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hey, everyone. I’m Claire 36 from Scotland and I’m a newbie. I was rushed to hospital two weeks ago and diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. My body started to shut down. I’m so blessed to still be here. An utter bombshell dropped on me as I was unaware of anything to do with Diabetes. I’m doing well with everything other than the counting carbs. Hope you are all well.
Hello @xclaireymacx
So sorry to hear about the really difficult time you are having, but it is really good that you have found this forum.
There is a great deal of knowledge and experience here, and members that have shared similar experiences.
Please keep posting and let us know how it is going.
We all know how totally overwhelming the diagnosis can be and there is so much to take in, especially in the first few weeks and months, so please be patient with yourself as it takes time to get to grips with it all. The analogy of learning to drive is often used which you may be able to relate to. When you have your first few lessons driving a car, everything seems incredibly complicated and you have to concentrate so hard on steering and indicating and changing gear and checking the mirror and regulating your speed, but after a while you do these things automatically and you just have to look out for the unexpected or when you are driving somewhere that you are not familiar with, but the basic stuff sort of fades into the background of what your brain and body just get on and do without you consciously having to think about them. Your diabetes will gradually become a bit like that and the carb counting will probably get to the stage that you can eyeball a plate of food and have a pretty good idea of the carbs on it and you will know a whole stream of carb values for different foods and biscuits and drinks off the top of your head.
It really does get easier, so hang in there and if there is anything that you are particularly stuck with or don't understand, no matter how basic you think it may be, please ask. We all know that in those first few weeks you are so shell shocked, it is hard to take in a lot of what medical professionals tell or show you so the forum is her to go over any stuff you just didn't understand and fill in any blanks and full of lots of useful tips and ideas of things to try when you hit problems. So make yourself at home here. You are amongst friends who have been where you are now and know how daunting it can be. Let us know if there is anything we can help with.
Welcome to the forum @xclaireymacx . I am glad that you have found us.
It is a shick being diagnosed with Diabetes at any age, and with T1 there is a VERY steep learning curve, but it sounds like you have got your head round things. Counting carbs will get easier as you become familiar with the foods that you eat more often. With regular meetings when I was working I became quite an expert in the carbs in a variety of biscuits!!!!!
@rebrascora has quoted the same analogy that I think best fits the experience at the start of managing T1, learning to drive. It definitely gets easier and there is plenty of help and support available on here. Just ask any questions that arise, and know that nothing is considered silly on here.
Hi @xclaireymacx and welcome from me too. Take your time getting used to what you are doing and do feel free to ask any questions. I won't add more as @rebrascora and @SB2015 have already given you the best advice 🙂
Hello @xclaireymacx
So sorry to hear about the really difficult time you are having, but it is really good that you have found this forum.
There is a great deal of knowledge and experience here, and members that have shared similar experiences.
Please keep posting and let us know how it is going.
We all know how totally overwhelming the diagnosis can be and there is so much to take in, especially in the first few weeks and months, so please be patient with yourself as it takes time to get to grips with it all. The analogy of learning to drive is often used which you may be able to relate to. When you have your first few lessons driving a car, everything seems incredibly complicated and you have to concentrate so hard on steering and indicating and changing gear and checking the mirror and regulating your speed, but after a while you do these things automatically and you just have to look out for the unexpected or when you are driving somewhere that you are not familiar with, but the basic stuff sort of fades into the background of what your brain and body just get on and do without you consciously having to think about them. Your diabetes will gradually become a bit like that and the carb counting will probably get to the stage that you can eyeball a plate of food and have a pretty good idea of the carbs on it and you will know a whole stream of carb values for different foods and biscuits and drinks off the top of your head.
It really does get easier, so hang in there and if there is anything that you are particularly stuck with or don't understand, no matter how basic you think it may be, please ask. We all know that in those first few weeks you are so shell shocked, it is hard to take in a lot of what medical professionals tell or show you so the forum is her to go over any stuff you just didn't understand and fill in any blanks and full of lots of useful tips and ideas of things to try when you hit problems. So make yourself at home here. You are amongst friends who have been where you are now and know how daunting it can be. Let us know if there is anything we can help with.
Welcome to the forum @xclaireymacx . I am glad that you have found us.
It is a shick being diagnosed with Diabetes at any age, and with T1 there is a VERY steep learning curve, but it sounds like you have got your head round things. Counting carbs will get easier as you become familiar with the foods that you eat more often. With regular meetings when I was working I became quite an expert in the carbs in a variety of biscuits!!!!!
@rebrascora has quoted the same analogy that I think best fits the experience at the start of managing T1, learning to drive. It definitely gets easier and there is plenty of help and support available on here. Just ask any questions that arise, and know that nothing is considered silly on here.
Hi @xclaireymacx and welcome from me too. Take your time getting used to what you are doing and do feel free to ask any questions. I won't add more as @rebrascora and @SB2015 have already given you the best advice 🙂
Hi and welcome
You can download an app to help you count your carbs. I use NutraCheck (NC) and there is one called MyFitBit I think. All you have to do is tap on the food and they do all the hard work for you. NC used to do a free 7 day trial to see if it suited. Best wishes
Yes carb counting can be a bit of a faff to begin with, but it will get easier. 🙂
You don’t have to be gram-perfect with your counts, of course. Rounding to the nearest 5 or 10 grams is plenty accurate enough for me.
Another practical approach is just to eat pretty much the same things at some meals (eg breakfast and lunch) and then experimenting to find a dose that ‘works’ for that amount of carbs.
Then you only have one meal a day to calculate 🙂
Status
This thread is now closed. Please contact Anna DUK, Ieva DUK or everydayupsanddowns if you would like it re-opened.
