Saying Hi.

[JTilley2000]

Hello, my name is James Tilley, I'm 19 and I was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes Yesterday, 13th November. I hope we can all get along and support each another. Thank you.

 

[rebrascora]

Hi James and welcome

Sorry to hear about your diagnosis, especially at your age but you have come to the right place for advice and support within a friendly knowledgeable community.

It is pretty overwhelming and confusing at first but little by little things start to fall into place and you will soon get the hang of it and it will become your new normal. There is no reason why it should prevent you from doing pretty much anything you want with your life, but you will need to plan a little more. This will become second nature after a while though so don't despair.
Which insulins have you been given? Are you in hospital still or have you been discharged?
There is so much technology available now to help manage diabetes and as a young person, I am sure you will grasp it much easier than us oldies. Chatting with other young people who are managing the condition will also help as you will gain tips and ideas from them. I think there may be facebook groups for that purpose.

 

[JTilley2000]

Thanks for the response.
Im no longer in hospital, though i did spend a good 36 hours in A&E and AMU, as i had to have 6 stitches in my head thanks to an unexplained fall on Monday.
I was given Levemir, which i have to take twice a day, and Novorapid, which I've been told not to use yet for some reason?
The biggest problem is I'm a student, so knowing what food to eat and finding time to make healthy foods is quite hard. Im sure ill get used to it though.

 

[zuludog]

Hello , and welcome to the forum!
I'm not going to give you any advice as I'm sure others will have more experience with Type 1 than myself; and general advice on D is easy enough to find

Instead I'll give you some reassurance and encouragement

Years ago I went to University, and among our group of friends was a girl who had Type 1
She managed well enough; joined in with the social side of things; obtained an Honours degree in English; got a job with a publishers; and had a family

All the Best. Zuludog

 

[Bruce Stephens]

Years ago I went to University, and among our group of friends was a girl who had Type 1
She managed well enough; joined in with the social side of things; obtained an Honours degree in English; got a job with a publishers; and had a family

I was diagnosed when I was 15, back in, erm, I guess 1981 or thereabouts. I went on and took O levels, A levels, got a mathematics degree, then a PhD. Then I was a postdoc for a few years (including 11 months in Utrecht). I must admit for the most part I didn't really think that diabetes might stop me from doing something.

Obviously it requires some planning (I spent a few weeks in Milwaukee visiting a university there during my PhD, so had to make sure I had enough insulin for that; the 11 months in Utrecht also needed planning, though that was also at the university so easy enough). Similarly while I was a postdoc in Liverpool some of the social activities included hillwalking, so that needs a bit of planning (needed to make sure I had emergency food and so on), but again, I don't remember ever thinking that it wasn't something I should do because of my diabetes. Things are way better now, with insulin pens and things like the Freestyle Libre, and much better insulins.

 

[Bruce Stephens]

The biggest problem is I'm a student, so knowing what food to eat and finding time to make healthy foods is quite hard.

In principle you can eat anything, and the recommended foods are very much what's recommended for everyone. I agree that doesn't make it easy, especially with a limited budget.

With any luck you'll be offered suitable education on how the insulins work and how to balance your food with them, and how things like alcohol and physical activity change things (perhaps not for a little while, since you're likely still producing some insulin naturally). (That's another thing that's new since I was first diagnosed: much better knowledge of how to use insulin and how to teach people that. Courses like DAFNE, bertieonline.)

 

[JTilley2000]

Thanks for all the helpful responses.
But one thing I've noticed is I'm tired a lot but i can't sleep, part of it is probably down to the stress of recently being diagnosed but i don't know how diabetes or insulin affects sleep. Does anyone else get insomnia? And know how to fix it?

 

[Bruce Stephens]

But one thing I've noticed is I'm tired a lot but i can't sleep, part of it is probably down to the stress of recently being diagnosed but i don't know how diabetes or insulin affects sleep.

I don't know. I'd guess a combination of the stress you mention, and also the physical stress of DKA and (one hopes) now your blood glucose returning to something closer to normal.