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Advice needed Please

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RissyKay

RissyKay

Well-Known Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Type 1
Hello all,

Right well yesterday a guy in my team at work asked me for a favour! He has a neice who is 15 and is Type 1, she has had it for about 2 years and normally keeps it under control however for the past couple of week she has given up completely.... He is terribly worried as she will not listen/talk to her mum, doctor or him... Her readings aer so high the meter reader won't give a number and apparently the doctor says she has ketones... I have been asked to try and talk to her to see if I can help! I am quite good with young people however I was wondering if anyone had any advice??

I am deffinately going to suggest possibly joining the forum (If her parents agree, I will ask them first) but I really want to help even if it is just to listen to her!

ANY advice will be gratefully recieved.
 
I did that at her age. It is really difficult and my reasoning was I was just fed up with diabetes and wanted someone else to have it - so I gave up injecting and I did get ketones but not as bad as to be admitted to hospital with ketoacidosis. ( I have had a dear friend die of this so scares the hell out of me)

The best thing that happened was that my parents made me go to clinic on my own - even though I hated my consultant at the time lol this is where he offered me chance to go onto a pump. Hearing about the new technology (was then) and how much freedom and better control it would give made me sit up and realise. The threat was put on as well that if I didn't do anything then I would be hospitalised for a month.

It would be easier for her to not necessarily talk to her parents or anyone close as you feel they are looking down on you. Someone new and been through same thing is better. I am one of JDRF youth ambassadors and on the website they can put her in contact with an ambassador that is living in her area that can even be same age.

She'll be alrite - she just needs support 🙂
 
Thank you, I was thinking it might be easier for her to talk to someone new, I'm not going to pester her about it I'm just going to let her know I am here if she wants to talk about it and suggest the forum, if she wants to talk about it that is great and I will... I'm just hoping that I don't make it any worse I guess!! :(
 
RissyKay said:
Thank you, I was thinking it might be easier for her to talk to someone new, I'm not going to pester her about it I'm just going to let her know I am here if she wants to talk about it and suggest the forum, if she wants to talk about it that is great and I will... I'm just hoping that I don't make it any worse I guess!! :(
Click to expand...

You won't be making it worse for her I'm sure. Her just knowing your there to listen will eventually make her open up.
 
Hi RissyKay,

You have the one thing that no one else who has tried to talk to her has, and that's an understanding of what living with diabetes is like. My advice would be to maybe break the ice by moaning about how frustrating you find it so she knows she's not the only one, as at 15 that is likely to be something she feels.

Good luck!

Vicki 🙂
xxx
 
Good luck Risskay, its a hard 1. Being a teenager & big D ! Everyones different. Good luck 🙂🙂
 
tough call. You could suggest she can let it take control of her life or she can take control of her diabetes and and live the life she wants, with the help, if she chooses, of others - the forum, her gp, counselling. She might just need a big hug and lots of sympathy at being dealt a rough blow, and a little suggestion that she has the choice to do something about it?
 
Thank you sooo much for your comments, I'm feeling a lot better about the chat!


I will let you know how it all goes 🙂
 
I was pressed by her stepmother to talk to a 13 year old about this very thing.

First thing I said was you may be surprised but I'm not going to whinge at you, or nag. Of course S seems to be having a go at you - and the second thing I'm going to say because she's my friend and talks to me in a different way that she talks to you, is that she only does it because she's worried about you - as is your dad and your own mum would be, if she were here.

That out the way - what is it that S perceives is wrong and gives you grief for?

We talked for quite a while. I dunno if it did any good. I just tried to give her something different to think about....
 
Well I am seeing her on Monday so I will deff let you all know how it goes but I don't plan on nagging her or even telling her to control it, I am however going to give her my number so if she doesn't want to talk then but changes her mind then she can give me a call as for all I know she might find it wierd talking to a stranger! 🙂 Thanks for the comment Trophywench :D
 
Good luck RissyKay. I'm sure you'll be great.

Just knowing that someone 'gets it' is usually enough in itself. And I agree just starting by moaning about it yourself is probably a good way to go - she might not respond, but she'll be listening. No doubt about that.

I'd say you kind of want to be a bit blaise about it, almost like 'yeah I remember when I couldn't be bothered and I didn't want to do any injections' bla bla bla...so she knows you've been there and doesn't see you as someone with 'perfect' diabetes who doesn't 'get' what she's going through.

well, that's all what I think anyway lol

Good luck, good luck!
 
Thank you 🙂 That is what I was thinking... I was scared when I agreed to it but now I'm kind of happy as if I do manage to help it will be a nice feeling also will be nice for her to have someone to talk to about it 🙂
 
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