Work

[daniT1D]

Hi guys, I'm after your opinions/advice.

I am 25 female and diagnosed type 1 in July 2013 when I spent a few days in hospital, 2 days at home then returned to work. I learnt to carb count in September and all was going well but since December I have been so tired, I feel all I do is work and sleep - therefore I have decided to speak to HR to see if I can drop a day per week (Wednesday) so I can work 2 days then have a rest day. I just wondered if the majority of you work full time? TIA x


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[Dogbutler]

Hi Dani
I'm a type 2 diagnosed in 2012. I know exactly how you feel as I've been feeling the same and, strangely, also since December.
I've said several times that I don't feel as if I've got a life as all I do is work and sleep. My house is filthy as I don't have the energy to clean it and if it wasn't for my hub doing the ironing, we'd have been starkers since January!
I've been thinking about dropping my hours from full to part time, but as I'm nearly 53, I'm worried about the affect it'll have on my pension. Is this something that you need to consider? If I wasn't up against it financially, I'd definitely cut my hours - life's too short.
Xx

 

[daniT1D]

Thanks Vanessa, same I can't afford to cut my hours really, but hoping they'll let me reduce by 2.5 hours per week, and make up the other 5 hours on the 4 days I work. If your hubby likes ironing send him my way! I live alone so no one to clean for me, but I guess atleast it's only my mess! x


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[hale710]

I was diagnosed last February, nearly a year!

I work 5 days a week. I'm tired a lot, but I was tired before diagnosis so it's not the diabetes in my case


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[dtennant9]

I work a full time 35 hour week but do it over 4 days, just under 9 hours a day. Does make you tired by the end of the week but I didn't do this before diagnosis so I'm not sure if Diabetes makes a difference or not.


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[Auckland Canary]

Hi Dani

To be honest unless your sugar levels are erratic then it may be related to something else. I have been T1 diabetic for over 30 years so I struggle to remember what it was like when I was first diagnosed but I understand that it may have an effect on you. Many diabetics struggle with mental issues such as depression and feelings of isolation, not just at the start but throughout their lives, and this can lead to some of the feelings you have.

I think you need to identify exactly why you feel this way rather than immediately cutting hours. I'm assuming you live in the UK and I always find this a hard time of year simply due to our winters. I haven't managed it this year but I do always try and book a week away somewhere warmer around this time just to get some warmer conditions and sunlight.

Personally I work long hours and also commute 30 miles a day often on my bike and I am in my early 40's and yes I often feel exhausted by the end of the week. But as mentioned before some people may be better at doing this type of thing and it is in no way something that everyone can or would want to do.

I think you need to have a look at all aspects of your life and see if this is something not related to T1. I hope you find a solution soon and remember that whatever is right for you is the right thing to do whatever anyone else says. Good luck

 

[Riri]

Think I'm similar to you. I was diagnosed T1 diabetic 16 years ago but 3 years ago I had a hypo in work which resulted in paramedics, hospital etc. I had been under a lot of stress due to personal reasons before this and I was also finding working 5 days a week very tiring to the point where the work was suffering. After a few months of talking to HR, the occupational health and my consultant we agreed that the most suitable plan for me was to revert to working 4 days a week (30 hrs) and review how that went. I have to say that the extra day off made a huge difference to my life and it just seemed to be enough to re-charge the batteries which seemed to be running on empty too often. Obviously money has to be consideration but we decided that it was worth it and to sacrifice a few other things.

 

[mo1905]

I agree with Auckland Canary, well managed diabetes should mean no issues working full time. Being tired after working all week is quite normal for most of the population at some point in their lives. Hopefully your diabetes is well controlled ? If so, speak to your docs. This could possibly be something unrelated or psychological. Be a shame to drop hours, lose money when there may be a different solution. Good luck.


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[daniT1D]

Thank you all. I think psychologically it would really help me to drop a day per week as I'm feeling quite negative toward my job which I use to love. I'll see if I can try it for 6 months or so and go from there. I'm seeing the consultant in May so will discuss with her if I'm still so tired then. x


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[Scardoc]

Maybe look for another job? If you were able to drop a day then where do you go if your feelings towards your job get worse? Drop another day? And another?

Get physically checked out to make sure there is no underlying reason. If not, then you really need to look at making positive changes in your life and overcoming this.

Life is tiring. Always.

 

[Riri]

If you google diabetes and tiredness you will find several items on it and it's not uncommon. There are various reasons why it could be - high blood sugars, low blood sugars, hypos during the night, not sleeping due to testing etc. so all these factors could be contributing to your overall fatigue. There is an article on this site on it too. In my view, additional stress and mental fatigue worrying about the condition on top of this adds to the tiredness. We all know for some it's not an easy condition to manage as it's 24/7 and 365 days a year!!!

 

[dollydaydream2014]

Hi Dani,

I'm type 1 and work full time but by the time it's Thursday I'm exhausted, I finish early on a Friday and generally fall asleep on the afternoon when I get home !


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[Kat100]

Tiredness and diabetic issues are not easy to manage, I find

 

[dollydaydream2014]

In fact thinking back my nan used to say that diabetes ( which my grandad had type 1) was a tiring complaint!


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[noblehead]

Hi guys, I'm after your opinions/advice.

I am 25 female and diagnosed type 1 in July 2013 when I spent a few days in hospital, 2 days at home then returned to work. I learnt to carb count in September and all was going well but since December I have been so tired, I feel all I do is work and sleep - therefore I have decided to speak to HR to see if I can drop a day per week (Wednesday) so I can work 2 days then have a rest day. I just wondered if the majority of you work full time?

I suggest the first thing you do dani is to go to your Dr's and mention the tiredness, it could well be unrelated to your diabetes and they may request bloods to determine the cause , on the other-hand it may just be that your trying to burn the candle at both ends and need to reduce your working hours.

Although diabetes shouldn't cause tiredness itself if its well controlled the fact that you have only been diagnosed since last July explains a lot, the first year is extremely hard and very stressful with so much information to take in, perhaps taking reduced hours with a view to resuming them at a later date isn't such a bad idea.

 

[daniT1D]

Thank you Noblehead, I tried speaking to the diabetic nurse at my GP's back in December and she just suggested working part time, when I said I couldn't afford this due to owning a house she suggested I get a lodger! She also asked if I'd attended DESMOND which I thought was for type2 and her response was 'you probably know better than me, as most people I see are type2' so I don't have much faith in going back there!

I appreciate you all taking the time to help, I am in no way feeling sorry for myself and wanting sick leave or anything like that - just wondered if you thought reducing my hours slightly was justified or if you'd all tell me to man up and get on with it! x


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[Dogbutler]

Hi Dani
My bad, I didn't realise you are in your twenties - I imagine the last thing you want to think about is your pension!
On a serious note, think the advice you've had to see your doc is good advice, you may have thyroid problems, one of the main symptoms of hypothyroidism is chronic fatigue. Might be worth checking out.

 

[noblehead]

I appreciate you all taking the time to help, I am in no way feeling sorry for myself and wanting sick leave or anything like that - just wondered if you thought reducing my hours slightly was justified or if you'd all tell me to man up and get on with it! x

I would never suggest such a thing to say 'man-up' dani, we all have different coping mechanisms and I remember all too well how hard it was in the first year of having diabetes.

I really think it's a good idea to reduce the hours until such times that you feel much better, with regards to what the nurse told you I would by-pass her and just gp along and see your gp and mention the tiredness and any other issues that may be bothering you.

Good luck and hope you work it all out!!!

 

[mrman]

Work anything from 40~50 hours weeks mon~fri. Office job so not physically demanding. through the first year of getting diabetes did have alot of sick days , due to combination of tiredness and depression. Also, struggled to get a proper nights sleep, often only managing 3~5 hours due to various reasons. I had to retain my body to get 7~9 hours sleep again and since that no depression or tiredness. With speaking to gp, as I did and he did ryn full bloods to rule out other possible reasons.

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[daniT1D]

Thanks Brett, it's good to know you started in a similar situation and are now back up to working overtime as I used to.


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