Changes for the better/worse?

[Steff]

I'm just intrigued to know from some of the members who were diagnosed many moons ago what changes you have seen in not only the care but the technology etc etc to do with diabetes...

 

[Ellie Jones]

In my case..

Home BG's were already available, but the introduction of Meters these were a lot easier, and better lancets (finger prickers)

Insulin Pens, that made injecting a little easier and less of an isuse when out and about..

The basal/bolus regime boy was I glad to get rid of the restriction of twice daily jabs...

Better insulins, humalog's novorapids a big improvement...

Then insulin pumps the best invention going I reckon..

Can't comment on CGM's as I've never used one

 

[ypauly]

When I was diagnosed in 2009 my mother and eldest brother were telling me what to expect, except that they were diagnosed 20 years before me. The first thing they said was that I would have to spend a whole week in the diabetes ward at Birmingham general hospital. That ward doesn't exsist and hasn't for many years, not only that the hospital has been the childrens for quite some time too lol

Luckily I found this place so I didn't have to take their advice and seek shelter in the Ark lol

 

[Catwoman76]

I'm just intrigued to know from some of the members who were diagnosed many moons ago what changes you have seen in not only the care but the technology etc etc to do with diabetes...

In the begining I used syringes and had to wee on sticks. It seemed more ridgid then about what you could eat and do. The information and support is much better nowdays and I have learnt so much about type 2 and Pumps. I remember the 'exchange', you could swap a sandwich for say a Mars bar, but you were not supposed to have both 😱 I am very happy on my NovoRapid and Levemir and Carb counting, well apart from putting on a bit of weight.
My uncle Laughlin had Diabetes in the 70's, I didn't know it was type 1, and when he used to come and stay my mum would go to Boots and buy diabetic jam, marmalade, biscuits, jelly, chocolate etc and he also used syringes, unfortunately he died because of a gangreen foot he was my favourite uncle, such a character RIP. Sheena x

 

[Robster65]

SImilarly, I started on the metal and glass syringes that were kept in surgical spirit and were as portable as something not terribly portable. The testing was urine in a test tube with little reagent tablets that changed colour to compare to a little chart.

When asked about blood testing (using BM sticks and a colour chart), the consultant said they were a bad idea because we'd get paranoid. So some things don't change !

I suppose those are the biggest changes. Pens are way better. And BG meters are like science fiction to what they were.

Diet advice has changed too. Brown bread was seen as better than white. They now know it's the same. And starchy foods were encouraged. There was no mention of spikes or GI.

Sadly, a lot of changes I've only caught up with since joining the forum. If I'd taken notice years ago maybe I'd be even better off.

Rob

 

[squidge63]

I was diagnosed in 1999 and the biggest change I have noticed is in the meters, my first one was a One Touch Basic and was large in comparison to todays meters. The picture shows the difference, the second meter I got is the smaller one next to it:

It also took 45 secs to give you a reading which was fast then lol

When I started my nurse training in 1983 blood was got by using one of these:

and measured this way:

 

[Northerner]

Squidge, that old test strip was enormous! You must have needed to open a major artery to get enough blood for that! 😱

 

[Cate]

I'm just intrigued to know from some of the members who were diagnosed many moons ago what changes you have seen in not only the care but the technology etc etc to do with diabetes...

I was dx in Jan 1984. When I was sent home from my 2 week (!) stay in hospital, I took with me some fancy new disposable syringes to inject with. Most diabetics at the time were still using the stainless steel syringes that had to be boiled to sterilise them.

I also took home with me the fancy new BM stix - it only took 2 or 3 minutes to find out what your blood sugar was (3 mins if it was over 14 I think) - the same finger pricker and strips that Squidge put a picture of! Though I still had the urine testing chemistry set too, of course

I was under a consultant who in the 6 years I went to his clinic, never actually spoke to me. Because of my age (9 to 15) he considered me too immature/stupid/young/insert your own reason here to speak to, and always addressed himself to my mum, who took me to the appointments.

In late 1991 (having moved to a new team) I changed from twice daily injections to MDI. This was a revolution 🙂 but didn't overly help my control. The only place at school I was allowed to inject was in the 6th form toilets 😱 - there was no school nurse/sick room/similar on site. I was the proud owner of the original Novopen anyway - still my favourite pen injector I've had, though the smallest dose you could give was 2u.

Around 2002 I requested that my consultant let me try Novorapid and Lantus rather than Actrapid and Insulatard which I'd been using. She refused, saying that Lantus was far too new and hadn't been proven to provide any benefit (despite being approved for use...) so I changed teams and moved from Croydon to Sutton for my care. They immediately put me on Lantus and Novorapid. Control improved slightly.

Feb/March 2004 I requested an insulin pump. My team asked me to visit my GP as they had to write to the PCT asking for funding. I got funding within 2 weeks, and started pump therapy in June 2004. It's been fantastic and I'd never choose to go back to injections.

2008 (I think!) I changed my pump to a newer version which included the bolus wizard, correction wizard etc. A massive step forward, though it took me a few weeks to get used to it - I was so used to doing it manually and instinctively so it was back to basics for a while. Having a blood test meter that sent the results directly to the pump was great too, as on the old pump I'd had to enter them manually as well.

I think that's where I'm at now...how times change, seems incredible to think back really!

PS: sorry for the essay! lol

 

[Northerner]

...I think that's where I'm at now...how times change, seems incredible to think back really!

PS: sorry for the essay! lol

Not at all Cate! That is really interesting to me as I was only diagnosed 3 years ago, yet I could quite easily have been diagnosed back when you were or even before - I was 25 in 1984! 😱

 

[Freddie99]

Those are the test strips that I had in the weeks and months following diagnoses. The meter on the left looks like the one I first had. Those are the memories of an addled seven year old.

 

[FM001]

So many changes and everyone for the better.🙂 Glass syringes to insulin pens, clinitest kit to sleek modern bg meters, slow unpredictable animal insulin to faster modern analogue insulin's, lack of information to a wealth of information both printed and on the net, I could go on and on but overall things have moved on fantastically over the last 30 years. Thankfully those that are newly diagnosed have a far better chance of living a long life free of any complications, I for one can't think of any one thing that is worse now than say 20-30 years ago, I am mindful that this could soon all change with the present proposals that the ConDems have for our wonderful NHS.

 

[Liz!]

I was diagnosed in around 1970. My Dr was about to retire and just gave me a calorie controlled diet (not enough carbs!) and sent round a nurse to teach me to do injections. I was 12. I was given no other information whatsoever and spent the next two years completely helpless going from high to low and not coping at al. Eventually I was refered and got a Consultant, and then a dietitian introduced me to the 'line' diet which made things easier, one line = 10g and foods were packed in line amounts. I was allowed 4 lines for every meal. I had to test with a grey plastic box which lifted off to reveal a test tube to wee into, and had tablets to put in. Blue = no sugar, yellow = moderate sugar, orange = too much sugar. Mine were often orange, sometimes blue. I didn't know then that I had a low renal threshhold and so sugar spils into my urine at quite a low level. I felt guilty all the time. So stopped doing them.

My Consultant sexualy abused me. When I realised what he was doing was wrong I complained to my GP, but still had to go and see him. That was awful.

My diabetes was always hard to control. When I got married though things were moving on and I was given a insulin pump to try. And a new, enormous blood testing machine. Unfortunately the Consultant at the hospital had got his wires crossed, or maybe they did this then, but anyway, he kept me on my long acting Ultratard. I had the machine for a year, pushing the needles (long, thick, metal) into my stomach, I can still feel them there as I write this, was awful, I dreaded it, and what's more i became allergic to all the tapes including op-site. In the end I was having prolonged hypos, I had to eat constantly, which I couldn't get out of, after one of these i was hospitalised and decided to come off the pump, and they still didn't realise they shouldn't have been giving me the Ultratard...

Then I was given a lovely metal Novopen and things were better than on the pump! It put me off pumps for a very long time.

Now i have a tiny pump, blood tester, and a brilliant Consultant, and although sometimes I'd like to go back knowing what I now konow and stand up for myself, I'm glad I'm in the here and now!

 

[Northerner]

Oh Liz, so much unnecessary suffering

 

[AJLang]

Those were the days - the only times that my mum and dad knew for certain that my sugar was low was when I collapsed on them!
When the testing strips first came in we were told to cut them in half to save money (guess at least it meant less blood on the strip) and stick them into the blood testing book - although by the time of the hospital appointment they had all faded to the same colour. As the insulin doses were fixed we weren't able to make any changes based upon the blood test result. In the early days we had to stab the lancests into our fingers to get the blood (even now when a nurse says she's going to do a blood test I get a brief fear that she won't have a finger pricking machine)
When disposable needles were first introduced we were also told to re-use them several times to save money. Those were the good old days!!

 

[Northerner]

...When disposable needles were first introduced we were also told to re-use them several times to save money. Those were the good old days!!

I read the original Parliamentary debate about the introduction of pens and the NHS paying for them - one of the big 'plus' points was that the needles would be used many times, thus saving money! 😱 Now we are told to replace them every time!

 

[Liz!]

Oh yes! Forgot the metal needles that came in plastic cases, about 10 of them which had to last ages, and therefore had to be used over and over and over. Mine became so blunt they wouldn't go in my arm before I was allowed new ones, so my dad got his watchmaker to sharpen them on his lathe! Goodness knows what s**t I was injecting myself with along with the insulin, the lubricant and the metal shavings for a start!

 

[AJLang]

Don't!!! They were such thick metal needles with metal ends to them! When I was about three mum found me trying to drown all of the diabetic equipment in a sink full of water, I wonder why I was doing that?? In order to help me we purchased a metal device - you attached the syringe (with needle) to it and pulled the trigger so that the needle went straight into the skin, it was a big metal contraption. I'm sure it helped at the time but if anyone came near me with it now I would run a mile😱 Things are sooooooooooo much easier nowadays

 

[squidge63]

Wow Cate that pump you have sounds fantastic if they are like that now what will they be like in say 5 - 10 years time.. are you under St Helier for your diabetes? obviously I am at Epsom, but am not that keen on the Consultant and prefer to see one of the other Dr's at the clinic.

 

[Robster65]

Don't!!! They were such thick metal needles with metal ends to them! When I was about three mum found me trying to drown all of the diabetic equipment in a sink full of water, I wonder why I was doing that?? In order to help me we purchased a metal device - you attached the syringe (with needle) to it and pulled the trigger so that the needle went straight into the skin, it was a big metal contraption. I'm sure it helped at the time but if anyone came near me with it now I would run a mile😱 Things are sooooooooooo much easier nowadays

I remember seeing pictures of those syringe gun things back then !😱

I was reading some old BDA leaflets and it states in those that the needles generally last about a week or so. I can't remember how long mine lasted but they used to get nasty barbs on the end and refuse to puncture the skin.

And I remember getting excited about the parliament debate on free needles. It was a real victory. They were tight with their money then !🙄

Rob

 

[FM001]

When the testing strips first came in we were told to cut them in half to save money

I was only given one box at a time so would cut them up to make 3 or 4 strips, they wouldn't work in the meter so I would compare the colour of the strip with chart on the side of the container. The meter I first used you had to put the blood on the strip then wait 60 seconds, wipe the blood off and place in meter then wait a further 60 seconds before a reading was visible, how things have changed!🙂