Newbie here, hello

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Katie_P34

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Type 1.5 LADA
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Hello guys, I have had a whirlwind of a time the last couple of weeks, out the blue I was diagnosed as a diabetic with my hba1c raised, the doctors started me on the usual metformin and glicazide, my sugars wasn't budging going as high at 27mmol. They did a GAD test and a c-peptide which has come back as a diagnosis of type 1 diabetic which they have now said is LADA. I have been started on insulin two different kinds with 5 injections a day. I work long 12.5 shifts with not regular breaks. I'm really struggling to come to terms with it all and the big adjustment of injecting myself. Never had health problems before never had to take medications before. Anyone else diagnosed with LADA and help with the adjustment of it all. Thank you for reading.
 
Hi and welcome, but sorry you have had a diabetes diagnosis in order to join us.

Yes, it is totally normal to feel overwhelmed at first and there is a huge amount to learn, particularly in the first few months and with you working long shifts that will not allow you much time to start to take it in, as well as making your diabetes management more challenging. Your employer should make reasonable adjustment and I wonder if as some short term measure you could negotiate some regular breaks or shorter hours at least until you get your doses sorted and levels more stable. Do you have Libre or other CGM to help you monitor your levels or are you relying on finger pricks? CGM would certainly make things a little easier if you don't already have it.
Which insulins are you using? I am half guessing Levemir for your basal insulin since it sounds like you take it twice a day? I absolutely love Levemir and with you working long shifts it should give you a bit more flexibility particularly if you have variation in activity between your work days and your days off.

Anyway, I just really want to say that it does gradually get easier with practice and experience but you are currently on a very steep learning curve, so go easy on yourself and try not to get too get frustrated. Managing diabetes with insulin is really tough It is complicated and confusing and contrary, so you have to accept that things will not go smoothly and often that is not your fault and all you can do is your best and be as prepared as you can for when things to go wrong. It is like learning to drive a car, when you get in the driver's seat for the first time you have to think about every little step of every process, like depressing the clutch and selecting the right gear and checking your mirrors and indicating and watching the speedo etc. but gradually after weeks and months and years of driving you start to do most of it on autopilot and just have to pay more attention when you are in unfamiliar territory. I am 5 years down the line with my diagnosis and I have learned most of what I know from the good people here on this forum and from experimenting on myself to find what works and what doesn't work for me and my body and my lifestyle and I have become the expert in my diabetes as a result. I have had a few dodgy moments in that time but we live and learn and you probably learn more from your mistakes than you do your successes. For all it can be very volatile, diabetes can also be quite forgiving too so try not to beat yourself up when you get it wrong but try to learn lessons from those occasions.

We are here to support you in any way we can and share out experiences and answer any questions and if you need a good rant at the unfairness of it all, we understand that too, so feel free to let rip here. It is better than doing it to friends and family as it is nigh on impossible for them to comprehend how unrelenting diabetes management can be. Comparing notes with others here and sharing thoughts and fears and ideas has really helped me gain confidence to manage my diabetes well and I hope the forum can do the same for you.... but it does take time to get there.
Sending virtual (((HUGS)))
 
rebrascora said:
Hi and welcome, but sorry you have had a diabetes diagnosis in order to join us.

Yes, it is totally normal to feel overwhelmed at first and there is a huge amount to learn, particularly in the first few months and with you working long shifts that will not allow you much time to start to take it in, as well as making your diabetes management more challenging. Your employer should make reasonable adjustment and I wonder if as some short term measure you could negotiate some regular breaks or shorter hours at least until you get your doses sorted and levels more stable. Do you have Libre or other CGM to help you monitor your levels or are you relying on finger pricks? CGM would certainly make things a little easier if you don't already have it.
Which insulins are you using? I am half guessing Levemir for your basal insulin since it sounds like you take it twice a day? I absolutely love Levemir and with you working long shifts it should give you a bit more flexibility particularly if you have variation in activity between your work days and your days off.

Anyway, I just really want to say that it does gradually get easier with practice and experience but you are currently on a very steep learning curve, so go easy on yourself and try not to get too get frustrated. Managing diabetes with insulin is really tough It is complicated and confusing and contrary, so you have to accept that things will not go smoothly and often that is not your fault and all you can do is your best and be as prepared as you can for when things to go wrong. It is like learning to drive a car, when you get in the driver's seat for the first time you have to think about every little step of every process, like depressing the clutch and selecting the right gear and checking your mirrors and indicating and watching the speedo etc. but gradually after weeks and months and years of driving you start to do most of it on autopilot and just have to pay more attention when you are in unfamiliar territory. I am 5 years down the line with my diagnosis and I have learned most of what I know from the good people here on this forum and from experimenting on myself to find what works and what doesn't work for me and my body and my lifestyle and I have become the expert in my diabetes as a result. I have had a few dodgy moments in that time but we live and learn and you probably learn more from your mistakes than you do your successes. For all it can be very volatile, diabetes can also be quite forgiving too so try not to beat yourself up when you get it wrong but try to learn lessons from those occasions.

We are here to support you in any way we can and share out experiences and answer any questions and if you need a good rant at the unfairness of it all, we understand that too, so feel free to let rip here. It is better than doing it to friends and family as it is nigh on impossible for them to comprehend how unrelenting diabetes management can be. Comparing notes with others here and sharing thoughts and fears and ideas has really helped me gain confidence to manage my diabetes well and I hope the forum can do the same for you.... but it does take time to get there.
Sending virtual (((HUGS)))
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Thank you so much for the reply, I did have a libre but the sensor failed after 2 days and I didn't have a replacement and the pharmacy has struggled to get them in so I've been manually finger prick testing which is horid on its own. My husband says it what people did for years before the sensors but it still isn't nice. Im struggling with the weight gain of the insulin I changed my diet I've been exercising more and still putting on weight. As for my insulin I'm on novarapid and lanctus. I just feel so overwhelmed but thank you for the support I will use these forums as you did
 
Have you contacted Abbott (the manufacturer) to get a replacement for the one that failed. There is an online form on their website I believe or you can ring their customer support team.
If your pharmacy can't get Libre then get them to give you a prescription so that you can take it to another pharmacy. Unfortunately a lot of pharmacies have issues with central ordering, so if you can go to another pharmacy from a different chain you can usually get what you couldn't get at the first one. It helps if you ring around your local pharmacies, see which ones have Libre in stock and then go to the first one that has them. I did this when there was a worldwide shortage of HRT and managed to find some and I know for certain that there is not a shortage of Libre 2 as we would be the first to know here o the forum, so get your prescription and shop around and contact Abbott about the one that failed. They might want it back which I am guessing might not be possible but if you explain that you are new and didn't know what to do, they may still send you a replacement.
 
As regards weight gain, it is a fallacy that insulin causes weight gain and it is quite a sensitive issue on this forum because some people with diabetes end up thinking that if they stop their insulin, they will lose weight and they make themselves seriously ill in doing so and it can result in long term damage to their body. It is the food you eat which causes you to put on weight, the insulin just enables that. Everyone on the planet uses insulin, because they either produce it in their pancreas if they are not diabetic or they inject it like we do and not everyone is fat or obese. There are certainly plenty of slim Type 1s.

Before you started injecting insulin, the glucose from that food was just sitting in your blood stream putting you at risk and making you feel tired and unwell. In that situation, people lose weight with Type 1/LADA because the body can't access that glucose which is the fuel it needs, so you are basically starving even though you are eating and the body eats into it's own stores and reserves (fat and muscle) to use that as fuel. When you start injecting insulin, your body can now access all that glucose in your blood and there is a period of replacing those fat and muscle stores but once it does so, your weight should stabilize unless your insulin doses are too high and you are having to eat lots of extra sugary stuff to ward off hypos. In which case the insulin doses need adjusting.

There are people here on the forum who have been using insulin for decades and have not put on extra weight or have put on a few pounds on here and there and then lost it again, just like non-diabetic people do. I have been using insulin for 5 years myself and I am back to my pre diagnosis weight which admittedly is heavier than I would like but it is stable at this level. It is certainly within my power to diet and lose some by the usual means ie. diet and exercise and in doing those things I will need to gradually reduce my insulin doses to prevent myself from hypoing, but it isn't the insulin which causes me to put on weight it is food and lifestyle.

At this very early stage in your diagnosis, you really should not worry about that weight gain as it is just your body recovering and there are lots of other things that you need to learn about. ie just the basics of managing your diabetes with everyday living, rather than making it "advanced diabetics" in trying to factor in dieting and exercise as well. It is just too much for you to cope with and you will burn yourself out. Focus on learning to walk well before you start trying to run metaphorically. Gradually you will learn to balance your food and exercise/activity with your insulin doses but just a few weeks into diagnosis I am sure this weight gain is just your body recovering and it will likely stabilize.
 
Katie_P34 said:
Thank you so much for the reply, I did have a libre but the sensor failed after 2 days and I didn't have a replacement and the pharmacy has struggled to get them in so I've been manually finger prick testing which is horid on its own. My husband says it what people did for years before the sensors but it still isn't nice. Im struggling with the weight gain of the insulin I changed my diet I've been exercising more and still putting on weight. As for my insulin I'm on novarapid and lanctus. I just feel so overwhelmed but thank you for the support I will use these forums as you did
Click to expand...

Welcome to the forum @Katie_P34

Sorry to hear about your diagnosis, but well done to your Dr for being on the ball about the possibility of T1/LADA

We have quite a few members who were diagnosed a little later in life, and funnily enough in a straw-poll I took many years ago, 35 was the age with the highest likelihood of being told T2, and later re-adjusted to T1. Some Drs use LADA for a slower onset autoimmune diabetes in adults, but others seem to prefer to just stick with T1

You will regain the weight you lost prior to diagnosis (when you couldn’t process the energy in food). Now that you have insulin available again, you’ll be able to get back to your original weight, and then should stabilise at whatever weight your current menu / food intake / calorie intake determines.

I’m pretty much the same weight now I was when I was diagnosed in my 20s. I’ve gained weight, and lost weight over the years, but that has always been more about the amount of food/calories eaten. The insulin doesn’t cause weight gain, it just facilitates the processing of the food energy you are eating 🙂

Your work should make ‘reasonable adjustments’ because diabetes is covered under the equalities act. If you have a big employer the HR department should be up to speed on that. Might be worth a chat to see how they can support you.

For a smaller employer, you can get some hints and tips about your rights and responsibilities here:

Work and diabetes

This information is about how to manage diabetes at work and to support you in knowing your rights at work. Jump to:
www.diabetes.org.uk www.diabetes.org.uk

Hope that helps 🙂
 
rebrascora said:
As regards weight gain, it is a fallacy that insulin causes weight gain and it is quite a sensitive issue on this forum because some people with diabetes end up thinking that if they stop their insulin, they will lose weight and they make themselves seriously ill in doing so and it can result in long term damage to their body. It is the food you eat which causes you to put on weight, the insulin just enables that. Everyone on the planet uses insulin, because they either produce it in their pancreas if they are not diabetic or they inject it like we do and not everyone is fat or obese. There are certainly plenty of slim Type 1s.

Before you started injecting insulin, the glucose from that food was just sitting in your blood stream putting you at risk and making you feel tired and unwell. In that situation, people lose weight with Type 1/LADA because the body can't access that glucose which is the fuel it needs, so you are basically starving even though you are eating and the body eats into it's own stores and reserves (fat and muscle) to use that as fuel. When you start injecting insulin, your body can now access all that glucose in your blood and there is a period of replacing those fat and muscle stores but once it does so, your weight should stabilize unless your insulin doses are too high and you are having to eat lots of extra sugary stuff to ward off hypos. In which case the insulin doses need adjusting.

There are people here on the forum who have been using insulin for decades and have not put on extra weight or have put on a few pounds on here and there and then lost it again, just like non-diabetic people do. I have been using insulin for 5 years myself and I am back to my pre diagnosis weight which admittedly is heavier than I would like but it is stable at this level. It is certainly within my power to diet and lose some by the usual means ie. diet and exercise and in doing those things I will need to gradually reduce my insulin doses to prevent myself from hypoing, but it isn't the insulin which causes me to put on weight it is food and lifestyle.

At this very early stage in your diagnosis, you really should not worry about that weight gain as it is just your body recovering and there are lots of other things that you need to learn about. ie just the basics of managing your diabetes with everyday living, rather than making it "advanced diabetics" in trying to factor in dieting and exercise as well. It is just too much for you to cope with and you will burn yourself out. Focus on learning to walk well before you start trying to run metaphorically. Gradually you will learn to balance your food and exercise/activity with your insulin doses but just a few weeks into diagnosis I am sure this weight gain is just your body recovering and it will likely stabilize.
Click to expand...
Thank you so much for the response and support it offers alot of comfort and reasurence.
 
A belated welcome from me, @Katie_P34
I am glad you are feeling happier in yourself.
Yes, finger pricking is annoying but even when you have a working Libre you will still need to do it sometimes. It should not be a pain - if the pricking hurts, you probably have the lancet device "dialled up" too high.

There are a few threads which are useful when starting out:
 
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