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laura0063

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Type 1
Hi. i have recently just found out i am type 1 after being taken to hospital with generally feeling unwell. constant thirst, tiredness.. my blood sugars where as high as 19. At the minute i am taking Humalg mix 25 twice a day 1 before breakfast and 1 before evening meal . I am really struggling on what foods to eat as my blood sugars are sometimes as high as 16 before i eat. I feel constantly hungry but scared to eat anything. please feel free to comment 🙂
 
Hi Laura, welcome to the forum 🙂 Very sorry to hear about your diagnosis, and that you are having problems with your levels and hunger. I would suggest you ask your healthcare team about the possibility of moving to a basal/bolus insulin regime as this will give you much better control and flexibility with eating. This involves either one or two injections a day of a slow-acting insulin, like lantus or levemir, and an injection of fast acting insulin e.g. novorapid with every meal - so usually 4-5 injections a day. The slow-acting ('basal') takes care of the glucose that is contantly released by your liver and the fast-acting ('bolus') takes care of the carbohydrates in your food. Mixed insulin is precisely that - a mixture of slow and fast, so it tries to be the best of both worlds, but in reality it means you have to keep to fairly rigid mealtimes and diet, and can't 'correct' your blood sugar levels if they go high. Most people are put straight on to a basal/bolus regime nowadays as it is easier for you to control the diabetes rather than it controlling you, so do ask about it - it is also known as MDI (Multiple Daily Injections).

The best type of diet to follow is a low GI or GL diet (see The GL Diet for Dummies as a good example) as this will release energy slowly and steadily.

Have a look in the Useful links thread for links to lots of helpful information. I would highly recommend getting a copy of Type 1 Diabetes in Children, Adolescents and Young Adults by Ragnar Hanas - it is stuffed full of information about Type 1 and how to handle virtually every scenario. Please ask us lots of questions if there is anything you are unsure of and we will do our best to answer! 🙂
 
thank you for your help . i am getting changed on to a different method of insulin think they just put me on this for the time being just to get me home and out of hospital . just still struggling on what to eat .
 
laura0063 said:
thank you for your help . i am getting changed on to a different method of insulin think they just put me on this for the time being just to get me home and out of hospital . just still struggling on what to eat .
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Ah, that's good news then 🙂 The main thing to remember about diabetes is that it is mainly carbohydrates that raise blood sugar levels, and some will raise them faster than others. Sometimes it is a good thing that some will raise your levels quickly, for example if your blood sugar is low (below 4.0 mmol/l) then you need to bring it up quickly by eating or drinking something sugary, like jelly babies (my favourite!) or ordinary coke (not diet). Most of the time though you want the food to raise your levels gradually over a longer period of time, so you choose foods which do this and this is where GI (Glycaemic Index) is useful - the lower the GI that something is, the slower it will digest and raise your blood sugar levels. So, fr example, white bread or sweets are very high GI, but seeded or granary bread is much lower. Mashed potatoes are higher GI than new potatoes, basmati or brown rice is lower GI than risotto (short grain) rice.

Try not to get too bogged down in the detail at this stage as there is a lot to learn and you may feel overwhelmed. I would suggest that a good way to start would be to eat normally and record your meals in a food diary, noting down the carbohydrate content of each meal (you may need to read the packets and/or weigh your food to determine this). This will give you a good idea of the amount of carbs you are eating on a daily basis, and also will give you an idea of what things might be replaced by a lower GI alternative.

It sounds complicated, but really you soon get the hang of it! 🙂
 
Welcome to the forum Laura

With advice from the good people here and hopefully your medical team, you'll soon get the hang of things, I'm sure.

Andy 🙂
 
Hi Laura. Welcome 🙂

The twice a day regime is very much a temporary fix so you'll find the basal/bolus MDI (multiple daily injections) regime much more flexible but a bit daunting to start with.

Northerner's suggestion of a food diary is an excellent one. You can get a good feel for what carbs are in different foods and start to estimate what's on your plate.🙂

Rob
 
Welcome to the forums Laura 🙂
 
Hi Laura, welcome to the boards. Everyone here is really friendly 🙂
 
Hello and welcome to the forum
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Welcome to the forum 🙂
 
Hi Laura - I was diagnosed type 1 3 weeks ago (seems like years) cannot offer you too much advice at the moment cause Im just trying to get the hang of it too but stick to the forum as lots of good advice here. My levels are still very erratic and have had 2 hypos but am hoping it will all calm down soon. Im on 2 injections a day (morning and before evening meal) but have been struggling with eating at the times they have said and am hoping I will get moved to 4 injections a day to give me a bit more flexibility. Im not used to eating at set times - just with work and stuff- and thats what Im finding the trickiest. Plus I like my long lies at weekends and have been very grumpy about getting up and injecting and eating when I just want to snooze, Anyway take care and I think just do as I am doing and stick to what people tell you to do at the moment (Im 33 yrs old and finding that a bit hard too). Take care
 
Welcome to the forum Laura. Alan's advice is always the best, and sounds like Melissa and you could be a good support for each other.
 
hi . .. im on exactly same but move to 4 injections from friday so hopefully that will be better for me .. i cant get to grips with the whole diet thing i have a real sweet tooth n crave things after my evening meal it really get me down =( ... hope you move on the 4 injections soon keep in touch n let me no how your getting on =) x
 
Hi

Hi

Welcome to the sight! great place to be if you have only just found out as i'm in the same boat, found out about a month ago now.. been on the insulin for about 3 weeks..

Some really helpful advise given here so your not alone and people more then willing to help out..

I'm currently always wanting to eat! saying that i'm getting more active and back to myself so maybe thats why! dont be scared about eating your body needs the enegery remember..

feel free to drop by if you need any advise from a fellow newbe, but sure you'll get help from more experienced people here..

Ant🙂
 
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