Hello everyone, this is my first post. I was diagnosed type 1 at the end of Oct. 09 just 2 weeks before my 50th birthday. After a stay in hospital i was sent home with a leaflet and some insulin pens, along with the reassuring words that i would not be alone all the help i need would be there for me. However four months down the line i still feel nervous and have learned nothing about diabetes. I was told i would be taught to carb count but this has not happened, i just plod along every day giving myself the amount of insulin the doctors told me to. Everyone else seems so knowledgeable about diabetes but i know nothing. How do i learn when nobody is teaching me anything.
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Hi just joined
- Thread starter casey
- Start date
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Steff
Little Miss Chatterbox
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 2
Hi casey and welcome may i say what a lovely part of the world you come from my other havles parents live in Poole.I know exactly where your coming from on no support hun but i assure you in this place you get no end of support help and advice.I am type 2 so cant advise on insulins etc as im not on any but dont be afraid to jump in where you see fit and before long you will be helping out others that arrive at this forum .You say about everyone seeming so knowledgeable i got half of my knowledge from this place, I almost wish this forum was my care team infact I think they have been .x
Northerner
Admin (Retired)
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
Hi Casey, welcome to the forum🙂 We're almost diagnosis twins! I was diagnosed a few months befor my 50th birthday, Type 1. From the sounds of it I have been more fortunate than you in terms of the early care I received. I was on fixed doses too at the start, but did receive some education and have excellent DSNs (Diabetes Specialist Nurses) at the clinic. I also am a bit of a bookworm, so I supplemented my knowledge by reading a lot.
How did you come to be diagnosed and what insulin are you on? Do you know what your HbA1c (average blood glucose level over previous three months) was? It helps to know the starting point. One of the best books I have found (even for people of our age - don't be misled by the title!) is Type 1 Diabetes in Children, Adolescents and Young Adults by Ragnar Hanas (amazon link). It covers every topic under the sun regarding insulin-treated diabetes in a very readable and accessible way.
Let us know if there are any questions and we'll do our best to answer them.
How did you come to be diagnosed and what insulin are you on? Do you know what your HbA1c (average blood glucose level over previous three months) was? It helps to know the starting point. One of the best books I have found (even for people of our age - don't be misled by the title!) is Type 1 Diabetes in Children, Adolescents and Young Adults by Ragnar Hanas (amazon link). It covers every topic under the sun regarding insulin-treated diabetes in a very readable and accessible way.
Let us know if there are any questions and we'll do our best to answer them.
Hi Casey and welcome to the forum!🙂
You are in the right place - we will look after you. My son is 11 and on a pump and was diagnosed 14 months ago. I knew nothing and joined this forum and I am a lot better than I was in the early days. Dont worry about not knowing it all - it will take some time and you need to learn how your body deals with different foods. You are welcome to join our 'big night in' we have on a wednesday - we choose a particular dish to eat and then report back with our levels,carbs eaten, and how we dosed for it - I am sure it will help you to understand just how different we all are and might even help you with the carb counting. You are right - carb counting will help you a lot more than having a fixed dose.🙂Bev
You are in the right place - we will look after you. My son is 11 and on a pump and was diagnosed 14 months ago. I knew nothing and joined this forum and I am a lot better than I was in the early days. Dont worry about not knowing it all - it will take some time and you need to learn how your body deals with different foods. You are welcome to join our 'big night in' we have on a wednesday - we choose a particular dish to eat and then report back with our levels,carbs eaten, and how we dosed for it - I am sure it will help you to understand just how different we all are and might even help you with the carb counting. You are right - carb counting will help you a lot more than having a fixed dose.🙂Bev
rawtalent
Well-Known Member
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
Welcome,
Carb counting is worth getting used to fairly quickly, to help balance the amount of insulin you take to match the amount you eat.
I count mine in simple 10g units.
So, one small piece of fruit is about 10g. An apple, pear banana, a handful of strawberries, raspberries etc...
A lot of food has the amount of carbohydrate on the wrapping, usually shown as per 100g, so, work out how much you're having and then you know the no of carbs. Then by trial and error you can work out how many carbs to eat for each meal.
I probably eat 50-60 carbs per meal and adjust my insulin dose if i'm having more or less. Everyone is different.
Best of luck with it all.
Carb counting is worth getting used to fairly quickly, to help balance the amount of insulin you take to match the amount you eat.
I count mine in simple 10g units.
So, one small piece of fruit is about 10g. An apple, pear banana, a handful of strawberries, raspberries etc...
A lot of food has the amount of carbohydrate on the wrapping, usually shown as per 100g, so, work out how much you're having and then you know the no of carbs. Then by trial and error you can work out how many carbs to eat for each meal.
I probably eat 50-60 carbs per meal and adjust my insulin dose if i'm having more or less. Everyone is different.
Best of luck with it all.
Hi, I'd made it to my fifties before I got type 1 but as you see you're not alone by anymeans in developing what used to be called juvenile diabetes at a far from juvenile age.
I taught myself to carb count/dose adjust. which works well if you are using a basal bolus regime (ie you use an insulin like levlmir or lantus as a basal and a fast acting one like lpidra or novorapid for meals. There is a very good online course that teaches this produced by the hospital just along Wessex way from you.
http://www.bdec-e-learning.com/
I taught myself to carb count/dose adjust. which works well if you are using a basal bolus regime (ie you use an insulin like levlmir or lantus as a basal and a fast acting one like lpidra or novorapid for meals. There is a very good online course that teaches this produced by the hospital just along Wessex way from you.
http://www.bdec-e-learning.com/
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Thanks
Thanks everyone for the great welcome, sorry to have been so long replying but i have only just been able to get back online. Northerner, in the end i was diagnosed very quickly by my G.P. I had woken up one morning and was so thirsty, no matter how much i drank i could not quench my thirtst. The following morning i woke up and could hardly see anything, my sight was so blurred. Hubby kept telling me to see the doctor, but i never like to make a fuss so i said we would give it a day or two and see if it all went away. Three days later hubby went to see the doc for himself and mentioned my symptoms to him. The doctor said to try and get me there as he suspected diabetes, so i booked an appointment for as soon as possible, which was six days away. Eventually my app. came around and the doctor took a blood test and told me to return in a weeks time for the results.. However about three hours later the surgery phoned me and asked me to go up immediately and take a water sample. They tested the sample and said i had to go straight into hospital as i had keytones in my urine. The following morning i was seen by the ward doctor and was told i had type 1 diabetes, and that is the story of my diagnosis. I use Novorapid and Lantus, but although i have had the bloodtest i have not yet been told what my HbA1c is.
Thanks everyone for the great welcome, sorry to have been so long replying but i have only just been able to get back online. Northerner, in the end i was diagnosed very quickly by my G.P. I had woken up one morning and was so thirsty, no matter how much i drank i could not quench my thirtst. The following morning i woke up and could hardly see anything, my sight was so blurred. Hubby kept telling me to see the doctor, but i never like to make a fuss so i said we would give it a day or two and see if it all went away. Three days later hubby went to see the doc for himself and mentioned my symptoms to him. The doctor said to try and get me there as he suspected diabetes, so i booked an appointment for as soon as possible, which was six days away. Eventually my app. came around and the doctor took a blood test and told me to return in a weeks time for the results.. However about three hours later the surgery phoned me and asked me to go up immediately and take a water sample. They tested the sample and said i had to go straight into hospital as i had keytones in my urine. The following morning i was seen by the ward doctor and was told i had type 1 diabetes, and that is the story of my diagnosis. I use Novorapid and Lantus, but although i have had the bloodtest i have not yet been told what my HbA1c is.
Hi
Just wanted to say welcome - I am a bit of a newcomer to this forum myself - been posting a bit for the past few months but learning a lot more!
Although I can't advise you on T1, I can advise you that you will get a lot of help here and just as important, a lot of friends to listen when you just feel down. 🙂
Just wanted to say welcome - I am a bit of a newcomer to this forum myself - been posting a bit for the past few months but learning a lot more!
Although I can't advise you on T1, I can advise you that you will get a lot of help here and just as important, a lot of friends to listen when you just feel down. 🙂
Northerner
Admin (Retired)
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
Hi Casey, it's great that you were diagnosed before the ketones rose too high and you got DKA - kudos to your doctor for spotting the signs and getting you to hospital so quickly. I stuck my head in the sand too, with some pretty dreadful symptoms before I bothered the emergency services, so understand how people can resist seeking help - I lost 17 pounds in three days and was at death's door before I sought help!😱
Your knowledge will grow hugely in the coming weeks, let us know if there is anything you're unsure of.🙂
Your knowledge will grow hugely in the coming weeks, let us know if there is anything you're unsure of.🙂
I forgot to say that i did have DKA. I lost 21 pounds also. Problem is it has all gone back on again despite not having eaten anything unhealthy. I am trying really hard to loose some weight but just cant seem to at the moment.
Northerner
Admin (Retired)
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
Were you overweight before diagnosis? If you lost it due to the DKA then it would just go straight back on pretty much straight away as it would be due to dehydration and your body's inability to store the glucose. I rapidly recovered my 17 pounds, but it took about a year to get back to my 'normal weight.
Don't worry too much about the weight, just keep eating healthily and get yourself back to full fitness.
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