overwhelmed
I was diagnosed type 1 on june 20th 2011 and I literally have NO idea what I'm doing. I guess because I'm 20 I'm supposed to be able to handle this. I don't meet with a nutritionist until the 6th and my endocrinologist only told me the basics about using insulin, testing my glucose, and counting carbs. I'm scared to eat and my body is going haywire. I rear ended someone yesterday because I lost all concentration driving(I'm not driving anymore). I haven't even seen my glucose get down to the 100s yet. I wish I knew people that have type 1 to talk to. I'm feeling really alone.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Teowyn on -
Hi. Welcome. Sorry to hear about your dx. When I was five days in, they were just putting me back on solids and moving me from the ICU. sigh. Diabetes is different for everyone.
I'm sorry you're feeling overwhelmed. Actually, running high can contribute to that. Which is annoying--right out of the hospital, I kept having things run around my head--how was I going to do this, what random body parts are going to fail next . . . and getting down to normal blood sugars did a lot to improve my attitude. And I still haven't lost any random body parts.
However, it took about two months before I started seeing numbers that were consistantly in the 80-120 range. My CDE explained it to me like this: For however long you've been losing beta function, your blood sugar has been running high, and your body has avoided dealing with it by stashing it in out of the way places. Now that it can finally deal with the glucose like it wanted to in the first place, it's releasing the stash from before. So your injections are coping with the food you eat and random glucose infusions . . . I'd be surprised if you were not confused.
Which means, your numbers are probably going to be difficult at first. And that's ok. You're doing what you can. Stress will only raise your bloodsugar. You've found a support group of other people with diabetes, which is more than I had at dx. I had love and support, but not real understanding of how I felt about the situation.
Good luck. And so sorry.
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Permalink Reply by Emily on -
When I got online yesterday I was so upset and unsure about everything. Thank you to everyone that gave me advice, support, and encouragement. It made an unbelievable difference and brought me out of my funk. THANK YOU SO MUCH EVERYONE. I look forward to talking more with everyone here and learning tons from all of your wisdom:)
-Emily
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Permalink Reply by Laura Kaiser on -
:) :) :) !!!!
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Permalink Reply by acidrock23 on -
I'm very glad you feel better Emily!
Of course, I am wildly curious as to how dinner went, did bf dad pass out when you broke out your works? Since you are here bright and early, I'll assume you didn't pass out or anything horrible like that?
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Permalink Reply by Emily on
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Dinner went REALLY well. We went to Applebee's just because I was able to look at the menu online and pick out a meal before we went. I got a steak, veggies, and subbed the baked potato for a salad. I tested and injected at the table in my lap. I tried to be as unnoticeable as possible but everyone at the table got super quite. My boyfriend tried to make it all casual though which was nice. My numbers didn't get high after so I must have done ok picking out food! It sucked when everyone was picking out an appetizer though because everything was WAY too sugary or carby for me to have. It went great overall and I'm super happy that now I feel like it can be done!
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Permalink Reply by acidrock23 on
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That's fantastic!! I'm glad you put diabetes in its place!
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Permalink Reply by Zoe on -
Good for you, Emily! Eating out is one of the harder things about Type 1 to me, so consider yourself highly successful!! Don't hesitate to ask for substitutions from the menu. Like if there is an appetizer with croutons, just ask for it minus the croutons or whatever, so you don't have to sit there waiting and feeling weird while everyone eats theirs. The injecting at the table thing will get easier for you and for the people who are now past their first time "seeing" it.
I'm glad you're feeling much better! Things do get easier with time.
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Permalink Reply by Laura Kaiser on
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ROCK star.
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Permalink Reply by BMD on -
Glad to hear that your night out to dinner went well.
When the wife and I go to Applebee's, we often get the 2 for $20 deal that they have. I also often order a steak and veggies with a salad. My wife gets to pick the appetizer which she can have all to herself. However, for my appetizer, I often choose the French onion soup. At 16 carbs, it will be my only major carb choice for the meal. It's yummy, and I can live with that. :-)
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Permalink Reply by MyBustedPancreas on -
I don't have much to add to this thread, but I just wanted to assure you that 1) you're in the right place and 2) it gets easier. D is a tricky disease and so much of it is "person specific" (in that what works for you may not work for someone else). But here on TuD you will meet TONS of people with T1D who, quite frankly, will likely have better advice than any endo can give you. So much of dealing with T1D is trial and error too (at least it always has been for me).
Have you read "Think Like a Pancreas" yet? If you haven't get that book NOW. It's a great general guide for dealing with D. If you're considering a pump, you should also read "Pumping Insulin."
Nutritionists can be helpful, but don't count on getting all your issues solved in that visit. Personally, I find dieticians/nutritionists not terribly helpful in dealing with T1D. You need to really focus on not just counting the carbs you eat, but paying attention to what you eat and logging the results. For example, you will soon discover that some foods cause you to spike more than others. These patterns are generally only apparent once you're logging all your info. If you have an iphone or Droid, look into getting an app that will allow you to log not just your BGs, but also your insulin doses, carb intake, exercise, and other things. There are SO MANY THINGS that affect your BG. Hormones are another big one - my BG goes up fairly high before my period, but then comes crashing down the day of my period (so much so that I can get by with just my basal insulin for like 7-12 hours).
Read as much as you can online and when you go to your next endo appointment, come prepared with a LIST of questions. I know doctors are all about rushing you out of their office as fast as they can, but I have found if I go in with a list and make it a point to get through that list, I can hold on to the doc for a little bit longer.
Again, remember that it does get better. T1D is a HUGE adjustment, but there are plenty of folks who have been living with it for decades and we're doing just fine :-)
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