Introduction - Daniel Sugarfree

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Daniel Sugarfree

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Relationship to Diabetes
Type 1
Hello diabetes support community,

My name is Daniel, I am 23 and I live in the UK (Midlands). I am a type one diabetic and I have been for just over two years now. It has been a very difficult past couple of years for me and I feel that I should say hi to the rest of the diabetic community in the UK and abroad.

I have been unemployed for around 9 months now and my blood sugar levels are getting on the right track now, my diabetes regime involves taking Insulin Glargine around mid day and taking Insulin Aspart after every meal, this is working really well for me at the moment as my HbA1c has dropped from 11.3 to 8.1 over the past 6 months! (Which my Diabetic Nurse and I are extremely happy about 🙂)

I know the basics of carb counting to get me by for the past 6 months now and I have a 3 day carb counting course on the 1st 2nd and 3rd of November which I am quite looking forward to (if it doesn't drag).

I could literally write novel after novel about my past 2 years but I am sure everyone here has heard it all before

Thank you for reading my introduction and I hope to get to know everyone really well on this forum,

Daniel
 
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Hi Daniel,
I'm a newly diagnosed Type 2. I also from the Midlands. Welcome to the forum. The guys are here are fantastic, they have helped me alot with lots of tips, suggestions and encouraging words. Amanda x🙂🙂
 
Hi Daniel and welcome aboard from a fellow Midlander (I'm in Derbyshire).

I'm glad you are managing to get your levels down and that you are going n a carb counting course. A lot of Type 1 members speak very highly of such courses. In any case you'll get a lot of support on here. Take care, stay well and keep in touch. XXXXX
 
Welcome to the forum Daniel 🙂
 
Hi Daniel. Welcome again (answered on other thread too!:D) 🙂

Glad you've got your head round everything now. It's a long journey and you need to have your eyes open or you can't steer (I just made that up 🙄).

Rob
 
Hi Daniel !

In case you find the thread and wondered if everyone is invited, everyone is! - there's a meet on in Brum next Saturday if you thought wanted to meet any of the guys n gals on the forum - are you anywhere within reasonable striking distance?

PS I kinda did a double take when I saw Glargine and Aspart, we usually use the trade names LOL - but good that you know immediately what they are, I'd have to think - and prolly have to read the packet .... LOL


Just interested, why do you bolus AFTER you eat?
 
Hi Daniel,

Welcome to the forum. 🙂
 
@Trophywench - Mmm... I dont know really, it has just become a habit. I eat my meals quite quickly so my glucose levels wouldn't of built up and I prefer to take my insulin straight afterwards because I can take the right amount to what I have eaten, instead of taking a certain amount of insulin and having to eat to match it because on rare occasions I sometimes won't eat a full meal for one reason or another. On another note, if I am at the dinner table I don't really like taking insulin in front of people, I will if necessary but if I go out for a meal I will normally go to the loo and do it or go to my room if there is a full house.

With regards to the meet up, I was actually considering coming to Birmingham to meet a few of you guys, I barely know any type 1 diabetics (my next door neighbour is newly diagnosed type 2 and thats about it) so it would be nice to have a chat with some of you guys. Unfortunately, I have some other prior arrangements on that day around that time :( but if they don't go through I might show my face! I live in Stoke on Trent so its not that far away either!

Thanks everyone for your warm welcome 😉

Daniel
 
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Welcome to the forum Daniel,

I've found the people on this forum to be a really informative, helpful and friendly bunch.

Andy 🙂
 
Welcome to the forum Daniel 🙂
 
Daniel Sugarfree said:
@Trophywench - Mmm... I dont know really, it has just become a habit. I eat my meals quite quickly so my glucose levels wouldn't of built up and I prefer to take my insulin straight afterwards because I can take the right amount to what I have eaten, instead of taking a certain amount of insulin and having to eat to match it because on rare occasions I sometimes won't eat a full meal for one reason or another. On another note, if I am at the dinner table I don't really like taking insulin in front of people, I will if necessary but if I go out for a meal I will normally go to the loo and do it or go to my room if there is a full house.

With regards to the meet up, I was actually considering coming to Birmingham to meet a few of you guys, I barely know any type 1 diabetics (my next door neighbour is newly diagnosed type 2 and thats about it) so it would be nice to have a chat with some of you guys. Unfortunately, I have some other prior arrangements on that day around that time :( but if they don't go through I might show my face! I live in Stoke on Trent so its not that far away either!

Thanks everyone for your warm welcome 😉

Daniel
Click to expand...

Welcome to the forum, I've had the big D for 11 years, on MDI now(same as you), I;ve been on mixed insulin twice daily and a long and unhealthy period of denial and no insulin at all = 1 sick & stupid girl!

I used to be embarassed about injecting, one reason was the stares, the other was I knew someone was bound to ask and I don't know if it was a mix of not wanting to bore them or couldn't be bothered to repeat my tales again! so the loo was the easier option. HOWEVER, I would never never never do that nowadays! It looks far more suspicious to head off to the loos to inject something, even if it is only insulin! Plus if anyone has a problem with it, that is exactly it...it is THEIR problem. I don't condone people who do it for attention or make a big theatrical song and dance but if its discreet and low key, they shouldn't have any need to say owt! Not like its contagious! It is vital to healthy living and survival! just some food for thought but you'll get the confidence as and when you are ready! Don't be ashamed or embarassed.

Maybe you should try and come to the meeting, there will be an abundance of us all testing and injecting at the same time! That is also the beauty of the carb course your planning to go on. I did it in April and it was the best thing ever, all having lunch, all testing and all injecting. It felt strange to see others do it but it was a bonding thing too!
 
On my carb course someone went hypo and started getting stroppy; I wondered why she was querying summat we had learned last week and had appeared at the time to take in as well as the rest of us. Mighty puzzled until the lady next to me - a T1 with a T1 son and a T2 husband!!) suggested she test .....

Turned out it was pre-arranged with the DSN's, so 'we could see what happened to other people cos you never see yourself'. That was sobering!
 
Yeh, I kind of don't like people staring even if it is my own brother staring. If I'm around my friends or some random people I tend to make a joke about taking my insulin, "Don't mind me I just have to shoot up." or "Man, I needed that fix *sigh*" I find it kind of breaks the awkwardness of it all; but sometimes people do get the wrong idea. 😱

I know what you mean about repeating yourself hyper-Suze, sometimes I just don't feel like repeating myself for the millionth and one time, "do you have your insulin with you", "hows your blood sugar" the list goes on, I try not to sound inconsiderate but I am feeling like a broken record and its only my second year 😱

I noticed that there are so many new acronyms to learn on this forum and I bet they have become second nature to everyone :D
 
When I was started work and college, I kept things secret due to that same reason (less people knew about diabetes then) and I didn't like being centre of attention.

I regret that now. Especially when I had a few times when I was obviously hypo or hyper and had to cover things up. I also used to inject in the toilets when I had late evenings at college (I was on 2 a day then) and it was the 2 bottles and a disposable syringe. Not easy to be discrete.

I would urge anyone now to try and be confident and explain to anyone staring that it's a bit offputting and not really a spectator sport. Unless its your brother, in which case he probably does it to annoy ! 🙄

Rob
 
Hi Daniel

Nice to have you with us (though sorry you had to join!)

M
 
Hi Daniel, I'm 24 and in the midlands too (Coventry) and have had type 1 for 7 years now. I didn't know anyone with type 1 until I joined this forum and it's been great to meet people. I hope you can make it to the meet in Birmingham, if not I'm sure there will be another one soon. As for the acronyms - you'll pick them up soon enough, ask if we confuse you! The most used one is DSN - diabetes specialist nurse in case you haven't guessed! I think there was an old thread of abbreviations somewhere ...
 
Natalie123 said:
Hi Daniel, I'm 24 and in the midlands too (Coventry) and have had type 1 for 7 years now. I didn't know anyone with type 1 until I joined this forum and it's been great to meet people. I hope you can make it to the meet in Birmingham, if not I'm sure there will be another one soon. As for the acronyms - you'll pick them up soon enough, ask if we confuse you! The most used one is DSN - diabetes specialist nurse in case you haven't guessed! I think there was an old thread of abbreviations somewhere ...
Click to expand...

here is a list by northerner



http://www.diabetessupport.co.uk/boards/showthread.php?t=16567&highlight=abbreviations
 
I definitely wont be able to come to this one, sorry guys but hopefully I will pop along to the next scheduled one 🙂.

Thanks for all of the friendly welcomes
 
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