Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Melitta on April 12, 2012 at 3:10pm

Hi ahaney: I have Type 1 diabetes and Hashimoto's disease, diagnosed at about the same time. These two autoimmune diseases are quite commonly seen together, especially in women. Just my opinion, I would say you most likely have Type 1 diabetes and need to be on insulin. No amount of diet and exercise can keep blood sugars down in Type 1 diabetes. I have written my top 10 tips for the newly diagnosed adult-onset Type 1; I hope they are helpful to you. The test that confirms a diagnosis of Type 1 autoimmune diabetes is the full suite of antibody tests (GAD, ICA, IA-2). A c-peptide test is useful but not a definitive test. Please discuss with your new endo! A new diagnosis is a terrible shock, and it does take awhile to get things under control and balanced, but it is doable! Best of luck to you, and please let us know how your endo appointment goes.

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Permalink Reply by ahaney on April 12, 2012 at 4:09pm

Thanks so much! I just finished reading your list and it is comforting along with the comments from other posters. I am facing the reality of this and I hope that the endo I see will be somewhat knowledgable in these treatments. I had a good run this afternoon and took my mind off of things. This time I ran low and had to eat while running but live and learn. One thing I have already learned is test test test. I am learning so much from myself and that means a lot to an educator, life long learner. I hope that treatment will include a less restrictive diet. It is hard to stay at 1400 calories and get the rot foods in. Everything I read is so helpful here. I am taking it slow and absorbing it as much as possible.

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Permalink Reply by Melitta on April 12, 2012 at 9:00pm

Hi Ahaney: On exogenous insulin, it is so much easier to eat a less restrictive diet! When is your endo appointment? I hope soon.

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Permalink Reply by TrueTheory on April 12, 2012 at 4:39pm

Hang in there ahaney! I agree with Melitta, it sounds like you are most certainly a late onset type I. By learning how to appropriately dose your insulin injections, you should be feeling better sooner than you can imagine. It's overwhealming at first, but I'm 15 months into it at 25 and already it seems like the norm.

As far as the high blood pressure, I share that too. Ask your Endo about an ACE inhibitor. I currently take 10mg of Ramipril daily with no side effects or loss of energy, and I no longer have hypertension.

Hope this helps.

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Permalink Reply by MyBustedPancreas on April 13, 2012 at 5:44am

You definitely sound like a type 1. Type 1 and Hashimoto's are both autoimmune and they are frequently seen together. Make sure you are tested for antibodies. If it is type 1, oral meds aren't going to help, and they could even be dangerous. Insulin is the only treatment.

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Permalink Reply by Super_sally on April 13, 2012 at 6:03am

Welcome.

I am hypothyroid 12 years, diabetic for 4 years...

Insulin is really the best way to go, in my opinion, particularly while your pancreas is still working... you may be able to have a really long honeymoon...

This is a great site. Keep reading and posting and asking questions.

looking forward to hear how you go with your endo appointment.

Getting the thyroid under control will also help with the diabetes management.

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Permalink Reply by marty1492 on April 13, 2012 at 6:09am

Hi ahaney,

I really feel for you! I've had Hashimoto's a long time, and was diagnosed with adult-onset Type 1 diabetes recently. People on TuDiabetes have been so wonderfully helpful! Melitta's information was a great guide for me, also!

I also really recommend Jenny Ruhl's website here, and her blog here and her book, Blood Sugar 101. It was clear, informative, and a wonderful place to start. Personally, I found it reassuring! Dr. Bernstein's Diabetes Solution by Richard Bernstein is extremely helpful. He's a Type 1 diabetice, himself. He covers a whole range of issues. In your situation, his dietary approach may not work, but his book is very, very useful.

Books about insulin are Gary Scheiner,s Think Like a Pancreas, which is out in a new edition a few months ago. John Walsh's Using Insulin is even more detailed, but is only available in a 2003 edition which refers to several insulins that are no longer available.
Many other people on this website would recommend these same books.

I feel for you having to deal with diabetes and Hashimoto's in what is already a really, really busy life!

People on TuDiabetes have been incredibly kind, supportive, informative and helpful. I'm sure that you will find it the same.

Please let us know how you are doing!

Best wishes,

marty1492

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Permalink Reply by Daisy Mae on September 25, 2012 at 7:28pm

my name is Daisy Mae. i am 48 yrs old, 5'4" and 108 lbs and holding. i say this because i have Graves Disease, which i believe is the opposite (but just the same autoimmune disease as Hashimotos) of what you have. i was diagnosed with it in college and had to have radiation treatment for it, then it was discovered by the endo that i had Juvenille D and had to go on insulin. way bk then (25+ yrs ago) insulin was made either from beef or from pork. there was no "fast-acting" insulin, or any human DNA derived insulin like we have now. BG meters were the size of those large, out of dated rotary telephones, and also, we Ds depended on urine sticks to see if we were spilling ketones or how high our BSs were (u peed on the "stick" and waited a while, and then whatever color the stick turned, you matched it to a color on the bottle's selection and that would tell you the range your BS was in. it wasnt very crafty, to say the least. but it was all we had.

all this is to say, encouragingly, that we have come a very long way in terms of treatments. i have read articals upon articals about autoimmune disease and how they relate to one another. one artical claims that one can trigger another or cause another, and a different artical will say that they have nothing to do with one another. who do you believe? it can get very confusing.

in my many years of experience, it doesn't really matter which came first, the chicken or the egg. what does matter is that you keep both diseases in as tight a control as possible. with Hashimotos and Graves diseases, we do not have the neccessary amount of thyroxin (synthroid) in our system. so we depend on blood tests (T1, T2, T4, TSH..) to tell the endo how much synthroid (medication) our bodies need.when our thyroid is working properly, our BSs become more efficient. I AM NOT A DOCTOR, just a person who has had to deal with balancing these two "connected" diseases. i get regular blood panels done (every 3 months) and moniter my BSs very tightly. when i went on the Insulin Pump, my life changed completely: my health improved so dramatically i was shocked.

i dont know if you have had vision problems (often comes along w/ and thyroid disease). but i had to have my eyes opperated on 2 separate occations. now i am all in working order, but it takes patients and time and good communication with your endo. it helped me to keep a journal. i included every subject i could think of; mood, diet, physical fitness, heart rate, sweats, when i menstruated, etc) i would bring it w/ me 2 the doc, and we would make a plan. of course, D is a tricky monster and is always changing just after we think we've got it all pat down. but stick with it. get to know your own body, look for patterns, dont deny symptoms however small they may seem. write it all down. it will give you a better perspective on how to manage it. HANG IN THERE!!!

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