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Help please

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Alishaw

New Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Parent of person with diabetes
I'm panicking a little bit tonight. My son was diagnosed with type 1 on the 14th Dec. It has been a tricky few weeks but have been pleased that we have nearly managed to get his results between 4-8 each day for the past week. Tonight my son went to his running club and was 8 before he started and had a freddo bar to be safe. When he finished running he was 7 but he plummeted after his dinner to 2.9 and was a bit spaced out. We ended up having to give him 6 dextrose tablets before it managed to rise above 3.9. We then gave digestive but should I wake him up overnight to make sure it isn't plummeting again?
 
Hi and welcome to the forum. From the limited knowledge I have got from here it might be a good idea to test regularly to keep an eye on what is happening. Hopefully someone will be along soon who has more experience than me.
 
thank you Lynn. I'm going to check him just now.....don't know if I will get much sleep tonight worrying.
 
Let us know how he is.
 
Hi Alishaw-hope all is ok and welcome I'm a bit out of touch as H - my son Dx 4 yrs is at uni now-but does a fair bit of running!-half marathon 10k etc ..So what he used to do and it is all trial and error!- reduce insulin for the meal before-you would need to check by what % with your team-.test before the run and top up as you did .Lucozade sport throughout the run - sometimes a recovery snack after the run but he would often forget! and a snack without insulin before bed in his case bread/cheese/ham/nuts .Northener is a runner- im sure he can probably advise alittle better than me
 
Alishaw said:
I'm panicking a little bit tonight. My son was diagnosed with type 1 on the 14th Dec. It has been a tricky few weeks but have been pleased that we have nearly managed to get his results between 4-8 each day for the past week. Tonight my son went to his running club and was 8 before he started and had a freddo bar to be safe. When he finished running he was 7 but he plummeted after his dinner to 2.9 and was a bit spaced out. We ended up having to give him 6 dextrose tablets before it managed to rise above 3.9. We then gave digestive but should I wake him up overnight to make sure it isn't plummeting again?
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Hi Alishaw, welcome to the forum 🙂 Sounds like you are doing a pretty good job, given that he has only been diagnosed a month! Exercise is tricky, and reactions can vary widely from person to person, so it's essential to be extra cautious to begin with, with lots of regular testing before and after, and during as well if an extended session. When I started running again after diagnosis I tested every 15 minutes to begin with so I could see what the pattern was and determine what kind of action might be required. With time and experience, patterns will show themselves and it will become more predictable - most of the time! Something to consider (and you have discovered this) is that exercise will make you more sensitive to insulin for up to 40 hours afterwards, so as delb t says, you may need to reduce post-exercise insulin and make sure levels are not too low before bed. In my case, I have found that I don't drop low for any distance up to about 8 miles (I've been a runner for 35 years 😱) but I do need to top up after this with a couple of jelly babies every extra mile or two.

It's worth bearing in mind that different types of exercise can produce a different response - gardening hypos are common for me, despite my precautions! All this testing and caution will be frustrating to begin with, but once it is done he will be able to enjoy his sport with confidence. I found the book the Diabetic Athlete's Handbook very useful for explaining the science behind it all, depending on his age and interest in things - understanding why things happen can help a lot, I found 🙂

I'd also recommend getting a copy of Type 1 Diabetes in Children Adolescents by Ragnar Hanas if you don't already have it - packed full of excellent information for Type 1s 🙂
 
Welcome to the forum, Alishaw. There's a very good website for people with type 1 diabetes who particpate in all sports, not just running. www.runsweet.com There are pages which explain exercise physiology, how different types of exercise affect people with type 1 diabetes etc, as well as case studies for many sports. Good to hear that neither you nor your son have let diabetes stop his running.
Before sport, chocolate is OK if you have nothing else, but it has a fairly high fat content, so the sugar isn't absorbed very quickly. Sweets such as jelly babies, sachets of fruit puree (aimed at weaning children, but very popular among many endurance athletes, as they taste much nicer than sports gels, can be eaten without drinking, are much cheaper, have resealable caps etc), muesli bars etc are more suitable.
 
Welcome Alishaw, I was guided towards an online website called ExCarbs.com when I wanted info about cycling and diabetes. Hope you find this of some use.
 
You need to invest in a Freesyle Libre. You can read blood sugar anytime of the day or night. all day long & hundreds of times a day with no pain at all. It gives you graphs & lots of info. Good luck 🙂
 
How old is your son, Ali?

A lot of parents, esp of younger children - but even teenagers at least when its all new - set their alarms for c. 3 am and test their child's BG then, regularly - because it's the time that naturally all humans experience their lowest BG.
 
Alishaw said:
I'm panicking a little bit tonight. My son was diagnosed with type 1 on the 14th Dec. It has been a tricky few weeks but have been pleased that we have nearly managed to get his results between 4-8 each day for the past week. Tonight my son went to his running club and was 8 before he started and had a freddo bar to be safe. When he finished running he was 7 but he plummeted after his dinner to 2.9 and was a bit spaced out. We ended up having to give him 6 dextrose tablets before it managed to rise above 3.9. We then gave digestive but should I wake him up overnight to make sure it isn't plummeting again?
Click to expand...
Buy the way that is the right thing to be doing. You can get a small plastic container for 4 dextrose tablets. I always have 1 in my pocket 🙂
 
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