Carers of type 1 diabetes

[Nikki]

Thank u for all of ur feedback and it was really nice reading ur advice. The main thing that i really need support with is not that i dont know what to do when he has an hypo (ive had 10 years of it) its a case of sometimes i think he could control his sugar levels better i.e check his bloods and monitoring what he eats. The majority of time he seems to have low sugar levels only around me. Im not sure why but i think he feels safe and that its ok cause i know what to do and i look after him. Im calm when he has hypos but i feel he could control it better ( hes had it for 18 years ) just sometimes i feel alone and a little frustrated.

 

[Steff]

Its very dangerous if thats the case as you are not always going to be around then what will he do, he has had it many years and im sure he knows your there when he hypoes but as i said they may be a time when he is on his own, i suppose when you tell him to check his bloods he just says no ??

 

[Adrienne]

Hi Nikki

I hope when my daughter is a lot older she find an OH like you who looks after her as well as you do with your OH. I get worried about these things and she is only 9 😉

Can your fella join this group, would he do you think? He may well benefit himself from being here.

 

[Emmal31]

Hi Nikki,

I think that your doing the right thing by getting advice and support here. It must be tough on you to see your partner like that i know that my husband always says he hates seeing me having a hypo because he feels so out of control of the situation. I find that when i'm having a hypo I always need to sit down and not to be talked to cause that just confuses me even more than I already am 🙄

I would just keep trying to tell him it's important that he keeps on top of his diabetes and to check it regulary, sometimes when i'm having a bad day of blood sugar levels I don't feel like having to deal with it but my husband telling me i should check it brings me back to the reality that I can't just forget about it.

Hope that helped a little, good luck 🙂

Emma x

 

[sofaraway]

I think it's harder seeing other people having a hypo than it is to have one yourself.

 

[Twitchy]

Hi Nikki,

I know how frustrating this can be...my "little sis" (she's in her early 20s!) is also T1...she's very closed to me so I have little idea of much of what goes on in her life (we don't live locally to each other) but when we are around each other, it can seem like she hardly ever tests, doesn't carb count etc...she tells dad she has good control & good results, but I'm always worrying that the only reason she thinks this is cos she only tests if she feels a bit low (ie "I hardly get any high BG readings") and hasn't done any structured diabetes education like DAFNE so doesn't really know what the ideal levels & best ways to control things are. She bitterly resents anything she feels is my intrusion / interference / nagging / being a horrible big knowitall sister, so over time I have just had to learn to wind my neck in & let her live her own life (anything I say just makes matters worse!). I know this is totally different from an OH situation, but this ramble was just to say I can appreciate both sides of the wire! 🙄 Not knowing your OH, I don't know what to suggest really - maybe gentle encouragement to do something like a DAFNE course (Dose Adjustment For Normal Eating) might help, or it might just wind him up...sorry, that's not much help I know! I guess just try & remember controlling diabetes for most people is not easy, and can be extremely frustrating, so just be wary of adding pressure... (I'm sure you don't, just stating the obvious 😱!)

(Off the subject, & back onto 1st Aid courses - totally, yes, EVERYONE should do one! Guess the courses I have done have just had the dodgy lecturers re diabetes! First course done for cadets when 15, thankfully not needed to apply first aid much since, although there was one notable time when a guide dog led his boss into the path of a van at a crossing! D'oh... SO not funny at the time, but I did have to smile wryly at the look of abject embarrassment on the labrador's face...! Is there any breed that can look more embarrassed than a labrador in the wrong?! )