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stuck in limbo?

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Hi samfacex, welcome to the forum 🙂 Sorry to hear about your diagnosis - what led to you being diagnosed? Sometimes Type 1 can take a while to make an impact, but then a virus can overwhelm your body's ability to control your blood sugar levels - the same thing happened to me. Good to hear about the weight loss, it will really help with your insulin sensitivity. I would really recommend that you look into moving from the mixed insulin to something called 'basal/bolus'. This is where you take a long-acting insulin to cover the glucose produced by your liver and a fast-acting insulin to cover the carbs in the food you are eating. This will give you much greater control over what and when you eat. I'd also recommend getting a copy of Type 1 Diabetes in Children, Adolescents and Young People by Ragnar Hanas - the Type 1 'bible', which covers every aspect of living with Type 1.

Please ask any questions you may have, and we will be happy to help! 🙂 We have people with good experience of SW, so hopefully they will see your post.
 
Hello samfacex, welcome. I'm one of the SW devotees. Original (Red) is definitely better for me due to the lower carbs. If you look in your welcome pack, there's a separate booklet explaining the plan. Do post any specific queries in the Weight Loss thread, or send me a private message if you prefer. 🙂
 
Hello and welcome to the forum 🙂

Sorry to hear about your diagnosis (my son was diagnosed aged 4 so I can well understand how it turned your world upside down). Your dietician sounds like she has a delightful bedside manner - NOT!

Things will get better though - it won't go away but it will become just a small part of your life, and won't prevent you doing all the things you want to in life. Do get the Ragnar Hanas book, as this is brilliant for advice and also for making you feel more positive, optimistic and in control.

The trouble with mixed insulin is that you can't tailor it to what you want to eat, so you can end up having to eat more than you want to "feed the insulin". You'd be better off on a basal-bolus regime (one injection a day of long-acting insulin and injections of short-acting insulin with each meal). You would count the carbohydrates and match the insulin to them, so it would be much easier to lose weight.
 
Hi Northener, i had all the usual symtoms.. blurry vision, weeing alot, and drinking 5 litres of water a day wasnt the norm for me. Yes a few people have suggested that type of insulin, its all so confusing to me and well the doctor and nurse i see also seem to be rushing me out the door when i see them, so cant really get my head around things.. also the thought of more than 2 injections a day scares me, 2 is bad enough.. i will also try and get my hands on a copy of that book, thank you..


Leelee do you find you have good losses on original plan? Im trying to cut down on my carbs, i dont think there is a booklet in my pack for red days, it might be a newer pack? my sw leader said she will explain it to me on tues..


Hi Redkite, see when i hear of children being diagnosed at such a young age i feel really selfish because i cant imagine dealing with it at that age, i will be seeing my doctor the end of may so will more than likely talk to him about the basal-bolus.. They have mentioned the pump aswell but im not a fan of that idea either..
 
Hi there samfacex. Don't feel bad about how you feel - it's perfectly natural to think why me? I certainly did at first. Everything you mention reminds me of when I was first diagnosed (aged 41). The best thing is to get reading about type 1 and begin to understand your treatment options, etc at your own pace. Things DO get better, as Redkite says. It WILL just become a small part of your life. 🙂
 
Hi Samfacex and welcome. It will become easier and just a small (but important) part of your life after a while. Read all you can and ask loads of questions. It must have been a big shock for you being diagnosed but now you have been you can take control of the situation. There's loads of experience on this site so stay in touch with us all. And well done on the weight loss.🙂
 
Take a look at the Events section. We have a number of gatherings throughout the year and you'd be very welcome to come along to any of them. It really does help to have people you can talk to who 'get it' and that's what we're all about.
 
Hi samfacex, welcome to the forum. As the others have said its a normal feeling what you are experiencing at the moment you can feel alone as there may be no one around that you know is diabetic that you can talk to.

This forum is a great place to be, there's plenty of help and advice on here, no question is a daft question and I prob asked a few of them.

One thing I found the hard way, once you are settled down is to make sure you feel happy with your care team, as they can make a world of difference.
 
Welcome to the forum samfacex 🙂
 
samfacex said:
Hi Redkite, see when i hear of children being diagnosed at such a young age i feel really selfish because i cant imagine dealing with it at that age, i will be seeing my doctor the end of may so will more than likely talk to him about the basal-bolus.. They have mentioned the pump aswell but im not a fan of that idea either..
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No you shouldn't feel selfish! There is no good age to develop type 1. You are going through a grieving process, first shock, then a sense of helplessness in the face of a huge adjustment and learning curve, then (hopefully) motivation to educate yourself and get to grips with things, and finally acceptance and a happy life 🙂

Don't rule out a pump though. We have been through various regimens from mixed insulin (awful) through basal-bolus (better but with many drawbacks) to a pump (best treatment currently available, and hugely beneficial leading a normal life). Take your time, and learn what you need to. Definitely get the Hanas book:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Type-1-Diab...8&qid=1390687257&sr=8-1&keywords=ragnar+hanas

🙂
 
welcome to the forum

The guys on here are awesome, they have helped me out by just being there to chat to.
I was diagnosed at 26 while serving in the army, which i am in the process of getting fired from, 4 years later. it is very difficult to adjust to a life where you have to remember to inject needles into you on a regular basis but it will benefit you in the future if you can get it sorted earliest.
I would also recommend the Bolus/basal insulins as that is the closest match to what a body does, and you can eat what you want and do most anything. (i have done marathons and tough mudder events).
all i want to say to you is, keep your head up and smiling, your real friends and family will support you through this time and you will be able to live a long and happy life with diabetes.
 
Hi bigheadmike, I didn't realise you were in the army. When I said above that diabetes doesn't stop you from doing anything, I guess there are one or two things, including serving in the armed forces and I think the fire brigade (and I can understand why it has to be that way). But I would have hoped that if a serving soldier was diagnosed with type 1 that he/she could be transferred to a non frontline job? Seems very unfair. :(
 
Welcome to the forum. I was diagnosed 43 years ago when I was two and diabetes doesn't need to stop you from doing almost anything that you want to do. However I know from having other illnesses that each time you are diagnosed with something new it can completely wipe you out psychologically so be gentle with yourself. Two injections a day means that You MUST have a set amount of carbohydrates at each meal otherwise you risk going hypo. Therefore you must get advice from a medical professional about altering your insulin dose if you reduce your carbohydrate intake. I was on set insulin doses until my mid twenties - going on to basal/bolus meant that for the first time in my life I could choose to eat (or not eat) when I wanted and it was wonderful. It is really important to keep your blood sugars under tight control and basal/bolus will help you to do that. All the best Amanda
 
Hi BigMike, whats happening with the Army, can they really get rid of you ? Sorry if I sound noset but are the retiring you due to illhealth ? What will you do, I hope you have a fallback skill you can use to get another job.

I was never offered a pump, but from what I read by you all they are a great thing. I wonder why they are suitable for some diabetics and not others, anyone know ? TINTIN:confused:
 
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