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Anxious mum with newly diagnosed T1 son

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This thread is now closed. Please contact Anna DUK, Ieva DUK or everydayupsanddowns if you would like it re-opened.
H

Heleninlux

New Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Parent of person with diabetes
Hi
I'm very pleased to have found you all! My 13 year old son was diagnosed a few weeks ago, (admitted to intensive care whilst traveling in Germany) so we've had rather a challenging few weeks. We're slowly getting used to his new normal (he's injects actrapid, novorapid and levemir) but we have an appointment for a blood glucose monitoring device next week. He's not sure about a pump yet. Our biggest problem at the moment is food - he wants to eat a lot of high sugary carb food (I think because he lost so much weight initially) and we've caught him out after he has bought, eaten and injected insulin to compensate.... also hard to motivate him to be active but this might be normal teenage hormones (!). He goes back to school on 5th September and I'm a little nervous about all the challenges he will have to deal with and how he will cope.
So greetings to you all - am full of admiration for how you manage your diabetes. We've got a lot to learn.
 
Hi and welcome.

Sorry to hear about your son's diagnosis and it sounds like it was a challenging experience with you being abroad. So pleased you have found the forum and I hope it will be as helpful, supportive and informative to yourselves as it has been to me since diagnosis. I have to say my heart goes out to parents and children/teenagers having to cope with this. The worry and responsibility must be so much more draining as a parent because you can't be with your child all the time and can't feel the hypo symptoms to alert you, so you need to be extra vigilant to look for the signs.... although thankfully the modern technology is making that so much easier, so it is really good that your son is getting a CGM fitted soon.

As regards him being hungry and wanting to eat sugary food, it may well be because his body has been starved of glucose and needs to replenish it's stores. I think as long as it doesn't become a long term habit and he is injecting insulin to cover what he eats then you should be really proud of him and not worry too much about what he is eating at this stage. The important thing is that he is using his insulin when he feels this urge to eat sweet stuff. Hopefully it will settle down as he gets back to his normal body weight, but I understand that teenagers do feel the need to eat lots anyway because their bodies need it. I don't remember this for myself and don't have children of my own but I am sure other parents will be able to reassure you on this. The important thing is not to censure him about this but let him know that he is doing really well by injecting his insulin to cover it. It is very easy for people with diabetes to develop disordered eating and you do need to tread carefully about making him feel like some foods are bad or to be avoided. It is far better that he eats them openly and injects for them than that he becomes secretive and feels it is something to be ashamed of.
It will help if he has large regular meals to help fill him up and hopefully reduce his urge to eat rubbish though. Fingers crossed he is just making up for his weight loss and it will settle down. Sending ((((HUGS)))). It is a very difficult time but it will get easier..... Promise!
 
Hi I’ve had Type 1 diabetes since I was 2 so have lived through the teenage years with it. Some people with Type 1 have a preference for low carb BUT the main approach can easily be eating what you want as long as you match it with appropriate insulin so please don’t feel that you are catching him out. It’s great that he’s taking responsibility to have the insulin when he eats and I would congratulate him for doing that. When he learns carbohydrate counting he will be more able to accurately match the insulin and achieve appropriate blood glucose levels. It’s a balance - being too restrictive during the teenage years can lead to rebellion which you do not want. All the best with it.
 
@AJLang Thanks Amanda. You put that so much more succinctly and understandable than my waffling reply. 🙄
 
Welcome @Heleninlux 🙂 I remember feeling very hungry after diagnosis. As you say, it’s the body trying to gain back weight. Type 1 causes a form of starvation and that in itself makes the body want food. As said by both previous posters, please don’t think you’ve ‘caught him out’ when he eats ‘extra’. The recommended diet for Type 1 is the same healthy diet recommended for everyone, but - and it’s a big ‘but’ - we need to take over the job of our pancreas and inject appropriate insulin to cover that food.

I eat moderate amounts of desserts, cake, biscuits, etc.You and he will gradually learn how to incorporate such things into his routine. One thing he/you might find easiest is to stick to the same snacks at similar times because that way you’ll know the amount of insulin that works for them and his blood sugar will be more predictable.

It’s interesting that he’s been given Actrapid as well as Novorapid. When does he inject that?

Here are two great books about Type 1:

Think Like a Pancreas’ by Gary Scheiner.

And Type 1 Diabetes in Children Adolescents and Young People by Ragnar Hanas

.
 
Hi and welcome. Being diagnosed abroad can make things slightly more complicated about how you come into the system but it will all even itself out. As long as you have a current team and know how to get support then it’s all good.

I have a 12 year old who was diagnosed at 8. Yes wanting to eat lots, especially high sugar stuff is common after diagnosis for all the reasons mentioned plus teenagers need carbs to grow. We do sweets and desert with meals (lunch and dinner) so that nothing it forbidden and it helps to control the snacking in between. When he was first diagnosed we kept it at around 60-70 carbs per meal but now he seems happier at around 100. I’m sure once he gets through puberty that will ease a little but right now he gets to eat lots of carbs and we can predict how he will react to them. Having sweets with a meal helps slow the absorption so makes more sense to me than just having them on their own.

We’re here to support you through this. The first months were a lot to take in and it’s easy to feel overwhelmed and scared. You will all find your groove though and it does get easier I promise.
 
rebrascora said:
Hi and welcome.

Sorry to hear about your son's diagnosis and it sounds like it was a challenging experience with you being abroad. So pleased you have found the forum and I hope it will be as helpful, supportive and informative to yourselves as it has been to me since diagnosis. I have to say my heart goes out to parents and children/teenagers having to cope with this. The worry and responsibility must be so much more draining as a parent because you can't be with your child all the time and can't feel the hypo symptoms to alert you, so you need to be extra vigilant to look for the signs.... although thankfully the modern technology is making that so much easier, so it is really good that your son is getting a CGM fitted soon.

As regards him being hungry and wanting to eat sugary food, it may well be because his body has been starved of glucose and needs to replenish it's stores. I think as long as it doesn't become a long term habit and he is injecting insulin to cover what he eats then you should be really proud of him and not worry too much about what he is eating at this stage. The important thing is that he is using his insulin when he feels this urge to eat sweet stuff. Hopefully it will settle down as he gets back to his normal body weight, but I understand that teenagers do feel the need to eat lots anyway because their bodies need it. I don't remember this for myself and don't have children of my own but I am sure other parents will be able to reassure you on this. The important thing is not to censure him about this but let him know that he is doing really well by injecting his insulin to cover it. It is very easy for people with diabetes to develop disordered eating and you do need to tread carefully about making him feel like some foods are bad or to be avoided. It is far better that he eats them openly and injects for them than that he becomes secretive and feels it is something to be ashamed of.
It will help if he has large regular meals to help fill him up and hopefully reduce his urge to eat rubbish though. Fingers crossed he is just making up for his weight loss and it will settle down. Sending ((((HUGS)))). It is a very difficult time but it will get easier..... Promise!
Click to expand...
Thank you for your quick response Barbara - and your encouragement! I think your advice to try to get him to eat more at regular mealtimes is really good as well as trying to motivate him to be open about what he is eating even if not ideal. So far we are keeping to the range that the hospital care team told us to, but I think he might be in this 'honeymoon' period .... It is rather daunting but I'm so happy that I found this forum.
 
rebrascora said:
Hi and welcome.

Sorry to hear about your son's diagnosis and it sounds like it was a challenging experience with you being abroad. So pleased you have found the forum and I hope it will be as helpful, supportive and informative to yourselves as it has been to me since diagnosis. I have to say my heart goes out to parents and children/teenagers having to cope with this. The worry and responsibility must be so much more draining as a parent because you can't be with your child all the time and can't feel the hypo symptoms to alert you, so you need to be extra vigilant to look for the signs.... although thankfully the modern technology is making that so much easier, so it is really good that your son is getting a CGM fitted soon.

As regards him being hungry and wanting to eat sugary food, it may well be because his body has been starved of glucose and needs to replenish it's stores. I think as long as it doesn't become a long term habit and he is injecting insulin to cover what he eats then you should be really proud of him and not worry too much about what he is eating at this stage. The important thing is that he is using his insulin when he feels this urge to eat sweet stuff. Hopefully it will settle down as he gets back to his normal body weight, but I understand that teenagers do feel the need to eat lots anyway because their bodies need it. I don't remember this for myself and don't have children of my own but I am sure other parents will be able to reassure you on this. The important thing is not to censure him about this but let him know that he is doing really well by injecting his insulin to cover it. It is very easy for people with diabetes to develop disordered eating and you do need to tread carefully about making him feel like some foods are bad or to be avoided. It is far better that he eats them openly and injects for them than that he becomes secretive and feels it is something to be ashamed of.
It will help if he has large regular meals to help fill him up and hopefully reduce his urge to eat rubbish though. Fingers crossed he is just making up for his weight loss and it will settle down. Sending ((((HUGS)))). It is a very difficult time but it will get easier..... Promise!
Click to expand...
another question - what is LCHF?
 
Inka said:
Welcome @Heleninlux 🙂 I remember feeling very hungry after diagnosis. As you say, it’s the body trying to gain back weight. Type 1 causes a form of starvation and that in itself makes the body want food. As said by both previous posters, please don’t think you’ve ‘caught him out’ when he eats ‘extra’. The recommended diet for Type 1 is the same healthy diet recommended for everyone, but - and it’s a big ‘but’ - we need to take over the job of our pancreas and inject appropriate insulin to cover that food.

I eat moderate amounts of desserts, cake, biscuits, etc.You and he will gradually learn how to incorporate such things into his routine. One thing he/you might find easiest is to stick to the same snacks at similar times because that way you’ll know the amount of insulin that works for them and his blood sugar will be more predictable.

It’s interesting that he’s been given Actrapid as well as Novorapid. When does he inject that?

Here are two great books about Type 1:

Think Like a Pancreas’ by Gary Scheiner.

And Type 1 Diabetes in Children Adolescents and Young People by Ragnar Hanas

.
Click to expand...
Hi Inka - thanks for sharing your experience as well as the book recommendations. I will certainly look them up and read them. I've never known my son be so hungry.
The insulin plan we have is that he should inject Actrapid at breakfast and lunch and use novorapid in the evenings and for any snacks that have not been covered by the Actrapid as well as using the Novorapid for the correction (if necessary) before bed along with the regular levemir. But they also told us they will review this plan every 2 weeks initially depending on his blood sugar readings.
(We're British but we are currently living and working in Luxembourg which has a diabetic unit attached to the paediatric hospital so it might be that the advice here is different from the UK.)
 
Thebearcametoo said:
Hi and welcome. Being diagnosed abroad can make things slightly more complicated about how you come into the system but it will all even itself out. As long as you have a current team and know how to get support then it’s all good.

I have a 12 year old who was diagnosed at 8. Yes wanting to eat lots, especially high sugar stuff is common after diagnosis for all the reasons mentioned plus teenagers need carbs to grow. We do sweets and desert with meals (lunch and dinner) so that nothing it forbidden and it helps to control the snacking in between. When he was first diagnosed we kept it at around 60-70 carbs per meal but now he seems happier at around 100. I’m sure once he gets through puberty that will ease a little but right now he gets to eat lots of carbs and we can predict how he will react to them. Having sweets with a meal helps slow the absorption so makes more sense to me than just having them on their own.

We’re here to support you through this. The first months were a lot to take in and it’s easy to feel overwhelmed and scared. You will all find your groove though and it does get easier I promise.
Click to expand...
Thank you - yes - it is rather overwhelming at the moment for both of us. Really interesting to see the range of carbs that you aim for. We're a little inconsistent at the moment depending on what we are eating and doing but I'm going to think about this because it might help to be more consistent. It might also help my son when he goes back to school in September.
 
Heleninlux said:
Hi Inka - thanks for sharing your experience as well as the book recommendations. I will certainly look them up and read them. I've never known my son be so hungry.
The insulin plan we have is that he should inject Actrapid at breakfast and lunch and use novorapid in the evenings and for any snacks that have not been covered by the Actrapid as well as using the Novorapid for the correction (if necessary) before bed along with the regular levemir. But they also told us they will review this plan every 2 weeks initially depending on his blood sugar readings.
(We're British but we are currently living and working in Luxembourg which has a diabetic unit attached to the paediatric hospital so it might be that the advice here is different from the UK.)
Click to expand...

Interesting - and makes sense too as the Actrapid will cover reasonable mid-morning and mid-afternoon snacks due to its different profile of action. Actrapid was what I was on when I was first diagnosed. It’s not really used much for Type 1s now in the U.K. but it can be useful, as you’ve detailed. It does pretty much demand snacks though so your son will need to make sure he has them. Hopefully that shouldn’t be a problem if he’s hungry 🙂

The hunger does ease off after some weeks. Once he’s put the weight back on and settled into a routine he should feel a normal level of hunger. I wouldn’t worry too much about his activity levels yet. His body has had a massive shock and needs to ‘rebuild’ itself and recuperate a little.
 
Last edited:
Heleninlux said:
another question - what is LCHF?
Click to expand...

Hi @Heleninlux

LCHF is Low Carb High Fat

www.diabetes.co.uk

The low carb, high fat diet (LCHF diet) has developed a strong following in Scandinavia, having originated in Sweden.

Food and Diet Diabetes recipes Recipes A-Z Diet Diet plans Diet for type 1 diabetes Diet for type 2 diabetes 5:2 diet Acid-alkaline diet Atkins diet Carbohydrates and diabetes DASH diet Detox diet Dukan diet Gluten free diet Glycemic index (GI) Glycemic load Juicing diet Ketogenic diet Low...
www.diabetes.co.uk www.diabetes.co.uk
 
Inka said:
Most Type 1s do NOT eat LCHF and the above website is a commercial website that, coincidently, sells a LCHF programme @Heleninlux
Click to expand...
Thanks Inka - I did initially wonder if there would be any benefit in trying to cook more low carb meals but we are getting lots of good advice to have a very balanced diet and as normal as possible for a teenager. Just need to increase the portion sizes to try to reduce the snacks.
 
Hi @Heleninlux
I am very pleased that you found us, and very impressed with how your son is getting on with things. It is always a shock being diagnosed with diabetes, and must have been even more stressful being away on holiday at the time.

As others have said, with T1 we can in general eat whatever we want so long as we match the insulin needed to cover the carbs. It like your son has got the hang of that already. a good balanced diet as for any other teenager is what he will need, and it is important that food choices do not become a big issue as it can lead to problems.

Do come back with absolutely any questions that arise. Nothing is considered silly on here.
Just ask.
 
Hello @Heleninlux and welcome to the forum. Sorry to hear about the very challenging introduction to diabetes you and your son have had.

I just wanted to say I agree with everyone who's said that type 1s can eat whatever they like, there is no need to restrict your son's diet at all - just make sure he can work out the appropriate amount of insulin to inject for the carbs he's having (that will take time and practice, so don't worry if it's not exactly right immediately).

I eat a lot of carbs with my meals (more than most people here), I don't weigh much over 8 stone, and the main problem with my diabetes is that I'm sensitive to insulin so I have to watch out for hypos all the time!

A lot of type 2s find it helps to eat a low carb healthy fat diet, but it's not really an appropriate diet for a type 1.

The main problem with snacking on carbs is the nuisance of having to have an extra injection. It's worth it now and again - at a party or on holiday maybe - but probaby not every day. It might help your son to snack on high calorie but low carb foods, like a chunk of cheese with a couple of plain biscuits (TUC biscuits, for instance, are only 2.3g carbs each) or a handful of nuts - that way he can eat something if he's hungry between meals and not worry about having to inject for it.
 
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