure out the lower limits.
 
Emil_Einarr said:
P.S.: It may sound like wishful thinking, but I have, sufficiently, researched this disease as well as what may be the cause of it and what can help it, so I am not new to understanding Diabetes (in fact, I am far from it). You can consider this thinking outside of the box, so to speak, and an attempt to attack the affliction from a different angle.
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As everyone else has said, it is not possible to survive without insulin if you are T1. In fact, the average lifespan of someone diagnosed with T1 before insulin was very short, and rapidly resulted in complications, even eating a low carb diet and undertaking what exercise they could.

The issue is that insulin is responsible for other things, and not just glucose levels and it is the combination of factors that cannot be avoided that will kill you. Please do not consider managing your diabetes in this way.
 
Emil_Einarr said:
I have been a type Ⅰ diabetic for a tad over seven years and, since the onset on my, more or less, negligable neuropathy in my right thumb, forefinger and middle finger early last year, I have been seeking answers to this pain-in-the-bum disease. Modifications to my diet and lifestyle have been rendered. Cool showers and ice cold water dousings alleviate and even subdue the sensations (I am not yet experiencing actual pain, however, the affected area does tend to get, annoyingly, warm on occasional nights, warm enough to wake me out of my sleep), often, for months. In recent years, I have taken up an interest in strength training (callisthenics and simple sledgehammer exercises) and Russian boxing and I was wondering— "If I were to not inject myself with any insulin, 'fast' or 'slow'-acting, and relied, strictly, on heavy physical exertion, be it deliberate training and / or manual labour, water and natural glucose regulators such as cinnamon, would my glucose regulate itself?" I would appreciate any input.

P.S.: It may sound like wishful thinking, but I have, sufficiently, researched this disease as well as what may be the cause of it and what can help it, so I am not new to understanding Diabetes (in fact, I am far from it). You can consider this thinking outside of the box, so to speak, and an attempt to attack the affliction from a different angle.

P.P.S.: My diet consists of meat, vegetables, dairy (most of the time, plain) and fruits (I have to work on cutting fruit consumption down).
Click to expand...
 

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If you are Type 1....you need insulin to survive and there is no way around that. Insulin is a hormone, used to regulate blood glucose levels but I don't think that's the sole purpose of insulin. Also, even if you didn't eat at all, you still need insulin to regulate your sugars because your body (liver) releases glucose into your blood and so it's not just eating (carbs) that raises your sugars, your own body does it...hence why we all (most of us) get random sugar level readings which we can't explain....that's just Diabetes unfortunately but you NEED Insulin to survive. I have had DKA twice in my 16 years as a Type 1 Diabetic.....it was horrendous so please do not stop taking your insulin unless it's discussed and agreed with medical professionals/Diabetic healthcare team.
 
Insulin not only regulates glucos but is also a growth hormone and allows amino acids and nutrients into your cells. Without insulin you will not gain muscle and your body will eat itself. Trust me, I was not diagnosed for way too Lang and almost died. At DX I had severe malnourishment, protein deficiency and muscle wasting. I lost weight fast and couldn't afford to so it didn't take too long for my rapid deterioration. Insulin keeps us alive and healthy. Perhaps you could get away with smaller doses with the right diet and exercise regime but you would of course need to test test test. And if you're already feeling some complications wouldn't you chose to keep bs in order to prevent further damage?
 
Before I was diagnosed I lost 2 stone in a week and a half and actually when I did go in hospital and my test were done, Drs were amazed that I wasn't in a coma or worse! Maybe you have had diabetes long enough to not remember the situation you were in before diagnosis but I for one do not even want to risk going back there.
 
Those of us diagnosed as being Type One Diabetic are unable to produce insulin naturally. So we need to inject insulin.

Insulin provides the key to open the cells to receive glucose from the circulating blood. Without insulin from the pancreas, the cells cannot open and the blood becomes sticky and overloaded with glucose. The body then calls on fat reserves and the breakdown of muscle to provide energy. Dehydration and excessive thirst follows with excessive urination and rapid weight loss while the blood is becoming more sticky and acidic. Eventually, lack of energy and shallow breathing follows and the body goes into a condition known as Diabetic Ketoacidosis (DKA). Life threatening Coma can follow.
 
Like what's basically been said above me...

@Emil_Einarr , your "thinking outside the box" will put you in one sooner than you think... ;)
 
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