Support type 1 diabetes

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Great @Ali11782 ! 🙂 Remember that you don’t have to be perfect - because nobody is. Be kind to yourself over the next few days. You’ve done two amazing things - admitted you’re struggling, and taken a positive step forward.
 
Ali11782 said:
Thank you everyone for your support. I've taken my background insulin and five units (my finger prick was saying HI so hopefully I'll see where that come down to). Try and start a fresh
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Ah @Ali11782!!

I can’t tell you how happy this has made me feel this evening.

You’ve been on my mind today, and I‘ve been really hoping for just news you’ve given us.

It’s not a small thing you’ve done - both the bravery and honesty with which you’ve shared your struggles, and even more importantly the steps you’ve begun to take to keep yourself safe.

Major respect to you. Be proud of yourself.
 
Hello everyone.

Blood sugar control was not great yesterday but I did take my insulinml.
Frustrated as 13.8 this morning and been for a 2.5 mile walk and only down to 12.2.
Did a good bit of mind talk on the walk....I mean what the hell was i playing at. I just got that low.
 
Ali11782 said:
Hello everyone.

Blood sugar control was not great yesterday but I did take my insulinml.
Frustrated as 13.8 this morning and been for a 2.5 mile walk and only down to 12.2.
Did a good bit of mind talk on the walk....I mean what the hell was i playing at. I just got that low.
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Don’t beat yourself up about blood sugars, you just need to focus on one thing which is taking some insulin. So long as you’re injecting something you’re succeeding and moving forwards. Forget what number the blood sugars are, 13s are so much safer than HIs and that’s all that matters.
 
Ali11782 said:
Hello everyone.

Blood sugar control was not great yesterday but I did take my insulinml.
Frustrated as 13.8 this morning and been for a 2.5 mile walk and only down to 12.2.
Did a good bit of mind talk on the walk....I mean what the hell was i playing at. I just got that low.
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I was so glad to hear you’d been able to get back on track with your insulin @Ali11782. Go gently on yourself about things and I do hope you’ll soon be able to get some ongoing support with how tough things have been for you recently.
 
Ali11782 said:
Hello everyone.

Blood sugar control was not great yesterday but I did take my insulinml.
Frustrated as 13.8 this morning and been for a 2.5 mile walk and only down to 12.2.
Did a good bit of mind talk on the walk....I mean what the hell was i playing at. I just got that low.
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Well done in taking your insulin. A major step.
Thank you for letting us know.

Your levels will start to settle with more regular insulin so just focus on the injections for now.
So pleased you have joined the forum.
 
Thanks @SB2015.

Not so good waking up this morning, 21, then got it down to 16 after walk. Corrected with 3 units then 4 for breakfast but still havent for it back great. 4 for lunch and I'm sitting at 12.7. so just taken 2 units.
Ignored the desire to sweet things by eating some Gouda cheese this afternoon.
 
This all points to getting the basal insulin sorted. Well worth talking to the adSN when you get your appointment. It is impossible to sort out meal times until you have your fasting levels correct. You have a starting point with the same rate hour by hour. if you have time to do a fasting test you can then make changes to the rates to counter lows over the 24 hour period.

Once that is sorted you can then start to change your carb ratios for meals. Changing those before the basal rates are sorted will not make any patterns clear.

Are you having the same breakfast each day, which gives you the same number of carbs at that meal. This is another things that can help when sorting out ratios. BUT do one things at a time, and it is best to start with the basal insulin (Am I sounding like a stuck record!)
 
Ali11782 said:
Thanks @SB2015.

Not so good waking up this morning, 21, then got it down to 16 after walk. Corrected with 3 units then 4 for breakfast but still havent for it back great. 4 for lunch and I'm sitting at 12.7. so just taken 2 units.
Ignored the desire to sweet things by eating some Gouda cheese this afternoon.
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Yes I agree with @SB2015 sounds like your background level isn’t right. Your other insulin and exercise is making some different so once the basal is better you will find that easier.

Can’t really add anything extra to what others have said. You are not alone and we are here for you. I think you definitely need to reach out to your DSN or GP about your insulin, and also how you feel about having diabetes.

Please take care, sounds like you have been doing better the last few days, try to look at the wins and not the negatives x
 
Hi everyone.
How are you all?
Yep I'm a bit on and off with posting. Life and my mental health take over and sometimes I can cope with being on here sometimes I can't. When I am not on here it tends to be because I feel I am failing and not a genuine type 1 diabetes.

So I wanted to ask a question....what is everyone thoughts about a pump. I'm pretty sure I don't meet the criteria to get one on NHS however I do wonder if one would help me.
 
It depends what your blood sugar problems are @Ali11782 A big thing to say is that a pump isn’t a magic answer. It depends on the user and it is more work changing the basal when needed, etc. It’s good if someone’s basal needs vary through the day and night, or if someone is very sensitive to insulin and needs tiny bolus/correction adjustments.
 
Yh
Inka said:
It depends what your blood sugar problems are @Ali11782 A big thing to say is that a pump isn’t a magic answer. It depends on the user and it is more work changing the basal when needed, etc. It’s good if someone’s basal needs vary through the day and night, or if someone is very sensitive to insulin and needs tiny bolus/correction adjustments.
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That is interesting thank you.
Yeah so my problem is binging and not taking my insulin.
I know exactly what to do, I just need to stop eat more after dinner. So simple that's all I want. Yet I fail and I fail again and again. No pump will change that lol.
 
No, a pump won’t change that, but different insulin regimes, including pumping, can sometimes help with the psychological aspect of diabetes. It’s a big strain and sometimes changing a tiny thing can be enough to provide some relief and lift the burden a bit. The change can be anything - a new basal, a new insulin pen, new pen needles, etc etc.

If you’re avoiding insulin because it would be impossible to cover your binge with injections, a pump would possibly make that easier because you press buttons to bolus rather than have to get your pen out and inject. Also, if you’re having to correct a lot that would be easier with a pump.

Have you spoken to your DSN? Type 1 is hard. Don’t think you have to come to terms with it. You just have to take one day at a time and deal with it. Each day is a day closer to a cure, remember. We just keep on going. You’re not alone. We’re walking the road together. xx
 
Inka said:
No, a pump won’t change that, but different insulin regimes, including pumping, can sometimes help with the psychological aspect of diabetes. It’s a big strain and sometimes changing a tiny thing can be enough to provide some relief and lift the burden a bit. The change can be anything - a new basal, a new insulin pen, new pen needles, etc etc.

If you’re avoiding insulin because it would be impossible to cover your binge with injections, a pump would possibly make that easier because you press buttons to bolus rather than have to get your pen out and inject. Also, if you’re having to correct a lot that would be easier with a pump.

Have you spoken to your DSN? Type 1 is hard. Don’t think you have to come to terms with it. You just have to take one day at a time and deal with it. Each day is a day closer to a cure, remember. We just keep on going. You’re not alone. We’re walking the road together. xx
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Thank you for being so supportive and amazing.
Yes I had those thoughts of how it would make a difference psychologically.
I am waiting for next consultant appointment but list is long.
I phoned DSN when I was told this but haven't heard from her but will try again.
I feel I just need someone to talk to about it. X
 
Once I was in a right state and I phoned my DSN and she was fabulous. I felt so much better after speaking to her! Do keep pushing to get support. Just offloading was great, but she also reduced my stress and made things seem easier xx
 
I just want to get it right, not perfect, just better for a few straight days.
To not feel out of control with my food after 3pm. Can't stress just how much it is ruining my mental health, eating away at me. Like it almost all I can think about, will I manage to do it today, how bad I'll feel when I don't. And I know others might say well just do it, just do what you want but for some reason I can't. I can't change the mind set and do differently, even when I say I'll wake up the next day and feel so good about myself.
Argh lol
 
Eating disorders are really difficult on their own without trying to factor in diabetes and then blood glucose balancing with insulin as the ultimate challenge. And then there is the guilt and embarrassment and feeling of failure and being pathetic that you can't control it. Those are really destructive negative thoughts which just make it all so much worse. You have to try to break that cycle. Change something.

The change that helped enormously for me is eating a low carb high fat diet. I have low carb treats that I can hit when I feel the need to binge which won't impact my BG levels to badly. These are higher in fat too which means that sooner or later I don't want to eat anymore, whereas the high carb foods I can just keep going and I become a bottomless pit and whilst I will inject insulin to cover it every time I go back and have a bit more and a bit more, I know I am on dodgey ground with so much stacked insulin and literally treat myself like a pin cushion with injection after injection. I think I have only done it twice since diagnosis 3.5 years ago and even then I was relatively restrained compared to pre diagnosis because I eventually get more frightened of the high levels and my heart hammering in my chest from the sugar rush or of course the unpredictable nature of all that stacked insulin on board and that fear eventually curbs my urge to continue to eat more.

The great thing about my low carb way of eating is that firstly because my BG levels are more stable in general, I rarely get than urge to binge now and that is partly because more stable BG levels mean that I am mentally more stable. Yes, there are times when I hit a jar of crunchy peanut butter with a spoon and I am halfway down the jar when I stop and I will need some insulin for it afterwards but it doesn't shoot my levels sky high and I can "contain it" far better than eating biscuits or cake or a multipack of snickers or whatever, where the resulting BG turbulence just makes the craving worse and my mindset worse. Sometimes I will want savoury and I will have 2 or even 3 packets of pork scratchings on the trot. If I want sweet stuff, a sugar free jelly with a tub of Philladelphia or Mascapone cheese can work or I will make a low carb chocolate mug cake in the microwave and have that with the jelly and cream. I appreciate that these are no more healthy than the high carb stuff but they don't disrupt my BG levels too much and that prevents me getting on the BG roller coaster which just leads to wanting more and more. I would say I probably feel the need to binge maybe once every 2-3 months now, perhaps longer and it is short lived with these low carb treats and I feel much more in control. I will also try to fill up with healthier treats first like veggie stick dips etc but maybe part of it is that I really want to eat something "naughty". What I no longer want is that horrendous sugar rush and the BG turbulence which takes days to get back under control.... and of course during that time of turbulence the urge to binge again is strong because the spikes and crashes make you want to eat all the more. I don't get that with eating high fat foods, I just quickly reach a point of feeling full or sick. The important thing is that the urge to binge is becoming less and less frequent, so I feel like it is slowly curing my disordered eating.
 
rebrascora said:
Eating disorders are really difficult on their own without trying to factor in diabetes and then blood glucose balancing with insulin as the ultimate challenge. And then there is the guilt and embarrassment and feeling of failure and being pathetic that you can't control it. Those are really destructive negative thoughts which just make it all so much worse. You have to try to break that cycle. Change something.

The change that helped enormously for me is eating a low carb high fat diet. I have low carb treats that I can hit when I feel the need to binge which won't impact my BG levels to badly. These are higher in fat too which means that sooner or later I don't want to eat anymore, whereas the high carb foods I can just keep going and I become a bottomless pit and whilst I will inject insulin to cover it every time I go back and have a bit more and a bit more, I know I am on dodgey ground with so much stacked insulin and literally treat myself like a pin cushion with injection after injection. I think I have only done it twice since diagnosis 3.5 years ago and even then I was relatively restrained compared to pre diagnosis because I eventually get more frightened of the high levels and my heart hammering in my chest from the sugar rush or of course the unpredictable nature of all that stacked insulin on board and that fear eventually curbs my urge to continue to eat more.

The great thing about my low carb way of eating is that firstly because my BG levels are more stable in general, I rarely get than urge to binge now and that is partly because more stable BG levels mean that I am mentally more stable. Yes, there are times when I hit a jar of crunchy peanut butter with a spoon and I am halfway down the jar when I stop and I will need some insulin for it afterwards but it doesn't shoot my levels sky high and I can "contain it" far better than eating biscuits or cake or a multipack of snickers or whatever, where the resulting BG turbulence just makes the craving worse and my mindset worse. Sometimes I will want savoury and I will have 2 or even 3 packets of pork scratchings on the trot. If I want sweet stuff, a sugar free jelly with a tub of Philladelphia or Mascapone cheese can work or I will make a low carb chocolate mug cake in the microwave and have that with the jelly and cream. I appreciate that these are no more healthy than the high carb stuff but they don't disrupt my BG levels too much and that prevents me getting on the BG roller coaster which just leads to wanting more and more. I would say I probably feel the need to binge maybe once every 2-3 months now, perhaps longer and it is short lived with these low carb treats and I feel much more in control. I will also try to fill up with healthier treats first like veggie stick dips etc but maybe part of it is that I really want to eat something "naughty". What I no longer want is that horrendous sugar rush and the BG turbulence which takes days to get back under control.... and of course during that time of turbulence the urge to binge again is strong because the spikes and crashes make you want to eat all the more. I don't get that with eating high fat foods, I just quickly reach a point of feeling full or sick. The important thing is that the urge to binge is becoming less and less frequent, so I feel like it is slowly curing my disordered eating.
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That's really helpful thank you.
I think I find it harder to eat high fat because I'm vegetarian.
I do just need to break the cycle.
Alison
 
Inka said:
@Ali11782 I didn’t feel that ill when the emergency doctor called an ambulance for me. I thought he was overreacting. However, I was very close to DKA, was admitted to hospital and diagnosed Type 1.

People here are no better, no more able, no cleverer, no more organised than you. I can’t stress enough how disorganised and how hopeless I can be sometimes. You’re just as capable as anyone here. Please get some support today.
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Exactly the same happened to me 3 weeks ago. Yes, I had symptoms but explained them all away with reasons. The noticeable thing was my weight loss, 3.5 stone in 3 months, Work colleague told me to go and have a blood test so booked in with GP that afternoon. He tested my bloods and told me I need to go straight to hospital. Bloods were at 58 if I recall and Ketones were at 5.8.

He told me I was a ticking time bomb............
 
Ali11782 said:
I just want to get it right, not perfect, just better for a few straight days.
To not feel out of control with my food after 3pm. Can't stress just how much it is ruining my mental health, eating away at me. Like it almost all I can think about, will I manage to do it today, how bad I'll feel when I don't. And I know others might say well just do it, just do what you want but for some reason I can't. I can't change the mind set and do differently, even when I say I'll wake up the next day and feel so good about myself.
Argh lol
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Back in August, post number 20, you said, "I do have a psychologist for diabetes but I haven't yet seen them." ... Have you seen him/her yet?

If not, and you can see him/her soon-- do! The whole point of psychologists is to help you change your mind set when you feel you can't.

If you haven't seen the psychologist yet because you're on a waiting list-- talk to your DSN about how you're feeling. Talking to us is good! But talking to your DSN is even better; they have a lot of training and understanding about 'diabetes distress'.

If you have seen the psychologist-- how has that been?

Regarding pumps: I agree with Inka that a pump could help you psychologically, especially a 'closed loop system'-- one where your glucose monitor 'talks to' the pump, and the pump adjusts your insulin according to what your glucose monitor is saying. That would, as Inka says, "lift the burden a bit"; and making things a bit easier in practical terms could make a big difference to how you feel and how well you can manage psychologically.

Regarding the criteria for getting a pump on the NHS: I think you could be said to meet the official criteria, and also I have heard that the official criteria are not always very strictly applied ... Others may be able to provide more information about this?

Finally-- agree with everyone who has emphasised how important it is to take one day at a time, and don't beat yourself up.

Oh, and cheese is one of our best friends. ; ) All best wishes!
 
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