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What was your initial reaction?

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mrsg1

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What did you do? My hubby hasn't really talked about it yet but we're both super jet-lagged after our honeymoon so it's fair enough I guess. I have spent three days googling for info whereas he has kept away from the laptop. He tends to go all internal when stressed so don't want to push it until ready. His appt with the doc isn't until the 17th of jan so guess he'll have to deal with it then.

Also, my hubby's appointment is in the morning and he was going to book a morning off. Based on your experience would you recommend he books the whole day off? I think he will be extremely shocked at the problems he faces.
 
Hi mrsg1, welcome to the forum 🙂 How did he come to be diagnosed? I'm guessing that he is Type 2, given the timescale for his appointment? My situation gave me no notice at all really - I was extremely ill with a stomach bug for a few days until I reached a point where I needed an ambulance. Once in hospital I was diagnosed Type 1 and put straight on insulin, I was in for 8 days. When I was told I had diabetes I felt a little relieved actually, mainly because I had been so dreadfully ill.

What you and your husband need to know is that, although it is a serious condition, diabetes is something that CAN be managed well. You have made an excellent step towards taking control by joining here - the knowledge and experience of people here will, I hope, provide answers to any questions you may have, and also show you both how a greater understanding of diabetes can lead to better health and well-being 🙂

Have a look at our Useful links thread for some good sources of information. I would particularly recommend reading Jennifer's Advice and Maggie Davey's letter, and also getting a copy of Type 2 Diabetes: The First Year by Gretchen Becker, all of which will help you understand what to expect and how to deal with it. There is a lot to take in to begin with, so try not to be overwhelmed - learning to live well with diabetes takes time but is well worth the effort. Many people actually find that they end up feeling healthier and happier than they have for some time thanks to the adjustments they make to their diet and activity levels (it's true!).

What appointment is tomorrow, is it with the nurse? He probably won't learn too much at this initial appointment, but it's hard for me to say how he will react, not knowing much about him or the situation, so difficult to say whether he would need to take the whole day - my guess is that he would be OK with a half day. Take a deep breath and be positive, there can be a silver lining to this particular cloud, so try not to worry too much.

So, please ask anything that may be confusing or worrying you, and do let us know how the appointment goes. I look forward to hearing more from you 🙂
 
Hiya MrsG

However - if you were on honeymoon you could be relatively young - although I was only 21 the first time, the second one I was 50! - so I probably shouldn't jump to conclusions, should I? And certainly although the onset of my T1 was fairly short (I'd say about a month, 6 weeks at age 22) I did remain upright throughout LOL

Again it was huge relief, quite honestly if they'd said 'We can make you feel better but we'd have to cut your leg off for that to happen' I'd have (un)happily signed the amputation forms there and then.

So it means jabs forever and changing how and when I eat (old insulins demanded that, they were a PITA) but so what? - at least I wouldn't have to feel this awful.

Whatever type it is, it's quite confusing esp at first, but if you are intelligent enough to find this forum then you should most certainly be able to get your heads round it. Some medics may try and tell you that D is easy. Well they are lying - cos it isn't really! However day to day, eventually it's not all that hard once you know what you're doing.

But to begin with you don't know what you are doing - sooooo - take baby steps is my advice.

Like walking up a hill, you get there a lot quicker and easier by taking lots of little steps instead of giant strides - and eventually will reach to top in a fit state to enjoy the view for a very very long time into the future.
 
Everyone is different. He is going to have to get his head round to the fact that life has changed a bit. Presumably he had more than one blood test and could tell which way things were going after the 2nd/3rd. At least, that is how it was for me. There is no running away from it. Get as much information as you can and it is up to him. You can't watch him 24 hours and it depends on what he eats and how much exercise he takes.

Another book I found very useful was Diabetes for Dummies - that 'spoke' to me as it was exactly how I felt. Thought I knew a bit about diabetes until the diagnosis and then realised I new next to nothing.

This is the best forum I have found and when they say no question is stupid, they really mean it. It helps all of us as you may ask the question was did not get round to asking or if we can actually answer it - wow! Confidence booster.

If he is T2 and put immediately on to Metformin he may be in for a surprise so read up on it.

My initial reaction was disappointment. Always kind of knew I would become diabetic at some time because of the family history but thought I had at least another 10-15 years. Wanted to beat myself up because I had allowed the weight to pile on but then read in one of these books that actually being pre-diabetic can cause the weight to pile on and diagnosis helps you tackle the weight issue. That is how it worked for me! However, it is not only overweight people who become diabetic!!
 
My first reaction was to think little of it and underestimate diabetes completely. After all , you hear of people with diabetes all the time and I just assumed life would carry on.

I had no idea how much work is involved in properly managing diabetes, type 1 or type 2. And that took MONTHS to sink in.
 
my thoughts

Hi I am not sure that I thought of much for several days. to bombed to think i guess - then it took weeks to sinkin, lack of support from anyone did not help --- good luck




mrsg1 said:
What did you do? My hubby hasn't really talked about it yet but we're both super jet-lagged after our honeymoon so it's fair enough I guess. I have spent three days googling for info whereas he has kept away from the laptop. He tends to go all internal when stressed so don't want to push it until ready. His appt with the doc isn't until the 17th of jan so guess he'll have to deal with it then.

Also, my hubby's appointment is in the morning and he was going to book a morning off. Based on your experience would you recommend he books the whole day off? I think he will be extremely shocked at the problems he faces.
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