Hiya Tina
I've just read through this whole thread (what a mammoth thread) and I feel your pain as a parent. I know how you feel which is very different to how those with diabetes feel. We have no way of knowing how they feel but through our children we have a very good idea. However knowing your child has a lifelong chronic medical condition is something I would never wish on my worst enemy.
Right so my two pennies worth coming up.
I am very very worried that your GP is giving you advice full stop. Your son is cared for by, I would presume, a competent specialised diabetes medical team at the hospital he attends. There is absolutely no way on this earth that your GP knows enough, unless he is a TYPE 1 specialist, to advise and playing with insulin is playing with fire, as we all know.
If your son likes to talk to the GP about things that is fine but other than that forget it.
GP's will hardly ever see a child with type 1, whatever age that child is, they will however see lots of people, whatever age, with type 2. It is different, no two ways about it, it is different.
Teenagers - nightmare. I was awful as a teenager and I was trying to put myself in my friend's daughter's shoes the other day. My friend has a daughter who is a teen and type 1 and is pretty much behaving the same as your son. I have to say I think I would have been the same. I knew everything (still do
😛 only joking). I knew more than the highest doctor would ever possibly have know (although I wouldn't have really), I would have rebelled totally. However I also think I would have been frightened and I would have had my head in the sand hoping it would go away.
Your son is so not unusual in his teenage type 1 behaviour. There are lots and lots going through the same as he is. I would bet money on the fact he is frightened. I think it proved it when he cried at the GP's. It won't make him change though. My friend's daughter was deliberately missing injections so she wouldn't hypo and die ! She also missed injections and finger tests at school because she didn't want to be different and didn't want to do it infront of her friends yet she had never been like that.
I was chatting to one of our fantastic PDSNs recently and she said you would not believe the amount of teens there are who have problems. It is so hard for a teen with type 1, teens are a species to themselves, they are not kids, they are not adults, they are in limbo until they finally reach adulthood.
There is nothing wrong with bribery but if they don't do it, they don't get it, easy as that. However I don't think bribery will work with a teen, if they are not going to do something, they are not going to do it.
Lots of medical teams keep their adolescents until the age of 19 and then move them to adult clinic which is a whole other ball game. Your team should be offering a psychology team. There is nothing wrong with seeing a psychologist. Infact I think all kids and teens and newly diagnosed young adults should see one. I can't imagine taking something on like type 1 diabetes. You cannot go on a diet and be 'better' you always have insulin and you always have to count carbs and you always run the risk of complications. I hold my hands up, I can't get my head around that like all the people on here have to. I take my hat of to each and every one of you.
However the knock on effect for these youngsters doesn't just stop with type 1, it spreads, it knocks their confidence etc etc. My team have pshchologists available who are trained in all things diabetes and my daughter saw them. I have many friends whose children see them for all sorts of things but it absolutely helps that they know about type 1.
I have no answers for you except to say it may be good for you to speak to other parents of teens going through the same things. I know a few, I can put you in touch with them. Well the best thing to do actually is to go to
www.childrenwithdiabetesuk.org and join the teenager email list. It is not mega busy and you can put your messages from here on there, you will get help from others and ideas and suggestions from those who are going through it as well. It may be that your son needs other teens with type 1 to grunt at (teens only ever grunt) and maybe you joining the teens email list you can get him together with some other grunting teens.
I've no idea if this will help you at all or just confuse things but felt I had to write.
Take care
He really is in denial isn't he? As has been said before youth can override the fear of seemingly far-off problems that might result, so it's hard to convince someone of his age that he may be doing real harm to himself right now. From what you have said what he is doing amounts to self harm in my view, and with very serious potential consequences, so I do hope you can get some appropriate help.
