Top 5 Insulin myths do you believe in any of them?

I was at the doctor's office on Friday getting a refill on my meds and there was this chart on the top 5 diabetes Insulin myths and I was intrigued enough to copy this down and share with everyone because some of them caught my attention in the believe it or not mythological world of Frodo Baggins and the shire.

A little background is necessary here to make my point. When I was diagnosed, some good 12 years ago, I was placed on insulin even though I was a type 2 from onset. I had such a hard time being on Insulin however, that my initial self management days were just insanity balled into a hurricane fury for me.

I have a phobia for needles so you can imagine just how my days went when I had to inject twice maybe 3 times a day that alone motivated me to try and get off insulin as fast as I could. It took me a good 4 years for that to happen and if I ever see a needle again in my lifetime then it will be too soon.
(yes I know and I am still working on the finger pricks. that eye scanner technology better leapfrog every barrier and become viable soon.....lol. That's a story for another day however.)

1. Taking Insulin means that you have failed or that your diabetes is getting worse to me going back on insulin would be short of catastrophic for the above mentioned reason so myth or not I pray it doesn't happen.

2. Insulin will make me gain weight I did not gain any weight when I was on Insulin, now Actos is a whole other issue.

3. Injecting is painful and will interfere with my daily life and diabetes management Need I say more

4. Insulin is dangerous and addictive OK even I know that's a bit iffy

5. Insulin is a last resort if diet and exercise alone do not work Makes me wonder what the last resort would be if everything else failed in a end of the world doomsday kind of scenario. (insert your favorite doomsday movie scene here)
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Ronald Gregory is a diabetic blogger for the poor diabetic blog.
A diabetic resource which offers tips on effective diabetes management techniques and practices.
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Tags: Insulin, diabetes, management, myths

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Comment by Kathyann on January 25, 2010 at 8:25am: Myth #2. If you pig out on enough carbs and cover it with Insulin you will definitely gain weight.

Comment by Marcus on January 25, 2010 at 8:42am: Also on the weight gain: When I switched from shots to the pump, I lost 15 pounds without even trying, because it's a more efficient way to deliver insulin, so my insulin requirements went down significantly and the weight poured off me.

But that's only true to a certain extent. I recently switched from Humalog to Apidra and cut my requirements another 20%, but haven't lost an ounce.

Comment by Sarah on January 25, 2010 at 9:07am: I'm addicted to insulin.. can't live without it :P

Kidding, but as a T1 I know my body failed, not me ;)

Comment by Terry Keelan on January 25, 2010 at 12:00pm: 1. Failure - I bought into this for a long time and resisted going on insulin. I'm glad I gave in. I'm actually in better control with insulin than without. Failure - I think not.
3. Painful - can be. Intefere with daily life - true. Interfere with diabetes management - Like saying exercise interferes with my fitness management.

Terry

Comment by Kathy on January 25, 2010 at 3:06pm: Insulin is "lipogenic" - it builds fat. But of course, there has to be the extra calories to fuel it.

Comment by Jake on January 26, 2010 at 9:11pm: Actos... I tried Actos.. OH DID I GAIN WEIGHT... unfortunately my liver function didnt quite agree with it but it did level my numbers a bit..