Hi I feel really really fat I am putting on so much weight every time I inject my levemir I feel like a house and it is getting me down I dont even want to be intimate with my other half as just feel like a whale. I take novorapid 3 times a day and levemir morning and night. sorry to moan but wanted to vent my annoyance x So close to just not injecting as i may as well be pumpin in pure fat
-
Please Remember: Members are only permitted to share their own experiences. Members are not qualified to give medical advice. Additionally, everyone manages their health differently. Please be respectful of other people's opinions about their own diabetes management.
feel fat
- Thread starter akls77
- Start date
- Status
Hello!
I'm not type 1 but I understand your worries about your weight. I have always been very overweight, right now I'm around 24 stone (I know, but I AM 6'2" tall... That's my excuse anyway 😉 ). I have always found it difficult to shift the weight, made even more difficult since I've had emotional problems since I was 15. The only advice I can give you is what I do- I find things about me that are attractive, and I focus on them. Also, with regards to your other half, if they really loved you then the weight would not put them off. It certainly doesn't with mine!
I know its hard. I know that this is all easier said than done. Have a chat with your other half, tell him your concerns. And please don't stop taking your medication!
I'm not type 1 but I understand your worries about your weight. I have always been very overweight, right now I'm around 24 stone (I know, but I AM 6'2" tall... That's my excuse anyway 😉 ). I have always found it difficult to shift the weight, made even more difficult since I've had emotional problems since I was 15. The only advice I can give you is what I do- I find things about me that are attractive, and I focus on them. Also, with regards to your other half, if they really loved you then the weight would not put them off. It certainly doesn't with mine!
I know its hard. I know that this is all easier said than done. Have a chat with your other half, tell him your concerns. And please don't stop taking your medication!
Robster65
Senior Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
I know he says I look beautiful how I am but its a personal thing. I wont stop taking it but i do think every time I inject that i feel rubbish! Im so bloated everything gettin tighter even though I zumba twice a week my diet is to blame in a way as I love food and the wrong food lol
Just I think its the levemir causing me to gain as if I take less I lose it but my numbers are high
I know how this is! I love eating and controlling it is a struggle. What I find I do is I try to change the things I enjoy snacking on to healthier options. I have a huge sweet tooth, so I've started baking my own cakes and biscuits. Fun and healthier too! I still suggest you try to cut down on eating, but at least if you're snacking on healthier things you feel less guilty.
Robster65
Senior Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
The only reason you lose weight when you inject less is because your body doesn't have enough insulin to power your muscles and cells, so it starts to metabolise your own body instead. This leads very quickly to DKA, which is a dangerous condition where your body starts to turn acidic. It requires urgent hospital treatment when it gets to that stage.
So you need to inject enough levemir (and rapid acting) to keep you within range, btu don't over inject so you have to eat more than you intend to.
Do you feel you need food to help you cope?
Rob
Northerner
Admin (Retired)
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
Sorry to hear you are feeling down about things. What might help is writing down what you are eating and drinking in a food diary, and also record the doses of insulin you take with each meal or snack. This way you can build up a picture of how things really are (not just how you thing things are - quite often a different thing!), and perhaps look for things that you could change for a lower carb or lower GI alternative e.g. instead of potato try sweet potato. You could also ask to see a dietician and take the diary to them for some professional advice.
The more changes you can make, the more you will safely beable to reduce your insulin doses (not just the levemir) and gain good blood glucose control. Simply reducing insulin will put you at risk of DKA (diabetic ketoacidosis), as well as the more longer term complications such as eye and kidney problems - it really isn't worth it. Do talk to a professional about how you are feeling, and we will be here to help and support you all we can 🙂
The more changes you can make, the more you will safely beable to reduce your insulin doses (not just the levemir) and gain good blood glucose control. Simply reducing insulin will put you at risk of DKA (diabetic ketoacidosis), as well as the more longer term complications such as eye and kidney problems - it really isn't worth it. Do talk to a professional about how you are feeling, and we will be here to help and support you all we can 🙂
Not to cope but im in doors with my 2 year old alot so i do tend to eat more when in! Im just at weird stage iv done sooo many injections and have been for 2 yrs and and am struggling with doing this for the rest of my life! Ill b ok probably hormones to. I excersize alot so not losing is defeating the point!
Robster65
Senior Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
What Northerner suggests is a really good idea. To write everything down.
And if you feel you can't resist, you could try chatting to your GP and ask if there's any counselling that may help you to explore the way you view food and yourself.
The exercise is good for fitness but isn't always the answer to losing weight unfortunately.
Rob
And if you feel you can't resist, you could try chatting to your GP and ask if there's any counselling that may help you to explore the way you view food and yourself.
The exercise is good for fitness but isn't always the answer to losing weight unfortunately.
Rob
Sazzaroo
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
Hi Akls,
I would like to echo what Northerner and Robster has said with a little extra!
First of all don't stop taking meds or insulin as you would only make yourself worse and no one wants to see you end up in hospital especially not the ones who love you the most.
I have battled with weight all my life so far and since i joined this forum I have had so much support/advice from people and now things are changing for the better for me.
It's hard hun I know but it's about lifestyle and making small changes and taking it in small steps.
If you have a want/need to change then do it. Get your GP to refer you to a dietitian and get as much support as you can but you have done the right thing by posting and not suffering in silence which is what I did for years. There is no shame, just admiration and with a little help you can do it.
Keep us posted and a good luck Hug to you 😉
I would like to echo what Northerner and Robster has said with a little extra!
First of all don't stop taking meds or insulin as you would only make yourself worse and no one wants to see you end up in hospital especially not the ones who love you the most.
I have battled with weight all my life so far and since i joined this forum I have had so much support/advice from people and now things are changing for the better for me.
It's hard hun I know but it's about lifestyle and making small changes and taking it in small steps.
If you have a want/need to change then do it. Get your GP to refer you to a dietitian and get as much support as you can but you have done the right thing by posting and not suffering in silence which is what I did for years. There is no shame, just admiration and with a little help you can do it.
Keep us posted and a good luck Hug to you 😉
Hiya...have you done anything like a dafne course? It's very good at helping to understand lifestyle & dose interactions as it were & from memory (it was some years ago!) we discussed weight loss too. It's really hard when you have little ones- my experience has been that diabetic pregnancy was blinking hard work & involved a fair bit of weight gain as the only way i could maintain a level form of control was to 'eat up' to the insulin rather than the other way round (ie told to snack often to avoid sickness, i couldnt bolus just 1u effectively - so would end up having 2u & eating twice as much as id intended! 🙄 )
Since the kids i've managed to get on an insulin pump, it's been much better for my control & i've been able to manage my weight far better as i really can dose for what i eat now - could this be an option for you?
I do still tend to comfort eat when stressed or unhappy, that's my main weight issue now & i suspect that for you & i both fatigue from child wrangling is at play too! That all said if i don't make the effort to get my sugar levels right in the first place i feel so rubbish i don't have the energy or motivation to eat well & exercise, so i think you are very sensible to say you are not going to stop or reduce your levemir, as that's not an answer to the problem. I think like a lot of things weight loss for diabetics on insulin can be trickier but it can be done, it does however seem to need more hard work from us (flipping typical eh?!!)
Anyway, sorry i'm rambling, i just wanted to say i can understand how you feel but try not to be hard on yourself - being a diabetic mum is hard enough, the diabetes is like a 2nd kid to wrangle! You'll get there with the weight loss in time, just be careful to do it in a healthy, sustainable way. All the best, Twitchy x
Since the kids i've managed to get on an insulin pump, it's been much better for my control & i've been able to manage my weight far better as i really can dose for what i eat now - could this be an option for you?
I do still tend to comfort eat when stressed or unhappy, that's my main weight issue now & i suspect that for you & i both fatigue from child wrangling is at play too! That all said if i don't make the effort to get my sugar levels right in the first place i feel so rubbish i don't have the energy or motivation to eat well & exercise, so i think you are very sensible to say you are not going to stop or reduce your levemir, as that's not an answer to the problem. I think like a lot of things weight loss for diabetics on insulin can be trickier but it can be done, it does however seem to need more hard work from us (flipping typical eh?!!)
Anyway, sorry i'm rambling, i just wanted to say i can understand how you feel but try not to be hard on yourself - being a diabetic mum is hard enough, the diabetes is like a 2nd kid to wrangle! You'll get there with the weight loss in time, just be careful to do it in a healthy, sustainable way. All the best, Twitchy x
Julia
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
Hi Akls77,
I am sorry you feel like levimir is making you fat.
Have you heard of "insulin oedema/edema" (UK/american spelling)?
This happens when you have really high blood sugars and start taking your insulin properly again. It is fluid retention, after being dehydrated with high blood sugars. It will make you feel bloated, which many people think is fat, but it's actually fluid.
Just in case you think I am making it up, watch the last bit of this video
http://behavioraldiabetesinstitute.org/video-Eating-Disorders-Diabulimia-2008-10-27.html
She describes the need to "ride the fluid shift out".
Please don't get offended that I have linked a video on diabulimia. I am not suggesting you have diabulimia or any other eating disorder, how can I, I know nothing about you. But I do know that missing insulin is a very dangerous way to lose weight. I'm sure you do not need me, or anyone else, to remind you of that.
I bet the bloated/fat feeling you describe is actually insulin oedema. I'm personally begging you not to miss your insulin injections. There will be plenty of people on here who understand, but equally you may need to address this with proper medical help.
I am sorry you feel like levimir is making you fat.
Have you heard of "insulin oedema/edema" (UK/american spelling)?
This happens when you have really high blood sugars and start taking your insulin properly again. It is fluid retention, after being dehydrated with high blood sugars. It will make you feel bloated, which many people think is fat, but it's actually fluid.
Just in case you think I am making it up, watch the last bit of this video
http://behavioraldiabetesinstitute.org/video-Eating-Disorders-Diabulimia-2008-10-27.html
She describes the need to "ride the fluid shift out".
Please don't get offended that I have linked a video on diabulimia. I am not suggesting you have diabulimia or any other eating disorder, how can I, I know nothing about you. But I do know that missing insulin is a very dangerous way to lose weight. I'm sure you do not need me, or anyone else, to remind you of that.
I bet the bloated/fat feeling you describe is actually insulin oedema. I'm personally begging you not to miss your insulin injections. There will be plenty of people on here who understand, but equally you may need to address this with proper medical help.
- Status