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kitten

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Type 1
Hi to everyone,
I am new to these boards but have several years experience of being a type one diabetic. I am currently in a right mess, so to speak. Recently I have had DKA and I am struggling with my control. I have always struggled with my control, so that isn't really anything new.
Currently I am on an insulin pump but I have had an appointment with a new DSN today who has suggested that maybe I switch back to injections. Either basal bolus or twice a day. I understand that twice a day is very limited and that people are likely to discourage me from taking that route but I really am desperate. I think that switching to them for about two weeks could be good to give me a break and then go back to the pump. I am having appointments with other DSNS and dieticians to see what they think. I felt very supported today, more than I have ever done before and she even hugged me at the end 🙂
I would really like to make some friends on here so that I have some people to talk to about diabetes as currently I have no one in my life that understands. I have never been seen regularly by any professionals in the past and have never had any continuity of care.
Besides diabetes my interests are world war two, cosmetics and cooking. I'm currently a student and Mcdonalds crew member . 🙂
Don't really know what else to say to introduce myself sorry 🙂
so lovely to meet you all 🙂
xxx
 
Hi there kitten welcome to the forum dont despair you have come to the right place you will make great mates here and recieve support where you need it, im sorry i have had no experience with DKA or pumps but theres members in here far more qualified to help you out as im a type 2 but i can tell you anythign you need to know or if you just need a shoulder we will be here for you, dont worry your introduction was perfect, we must chat sometime about cosmetics hehe.Welcome onboard xx
 
Hiya Steffie 🙂 thank you so much , you lot seem like a very supportive bunch 🙂 we're all in it together after all 🙂 we have to chat girlie stuff sometime hehehe look forward to it 🙂 xxx
 
Its a pleasure to meet and welcome to the site.................

I have been type 1 for nearly 12 years and never really got a grip of my control, purely down to not being told what its all about, technologies change and the docs became more knowledgable thank god, although I still had to do all the chasing to actually be provided with the education I needed........specifically DAFNE......

Have you had any training like that, this might seem like a stupid question as you are on a pump and must have received something....

You will find this forum excellent for information and most importantly support through the hard times..........

Although pumping is really good and personally what i need its not uncommon for people to have reasonable control on 2 injections, just not as tight as people demand for themselves today........

Look forward to hearing more from you...............:D
 
Hi novorapid boi 🙂
I have been on DAFNE but it was only a few months ago I feel like no one has really told me whats going on or whats what which sounds very odd i know. I taught myself to carb count (when i was diagnosed i was told to carb count by reading packets and that was all the help i got) from reading packets and books and tried to figure things out as best as I could over the years but obviously I've never really got there :( And when I got my pump I feel that I did not have adequate training or support because they literally gave it to me, we talked for about an hour and that was it. I'd not seen it or tried it before.
I think that any form of control would be good at the moment. My hba1c has never been under 10 so I think that any kind of control I could get would be good, even if it's not perfect. I would really like to try 2 injections a day for a little while and then go back on to my pump but I don't know and this is why I am seeing some other people to get different opinions etc. The new nurse today did mention about doing a DAFNE course again in about a year so that sounds good.
Really excited to get to know you , thanks so much for your reply 🙂
 
Hi Kitten

Welcome to the boards.

I'm sure you'll get lots of ideas/advice/support here.

A few questions for you...
How often are you testing your BGs?
Do you keep any kind of food/bg/activity diary?
Have you got any specific problems with your control that you are struggling with at the moment?

Stick around, read some of the other threads, chip in with your own experiences and thoughts, keep asking questions and if all else fails just rant away! 🙂

M
 
Hey there Kitten and welcome to the forum ... I only signed up a couple of days ago and the support from the people on here is amazing!! I also love cooking and cosmetics!! (the food forum on here is excellent!!). I'll look forwards to getting to know you better on the forum and hearing how you manage to get ontop of everything!! XxXxX
 
Obviously professional help is reccommended, and a touch up on carbs, ratios etc is advised but in the mean time dive straight into the pumping threads....

Tell them what your doing at the moment, what pump your using, where youre problems are, even the good times of day..........it wont happen over night but you should be able to get just as good advice from the experienced pumpers on here as you would the HCPs.......I am sure of it..........
 
Quick reply as off to school for meeting.

Dont give your pump back - if you have poor control now - it will get worse on 2 injections. Go to the pumping section on here and post us a full days diary. Food, insulin given, bg's and basals. I am sure we can all help you - it sounds to me as if you have had NO support at all - this is dreadful and should never have happened - but do not give your pump back until we have all tried to help you.🙂Bev

p.s.my son is 12 and used a pump for 1 year and he loves it.:D
 
Thank you so much to all of you for your lovely warm welcomes 🙂
I test my bg about 14 + times a day and I record them in a diary. I have been given a diary by a certain consultant to fill in for him to review which I am doing but the appointment isn't quite yet.
In particular message to bev - This is precisely what I thought. I thought that the pump would give better control and I just need more training! I'm not giving it them back ever! They have been threatening to take it off me on a lot of occasions which scares me! I think that she wants to try me on two injections a day so that I can have a break from sorting out all of the pump stuff. Which is very appealing to be honest because I am struggling a lot emotionally to do everything. I hope that this does not sound pathetic. It's just that there is a lot of bullying incidents at my college. People are very horrible about my diabetes. I never let them know that they get to me and my standard reply is well your parents must be very proud (sarcastically) to which i always get a funny look and i say well its so big of you to make fun of someone for having a condition that they happen to have. I think that the plan could be two injections a day for two weeks then the pump again but I'm not sure and I have a lot of other people to see. I'm sorry if thi s is very rambled and confusing but I've basically cried my eyes out all day and I don't know what else to say. Sorry I'm such a mess, I have no makeup on yet so will go and put on my face and I'm sure that the world will seem a much prettier and worthwhile place hehe 🙂 thanks so much to you all for everything, sorry I've arrived in such a state!
Love and luck to you all xxx
 
Good to hear that you are a happy to test quite intensively and are keeping records. Makes patterns much easier to spot. I'd go with Bev's suggestion and post a typical day's results, plus approx grams of carbs eaten, activity etc in the Pumping section (if you are happy to do so) to see what the experienced pumpers around here make of it...

In the short term you might find it's worth going back to basics and sticking to pretty boring/consistent food just to get your head around what's going on with your levels, but once you've got things stabilised it's easier to get a little more adventurous again while keeping your BGs in check.

Gook luck!
M
 
I think that you were physically prepared to start pumping, but emotionally, maybe not.........

As I understand it, pumping is really good for control, but it also asks for the most effort.............only till you are comfortable on mdi and the rules that come with it can you even consider a pump........this is a real failure in providing a good diabetic service to yourself........

I would say going back to MDI would be best rather than 2 a day....

Its a shame your getting bother at college, I would of thought having a pump would be really discreet...........there are so mant different ways to deal with people like that...and everyones different........

Anyway.....chin up and get those healthcare professionals to do there job....
 
kitten said:
Thank you so much to all of you for your lovely warm welcomes 🙂
I test my bg about 14 + times a day and I record them in a diary. I have been given a diary by a certain consultant to fill in for him to review which I am doing but the appointment isn't quite yet.
In particular message to bev - This is precisely what I thought. I thought that the pump would give better control and I just need more training! I'm not giving it them back ever! They have been threatening to take it off me on a lot of occasions which scares me! I think that she wants to try me on two injections a day so that I can have a break from sorting out all of the pump stuff. Which is very appealing to be honest because I am struggling a lot emotionally to do everything. I hope that this does not sound pathetic. It's just that there is a lot of bullying incidents at my college. People are very horrible about my diabetes. I never let them know that they get to me and my standard reply is well your parents must be very proud (sarcastically) to which i always get a funny look and i say well its so big of you to make fun of someone for having a condition that they happen to have. I think that the plan could be two injections a day for two weeks then the pump again but I'm not sure and I have a lot of other people to see. I'm sorry if thi s is very rambled and confusing but I've basically cried my eyes out all day and I don't know what else to say. Sorry I'm such a mess, I have no makeup on yet so will go and put on my face and I'm sure that the world will seem a much prettier and worthwhile place hehe 🙂 thanks so much to you all for everything, sorry I've arrived in such a state!
Love and luck to you all xxx
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Well hi to you. Ihave just found this site as well and find it very usefull I AM NOT GOOD not the computer so dont know if i am doint thing right. Hope I am and we can chat soon. I have not been togood today bloody are up to 13,4 but I will keep on with the Dafne yesterday they were 2.6 4.8 untill bed then 15.6 so dont know what Iam doing wrong chat soon.:(
 
Thanks all 🙂 I should probably add that I've been on the pump for over a year in case anyone wants to know. I have problems also with eating and my digestion. (sorry if that's really gross.) and I often struggle to eat at all and get a lot of very severe pain which makes eating even more difficult. I can't help but think that this is linked to my poor control because despite trying everything I am finding things to vary so much. I have a few other problems too, do any of you think that it is connected? I do often get ketones from not eating enough calories but it's not done on purpose if you see what i mean ?! xxx
 
Hi kitten.

Welcome from me too. Have you mentioned your other problems to your doctor or the DSN ?

Another thought, regarding your college. Could the bullies be dealt with by staff under the disabilities act (sorry, not sure what the actual act is!) ?

Hope you can find some answers and get yourself on an even keel. It should be relatively easy once you know how to control it. But first, you need the information. Best of luck.

Rob
 
Dear Robster,
r.e. the college staff are useless i have told them about it but they do nothing. last year in politics as class a group of boys used to point and laugh at me and call me things, they would especially play up during watching videos and if the tutor saw them he would look at me almost crying and turn his chair away so that he was facing away from the whole class. people aren't really good about it tbh.
one of those things! what doesnt kill u can only make u stronger🙂
lovely to meet u btw🙂
 
Hi Kitten

Welcome to the forum! The college situation must be quite stressful if thats what you have to put up with each day, could this be having an effect on your BS levels? Isn't there a counsellor or headmaster that you could talk to about it?

xx
 
Hi teapot 🙂
thanks for the welcome. re college yes it is a horrible place. I have tried countless times to speak to different people and different staff about it. I get nowhere to be honest. In one class it is okay because I can sit there and they will just give me horrible looks and no one will speak to me , despite me trying several times to speak to them. This may sound bad but it is alright in comparison to other classes because at least I have a seat. In one of my other classes people put their bags on the seats next to them so that I can't sit there. I end up having to walk around the class untill someone will agree to move their bag. If the teacher see's it he says nothing and often I will be sat down in a seat that I didn't think was anybodys place but then someone will come in and the teacher will tell me to move. I don't mind moving out of anybodys way but it is a class in which supposedly nobody has any fixed or set places. I struggle aswell with my eyesight and at times I can not see at all. This is obviously making it difficult to learn because I don't have any friends to sit with so that I can copy their notes and catch up on the bits that I miss. I do my best though. And I make up for this by private study at home and re going over everything as often as I can.
Please don't think that I am just moaning though, I know that it must seem like it! But I have a nice part time job and everyone there is lovely and noone takes the mick out of my diabetes 🙂 xxxx
 
kitten said:
Hi teapot 🙂
thanks for the welcome. re college yes it is a horrible place. I have tried countless times to speak to different people and different staff about it. I get nowhere to be honest. In one class it is okay because I can sit there and they will just give me horrible looks and no one will speak to me , despite me trying several times to speak to them. This may sound bad but it is alright in comparison to other classes because at least I have a seat. In one of my other classes people put their bags on the seats next to them so that I can't sit there. I end up having to walk around the class untill someone will agree to move their bag. If the teacher see's it he says nothing and often I will be sat down in a seat that I didn't think was anybodys place but then someone will come in and the teacher will tell me to move. I don't mind moving out of anybodys way but it is a class in which supposedly nobody has any fixed or set places. I struggle aswell with my eyesight and at times I can not see at all. This is obviously making it difficult to learn because I don't have any friends to sit with so that I can copy their notes and catch up on the bits that I miss. I do my best though. And I make up for this by private study at home and re going over everything as often as I can.
Please don't think that I am just moaning though, I know that it must seem like it! But I have a nice part time job and everyone there is lovely and noone takes the mick out of my diabetes 🙂 xxxx
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I wouldnt never say your moaning, but if you were it would be ok with me....

It actually really angers me how you are treated, although from first impressions I wouldnt say its because your diabetic, its just horrible people in general............

Rise above it kitten........🙂
 
Hi kitten

welcome to the forum.

You say you have difficulty eating and pains when you do so? Have you mentioned this to your consultants or DSN at all? I'd say worth getting checked out as it may well be linked to poor control. For instance, I ended up getting nueropathy in my feet because of bad control.

As bev said, don't give your pump back. There's loads of experienced pumpers on here who can give you a helping hand and advice when you need it 🙂 they've helped me a ton and i've only been on the pump 3 months!

RE college, tell those idiots where to stick it. It sounds like playground bullying tactics to me, and even from your teacher? Disgusting. Lemme know which college you're at and I'll personally come down there and give them a rollocking!
 
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