Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Sharon (Sneetch by the Beach) on May 17, 2011 at 12:00pm

HI Jess - Welcome to the Type 1 Club. Congrats on the low A1C! Amazing

I was diagnosed at age 34....2 years ago next month! Wow time goes by fast. I am a yoga instructor and understand the challenges of going low when working...I recommend keeping juice boxes near by and when you feel low....sip here and there. It works for me. And the best thing that has helped me so far is my CGM Dexcom Seven plus......its is incredible. Helps so much....I can not recommend it enough......that and my animas ping pump. I never wanted all this "gear" but it helps me live a more "normal" life so to speak. I am still adjusting to all the Type 1 details but I can say it gets easier. Meal plans.....well....I used to be super strict....15 carb breakfasts, 30 carb lunches and dinners. Now with the Dexcom I eat more often and more carbs depending on the "trend arrow" = blood sugar trend going up or down.

Take care and remember you are not on your own!

Sharon

Permalink Reply by Jessica Edelman on May 17, 2011 at 12:33pm

Sharon,

Thank you for your words of wisdom. Pumps and cgms kinda scare the shit out of me as it is baffling to think of myself being hooked up to machines for the rest of my life. How do you deal with it? I have such a hard time at meals deciding what to eat that I get so indecisive that I just don't end up eating anything and when my levels drop i eat a piece of fruit instead of a meal with insulin! I find myself confused and unable to make decisions most of the time. What kind of foods do you surround yourself with. What kind of breakfasts do you eat? I am just so confused as to everything involved with this diabetes as i've never had a serious medical issue in my life, sans gallbladder removal when I was 15 years old due to gallstones. i just get so much anxiety over all of it and I am tired of it and it has only been 4 months since dx. I have an appointment tomorrow with a specialist (finally, i only made the appointment 3 months ago!!) and I hope they can steer me in the right direction. Please keep in touch

-Jess

Permalink Reply by Sharon (Sneetch by the Beach) on May 17, 2011 at 2:30pm

I know exactly where you are coming from.....same fears and food confusion.....it does get easier! I hated the idea of being on "life support" the pump and CGM were the last things I wanted and because of insurance stuff...I went ahead and ordered them. (my insurance was ending and I wanted to have the option to try them even if they just sat in my closet) Long story short....I was surprised that I really liked using them.....Dexcom is my favorite thing....the pump is a close second since I HATE needles.

Deciding what to eat used to be an emotional roller coaster for me....especially out with friends at restaurants. I would go into the restroom - give myself a shot (before my pump days) and sometimes have a mini emotional breakdown.....it still feels "unreal" that I have diabetes sometimes....then I pull myself together....and realize how lucky I am to be alive and that insulin is available to us. I volunteered at a kids diabetes camp last summer....I recommend it...I learned so much from them.....and its a nice way to connect with others living with Type 1....and realize if the little ones can live fun healthy lives.....so can we.

So food....I started with an atkins like diet.......now I don't touch meat....except for fish....I overdosed on Meat the first year! I eat veggies, cucumbers and almond butter was a daily thing for awhile...now once a week or so. There are some low carb tortillas that are great, some protein bars etc. I could share more food stuff with ya later...but I have to run to work :) And if you want to chat about it sometime on the phone - I know its often easier to talk than try to type everything out! You can email me at Sharon@InformedHealing.com and we can exchange phone numbers. No worries either way! Take care - Sharon

Permalink Reply by Jessica Edelman on May 18, 2011 at 8:26am

SHaron,

Im sitting at my local jocelyn center and I picked up a diabetes magazine here. Low and behold I turned to a page and saw your face.. It was an article about you!! How funny is that!
Brought a smile to my face after weeks of frowning. It was entitled window of opportunity by sarah senn... Good stuff!

Jess

Permalink Reply by Sharon (Sneetch by the Beach) on May 18, 2011 at 10:27am

LOL - ohh yeah.....I did that article with Sarah last year.....its a horrible photo of my husband and I ....but hey...the goal was for the article to help others and we hope it did its job :) Enjoy the day!

Permalink Reply by Dallas on May 18, 2011 at 7:05am

Type 2 (2008) ... I only use food (and a little physical activity, swing dancing actually) to keep me at 6.0% a1c. Medication reallly complicated everything for me. Search "pancreas friendly" food on the web. That helped me and ended all the confusion.

Permalink Reply by Robert Miles on May 18, 2011 at 1:16pm

I'm type 2, but it's been a few years since I was hungry.

4.7 is within the normal range for those without diabetes, but looks rather low for those with type 1 - it might mean you're staying close to going low most of the time. Going low can cause problems worse than going high for a similar time.

You might want to look through a low-carb cookbook to see if you can find anything you're willing to eat even without an appetite.

Permalink Reply by Jessica Edelman on May 19, 2011 at 10:48am

thank you all for your words of wisdom. I went to my local jocelyn center yesterday and they changed me from a sliding scale to a carb ratio scale of 1 unit per 15g of carbs. I am still waking up at a normal range but still having a hard time deciding what to eat. my a1c is now 5.
In regards to food, I may be hungry but I'll open the fridge and just stare at its contents. I am experiencing some severe depression and confusion. I am not sure if the lexapro is actually working. I have no motivation and have been unemployed since march but my new job starts june 1st, so ... hopefully that will help me regain some self confidence and feel like i may be contributing more to society.

I have lost a lot in the past 6 months. In october my 7 year relationship ended and I had to move back to my hometown because I was dead broke, currently living with my mother after 11 years of independance. So, i lost my relationship, my independance and then 3 months later my health (dx of type 1). Then a few weeks after dx I lost my job... not very kind of them. good thing I got approved for medicaid or I don't even know HOW I would be able to handle any of it.

I just feel like an absolute failure... it's gotten really tough. If I could I would sleep in a lot more instead of waking up feeling super uncomfortable at 8 am every morning, like my skin is crawling.. fast heart rate ...etc. My bg levels are fine, i don't know what's causing this feeling when I awake in the a.m.

A large problem is my lack of friends where I live now. Most of my friends don't live here and therefore throughout the breakup of my relationship and the diagnosis of type 1 diabetes, I didn't have loved ones around who could help me through it. I was always used to be surrounded by friends and now have no one. I wish i could find a local T1 support group but I can't seem to find any in the area.

I just feel like I have nothing going for me at this point... truly depressing.
Ugh... I sound like such a "negative nancy", i want to turn my life around... i just feel like it's never going to happen.

HELP ME

Permalink Reply by Corrie on May 20, 2011 at 4:05pm

Hi Jessica,
I'm in a similar situation as you. I was diagnosed with T1 in February, so everything is really new to me as well. I'm on a 1 unit Novolog to 20g carb ratio, and 16 Lantus at night. I've found myself staring into the fridge at times too, uncertain as to what to eat, or trying to find something that I can eat without having to give myself a shot of insulin. Those are usually my lower moments, where I find myself getting upset and crying about the hand that I've been dealt. I was dx with thyroid cancer last summer, went through surgery to remove my thyroid and then radioactive iodine treatment.

Is there anyone you could talk to about how you're feeling? Getting some mental health help may help you to feel better. You've been through a lot recently, and sometimes its just more than we can handle. (((HUGS))) to you!

Permalink Reply by Jessica Edelman on May 20, 2011 at 4:11pm

thanks corrie... it's good to know there are others out there. I have truly found my community on this page