How unusual am I?

[Chris Hobson]

I asked this question as a sort of aside on a post about my dealings with the DVLA. I'm posting this question on the sporty forum because I think that it is the most likely place to find a positive answer. I discovered that I was diabetic in May 2013 at the age of 54 after being admitted to hospital with a blood infection. Initially I was diagnosed as type 1 and put on insulin injections. I took all the advice from all the leaflets that they gave me to read very seriously. I modified my diet and set about getting myself fit again. I used to be very fit when I was in my twenties and thirties, keen cyclist, swimmer and black belt in karate. In my forties and early fifties I sort of let it slide and look where I ended up.

Once I started on the insulin I felt literally twenty years younger so throwing myself into getting fit was relatively easy. I got into running via the local park runs and started swimming and cycling again. I built a weights gym at home and used it regularly. I did my first sprint triathlon in April 2015 and got the triathlon bug. I am planning to do my first half ironman in July this year.

I found it fairly easy to balance my insulin levels but I kept getting mild hypos and having to reduce them. By February 2014 the amount of insulin that I was injecting had gone down to zero. When I had my next check up I was re-diagnosed as probably type 2 and put on Lynagliptin tablets and this continued until September 2015 when I was taken off medication altogether. I now manage my condition with diet and, lots of, exercise.

My issue with the DVLA was that there was no box on their form for 'diet and exercise only'. I thought that the level of improvement that I had achieved was probably unusual but surely not unique. There must be other people out there who have done equally well if not better than I did. Are there?

 

[Northerner]

My situation is also unusual, although somewhat different from your own. I was diagnosed Type 1 aged 49 in 2008 and put on lantus and novorapid - a total daily dose of around 65 units. Gradually, over the following 4 years I found myself having to continually decrease my lantus in order to avoid night hypos. I also reduced my novorapid over the same period, but not to the same extent. Originally, I was on 20 units of lantus, by April 2012 I was on 2 units and still waking in the 4s, so I decided to see how things would go without it - result is that I have not required any basal insulin for just over 4 years now! My total daily dose of novorapid is currently around 18 units (down from 45 originally), and I have been as low as 12. A couple of years ago I decided to have 'a day off from diabetes' and didn't have any insulin that day, although I did keep my carb intake very low. Result was that my levels averaged around 8 mmol/l for the day.

I've been a distance runner for over 30 years and was due to run a marathon the week I was diagnosed. I got back into my running after diagnosis. My consultant says I am definitely not Type 2 (I had severe DKA at diagnosis), just unusual! I have encountered a couple of other people here on the forum over the years who have had a similar experience - @khskel is not currently using basal. Who knows what is going on? Clearly, insulin was hampered in some way, whether due to a beta cell attack or insulin resistance caused by visceral fat, or caused by something entirely different. There is a type of diabetes called LADA (Latent Autoimmune Diabetes in Adulthood) where loss of beta cell function is much slower - tends to be slower the older you are - but most end up needing insulin. One or two seem to recover some insulin production - like me - and some may recover insulin production and at the same time overcome insulin resistance due to increased activity levels, thus losing a need for insulin injections entirely, which looks like might be the case for you Chris.

My consultant thinks that my running prior to diagnosis helped prevent my levels getting too bad for quite some time - I was very insulin sensitive, despite a declining supply. Then, I caught a virus which completely overwhelmed my pancreas and set me right back. However, by receiving insulin straight away, this gave my pancreas time and support to recover some insulin production, hence my gradually declinging need for injecting it.

Sorry if that seems a bit long-winded - hope it makes some sort of sense! 🙂

 

[HOBIE]

Hi Chris 🙂. I have been T1 since 3yrs old. Now 53. The answer to lots of things "Don't stop". As soon as you sit down & do nothing life gets worse 😱. Keep going & good luck

 

[khskel]

As @Northerner has mentioned I'm now basal free due to overnight and afternoon dips. I still have to have approx 15g of insulin free carbs at about 16:30 to drive home legally E.G today I was 6.7 at 16:15, had three oatcakes and peanut butter and had still dropped to 4.6 by 17:50 My pancreas is pretty much shot at as far as I know so how this is happening I don't know. It just goes to show that many of us are unusual in our own ways and the classifications are only an approximation in many cases. So like @HOBIE said Keep going and good luck.

P.S. I was diagnosed at 54 as well

 

[Chris Hobson]

Thank you all for your feedback. My first thought is that every one of us is probably unique, so we're all unusual in our own way. I found it interesting that, type 1 or type 2, the medical profession have been rather reluctant to commit. The specialist doctor seemed to think that I might be type 2 in the early days when everyone else involved had decided that I was type 1. After I had dispensed with the injections, he said that I could still be type 1 and that I would possibly have to return to injections after the honeymoon period* was over. I have also mentioned to the specialist nurse that type 2 diabetes sometimes goes into full remission but she said that this was highly unlikely at my age.

@HOBIE. This is something that I am acutely aware of, the realisation that this is my life from now on. I'm really enjoying doing the triathlon training but, as I'm presently committing myself to the longer distances, the training is rather taking over my life. Still, I have a much better relationship with my reflection these days. I used to look at my pear shaped body and lament that it was all going a bit south. Then, after the rapid weight loss that comes from being undiagnosed, I resembled a half deflated party balloon. Now I am just so lean and toned in a way that I never dreamed I would ever be again.

*I am sure that most people reading this will be familiar with this phrase. It refers to the fact that insulin treatment takes the strain off your pancreas so that it briefly splutters back into life. This honeymoon period tends to last between six and eighteen months. Since I have now been off insulin for almost two and a half years, I'm hoping that I'm now in the clear, but you never really know.

 

[Chris Hobson]

Well, a fortnight after putting up this post entitled "How unusual am I?" the answer would seem to be very. 167 views and four replies later, nobody here has gone from insulin to diet and exercise within three years. Although I feel that I can be justified in giving myself credit for my hard work and self discipline, I also recognise that I am very, very fortunate.

 

[Ljc]

Hi, a very well done from me
It's usually the other way round as you have already discovered.

 

[Amigo]

Well, a fortnight after putting up this post entitled "How unusual am I?" the answer would seem to be very. 167 views and four replies later, nobody here has gone from insulin to diet and exercise within three years. Although I feel that I can be justified in giving myself credit for my hard work and self discipline, I also recognise that I am very, very fortunate.

I applaud your dedicated and successful efforts Chris. It would appear to be unusual evidenced by the fact that the DVLC haven't even factored the possibility in!

 

[HOBIE]

I asked this question as a sort of aside on a post about my dealings with the DVLA. I'm posting this question on the sporty forum because I think that it is the most likely place to find a positive answer. I discovered that I was diabetic in May 2013 at the age of 54 after being admitted to hospital with a blood infection. Initially I was diagnosed as type 1 and put on insulin injections. I took all the advice from all the leaflets that they gave me to read very seriously. I modified my diet and set about getting myself fit again. I used to be very fit when I was in my twenties and thirties, keen cyclist, swimmer and black belt in karate. In my forties and early fifties I sort of let it slide and look where I ended up.

Once I started on the insulin I felt literally twenty years younger so throwing myself into getting fit was relatively easy. I got into running via the local park runs and started swimming and cycling again. I built a weights gym at home and used it regularly. I did my first sprint triathlon in April 2015 and got the triathlon bug. I am planning to do my first half ironman in July this year.

I found it fairly easy to balance my insulin levels but I kept getting mild hypos and having to reduce them. By February 2014 the amount of insulin that I was injecting had gone down to zero. When I had my next check up I was re-diagnosed as probably type 2 and put on Lynagliptin tablets and this continued until September 2015 when I was taken off medication altogether. I now manage my condition with diet and, lots of, exercise.

My issue with the DVLA was that there was no box on their form for 'diet and exercise only'. I thought that the level of improvement that I had achieved was probably unusual but surely not unique. There must be other people out there who have done equally well if not better than I did. Are there?

Well done Chris ! I have a mate who was diagnosed T2. Ex army & walked the legs off his dog now off all meds for diabetes. It is possible & being active is good for anyone.

 

[Chris Hobson]

Update. I have now completed the Gauntlet half iron distance triathlon at Castle Howard. I didn't rush, preferring to do the course at my own pace, finishing being my main goal. My preparation must have been pretty good as I didn't find it as hard as I expected, only about the last three miles of the run was tough. My time was seven hours and twelve minutes, well down the field but nowhere near being last. I was close to my target time of seven hours so I was fairly pleased.

 

[HOBIE]

Update. I have now completed the Gauntlet half iron distance triathlon at Castle Howard. I didn't rush, preferring to do the course at my own pace, finishing being my main goal. My preparation must have been pretty good as I didn't find it as hard as I expected, only about the last three miles of the run was tough. My time was seven hours and twelve minutes, well down the field but nowhere near being last. I was close to my target time of seven hours so I was fairly pleased.

Sounds good to me ! 😎

 

[Northerner]

Update. I have now completed the Gauntlet half iron distance triathlon at Castle Howard. I didn't rush, preferring to do the course at my own pace, finishing being my main goal. My preparation must have been pretty good as I didn't find it as hard as I expected, only about the last three miles of the run was tough. My time was seven hours and twelve minutes, well down the field but nowhere near being last. I was close to my target time of seven hours so I was fairly pleased.

Excellent Chris, well done, that's an awesome achievement! 🙂