Anybody else like me!!!?

[lizabetic]

Hey, i was diagnosed when I was 16 (now 18) as being Type 1 diabetic. After 6 months I came off of the insulin I was on and since then i've been supposedly on a honeymoon period. Seems to have lasted a long time I know!?
Trying to find anyone else who has been in the same situation as this can be so fustrating. Especially since i've had my GP changed and am currently going back from step 1..

 

[Northerner]

Hi Liz, welcome to the forum 🙂 I have heard of people who had to stop taking insulin a while after being diagnosed. I think the theory is that your pancreas can recover some beta cell function when it is given a 'rest' by injecting for a while. How long this lasts will vary greatly between people and will probably depend on how much of your beta cell function remained at diagnosis. Some people only need tiny amounts of insulin - sometimes so small that they can only be delivered by a pump. Personally, my insulin requirements have decreased by up to 85% for my lantus and around 40-50% for my novorapid.

 

[Steff]

Hi Liz just wanted to welcome you on to the forum.x Sorry i cant help with your question as im type 2 not on insulin.

 

[lizabetic]

Well after having the blood tests to see my pancreas fuction (don't know the exact name just know a lot of waiting around was involved and had to drink a cup of glucose) they said it was working around 75% still, pretty good it seems? And so i've kept my BS down well with occasional jumps now and then and not without reasoning - i.e. eating too much, cereal also does that..

A normal range for me in a day would be between 4 and 9 and i'm pretty prone to hypos especially at the moment having just moved away from home and doing everything for myself. Doesn't even matter what I eat I will still get hypos after eating most food and being relatively active (20min walk and then lots of sitting around?!) so doesn't seem to make much sence..

 

[novorapidboi26]

think the honeymoon period can go on for a long time...years sometimes....

i cant remember if i had a lengthy honeymoon period, if one at all......

try and enjoy it while it lasts, and welcome to the forum.......

you say you get hypos, and your not on insulin, thats weird.......

 

[lizabetic]

yup I get hypos practically every day despite not being on insulin, thought that was normal? I mean i'm still producing insulin by myself obviously and when i've not eaten then it needs something to work on I guess? Never really thought of this as being strange!!

 

[tracey w]

yup I get hypos practically every day despite not being on insulin, thought that was normal? I mean i'm still producing insulin by myself obviously and when i've not eaten then it needs something to work on I guess? Never really thought of this as being strange!!

I thought you could only hypo on medication, insulin and certain tablets, perhaps im wrong?

If you are producing your own insulin, as in non diabetics it will regulate itself, so if you have not eaten your pancreas would not "over produce" insulin.

 

[lizabetic]

I thought you could only hypo on medication, insulin and certain tablets, perhaps im wrong?

If you are producing your own insulin, as in non diabetics it will regulate itself, so if you have not eaten your pancreas would not "over produce" insulin.

hhm well i guess i don't really know? my doctors are pretty confused as well, they don't understand either and you think they would.
I understand your point however, i've never fainted due to it and my hypos come at readings of about 3.7, is that very low at all? I mean if I feel that bad I eat straight away so rarely get lower readings that that. I do get shakes, sweats, confusion especially in speach when this happens so I would assume this is certainly symptoms of a hypo?

 

[Caroline Wilson]

Hi Liz and welcome to the forum. I hope you find all the help and support you want. Even if we can't offer any suggestions, we will listen and support.

 

[newbs]

Hi, I had a very long honeymoon period, I was taking insulin but very small amounts and no long-acting insulin at all for about 4 years. I then became pregnant and had my first daughter and my BS stayed higher than previously afterwards and I needed to introduce long-acting insulin - but still in very small amounts. It is only really the past year that my insulin doses have risen quite considerably (and I have had a second daughter so this probably caused this too) and I have now been diabetic for 10 years.

I hope your honeymoon period continues for you!

 

[Mitchywhite]

hi
hope you keep your honeymoon period as long as possible if thats what you want. 3.7 isn't that low i don't think but i occasionally get the symptoms of a hypo when my blood is just above 4 but have had hypos below 2.

good luck

 

[Northerner]

hhm well i guess i don't really know? my doctors are pretty confused as well, they don't understand either and you think they would.
I understand your point however, i've never fainted due to it and my hypos come at readings of about 3.7, is that very low at all? I mean if I feel that bad I eat straight away so rarely get lower readings that that. I do get shakes, sweats, confusion especially in speach when this happens so I would assume this is certainly symptoms of a hypo?

A non-diabetic person can go as low as 3.5 - or even lower in extreme circumstances as it's not just diabetics that get hypos. Paula Radcliffe, for example, suffers from them sometimes during training. Some people can also suffer 'reactive hypoglycaemia; which occurs when the insulin production is impaired and overreacts to a rapid rise in blood sugars.

Your symptoms are certainly that of a hypo, but when these symptoms occur can depend on what your usual levels are like. Do you know what your HbA1c is like?

 

[lizabetic]

I think they we're around 5.4 last time I had them done. Getting more bloods done tomorrow however.

Is there any reason why when I was first diagnosed my BS levels were high (40+ i believe, also heard thats not thatttt high..) but without it being caused by diabetes, I mean I was on insulin for 6 months during that point it was probably highest 20's once i'd come down from the diagnosis level.

this has left me really confused and puzzled as to where i stand in the diabetic world!! Or even if i'm in it really

 

[Northerner]

I think they we're around 5.4 last time I had them done. Getting more bloods done tomorrow however.

Is there any reason why when I was first diagnosed my BS levels were high (40+ i believe, also heard thats not thatttt high..) but without it being caused by diabetes, I mean I was on insulin for 6 months during that point it was probably highest 20's once i'd come down from the diagnosis level.

this has left me really confused and puzzled as to where i stand in the diabetic world!! Or even if i'm in it really

5.4 is a really good HbA1c level! 🙂 40+ is very high for a blood sugar level- I was 37 when diagnosed. It can go higher - I have heard of people going up to 100! I'm not aware of anything that would make your blood sugar that high other than diabetes. Normally, if your pancreas is working properly, then more insulin would be produced to bring your levels back into the 4-7 range. If you are getting levels significantly higher than that then you are most definitely diabetic! Hope things go well tomorrow - let us know how you go on!