tbourner Posted July 12, 2006 Share Posted July 12, 2006 I need to get checked out for this, always feeling tired and then jumpy through the day. Sounds scary but millions live with it easily - just an adjustment (easy for me to say). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kookoocachu Posted July 12, 2006 Share Posted July 12, 2006 Im a nurse and it would surprise you how common diabetes is now, id say about 2 in 5 people have it. It doesent effect your life at all, apart from carrying your little pen kit around and having to declare it at airports (which they usually just wave you through anyway) But you will have to get used to sweetner in your tea or nothing! also, Thorntons diabetic chocolates are lovley! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schtuv Posted July 12, 2006 Share Posted July 12, 2006 Get this though, your blood sugar level should be 4-6mmol/L, when my blood test came back from the lab, it was 52.8mmo/L. Fork me sideways - 52.8!!! I was reading over 30 after fasting for 24 hours when they took me in originally, though ... You must have felt terrible running that high. Who else has got TYPE 1 Diabetes, and how does it affect your life? Me! Not too much of an affect once you get used to it. The biggest pain (aside from falling over giggling occasionally) is that you have to renew your driving license every 3 years ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schtuv Posted July 12, 2006 Share Posted July 12, 2006 What do you keep your BG at? I can't seem to ge mine below 16mmo/L 5-10, although I let it drift up to 15 if I'm going climbing or to the gym. Over 15 and you can possibly get DKA with too much exertion, I hear. If your BG gets too high, do you wait until your next insulin dose is due or inject another dose to level it off? I take an additional shot. I tend to figure that if things are about in check I take one unit for each mmol over where I want to be, but this varies for everyone. Practice (and record keeping) makes perfect! I'm currently on Novorapid which has a rather immediate kick-in time, though. I used to use another brand which had a 20 to 30 minute delay before working, which made correcting things a real sod. If you want to eat say, a sweet pudding or something, can you increase your insulin to compensate or is it just out of the question? Same thing for beer, if you want ohave more than a couple of pints. Beer I only worry about if I go over 4 pints, then I check and adjust. Remember: beer send your readings up, but makes them drop the next day! Sweet things you get used to compensating for, but you have to note that they give you a spike of sugar, not a slow release (like shreddies would). What sort of things make you ill? From what I understand, a 'Hypo' is caused by a lack of sugar in the body, so can you have too much to cause a problem? Hypo = too little food or too much insulin. At this point, eat chocolate! Too many hypos, and you lose the warning signs they are coming on ... Hyper = too much food or too little insulin. That way lies poor circulation, burst veins in your eyeballs, neuropathy, and all that fun stuff none of it's really immediate, though - mostly bad things are from long term neglect. Lots of things used make me ill, as the whole lack-of-a-pancreas thing lowers the immune system response, but keeping levels in check, and getting flu jabs every year helps a lot! Just to be on safe side, time for a warning - I'm not a doctor, and anything I say should be taken as fiction, not fact! Please consult your physician before taking advise from anonymous internet posters, even those with supras! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schtuv Posted July 12, 2006 Share Posted July 12, 2006 For reference: http://www.dvla.gov.uk/at_a_glance/ch3_diabetes.htm Insulin treated: Must recognise warning symptoms of hypoglycaemia and meet required visual standards. 1,2 or 3 year licence. Diabetic drivers are sent a detailed letter of explanation about their licence and driving by DVLA. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
green_dragon Posted July 12, 2006 Author Share Posted July 12, 2006 WOW! Loads of great information there guys, thank you all very much! I'll print this off for future reference! Supragal - I've been prescribed Mixtard, which is both fast and slow release Insulin. Mattanna - You've answered a lot of my questions there, Thank you. V helpful Schtuv - Brilliant tips there about keeping BG level etc. I'll take them on board. Thanks. Plus I didn't know about the driving licence bit! Kookookachu - I'll keep an eye out for the choccies Ta I've got more info from here than any Diabetes forum. YOU GUYS ROCK /vbb/images/smilies/bbcode_sad.gif Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SimonB Posted July 12, 2006 Share Posted July 12, 2006 I have type 1 diabetes, have since just after my 18th birthday 13 years ago. Mattanna has pretty much covered it, I am on the same system as him, one long acting insulin before bed and three rapid acting ones. You get used to it fairly quickly. You get pretty good at estimating how much carbohydrate is in the stuff you're eating to work out what dose of insulin you should use. I carry some glucose tablets, and always make sure there are some in the car. People do sometimes say "Ooo I could never do all those injections", to which I reply "well then you'd be dead in a couple of weeks!". It's not a big deal really when you're doing it yourself. It's only a small bit of the pancreas that goes wrong, the rest is still fine so it shouldn't make any difference to your immune system. However it's a fault in the immune system that causes it to attack that bit of the pancreas in the first place. The reason they tell you to have flu jabs is that it's hard to keep your sugar levels correct when you're ill - they go screwy and you have loss of appetite etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schtuv Posted July 12, 2006 Share Posted July 12, 2006 While I'm thinking about it - watch out for stress and temperature, these can change your insulin requirements. My BG drops like a stone in the heat, and when I'm under stress ... Travelling across timezones is something to watch out for as well with the timing of your long lasting insulin ... Don't forget to get a medic alert bracelet, just in case... And if you get the Diabetes UK magazine at any point try not to get depressed - it's common knowledge that it's only aimed at 90 year olds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobSheffield Posted July 12, 2006 Share Posted July 12, 2006 This is why even though I don't drive a Supra any more, I might still stick arround to be part of this warm caring community You dont drive Supra any more? right - get the f**k off my forums imposter hehe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
green_dragon Posted July 12, 2006 Author Share Posted July 12, 2006 People do sometimes say "Ooo I could never do all those injections", to which I reply "well then you'd be dead in a couple of weeks!". I've had loads of that already. I'll use that reply next time Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
green_dragon Posted July 12, 2006 Author Share Posted July 12, 2006 While I'm thinking about it - watch out for stress and temperature, these can change your insulin requirements. My BG drops like a stone in the heat, and when I'm under stress ... Travelling across timezones is something to watch out for as well with the timing of your long lasting insulin ... Don't forget to get a medic alert bracelet, just in case... And if you get the Diabetes UK magazine at any point try not to get depressed - it's common knowledge that it's only aimed at 90 year olds. It's this kind ofstuff that's going to be hard to start with, the bits you don't think about. Where do I get a medic alert bracelet from? Doctors? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
green_dragon Posted July 12, 2006 Author Share Posted July 12, 2006 You dont drive Supra any more? right - get the f**k off my forums imposter hehe No but I drove a Supra before you, so technically it's my forum Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schtuv Posted July 12, 2006 Share Posted July 12, 2006 Where do I get a medic alert bracelet from? Doctors? Yeah - they've probably got 1000s of leaflets on the side in the waiting room. If they don't then your local specialist/nurse will. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
green_dragon Posted July 12, 2006 Author Share Posted July 12, 2006 Nice one! I'm there in the morning anyway for another blood test! I'm surprised there is any left for them to test after the last 7 days of taking it from me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattanna Posted July 12, 2006 Share Posted July 12, 2006 Nice one! I'm there in the morning anyway for another blood test! I'm surprised there is any left for them to test after the last 7 days of taking it from me If you are on mixtard be careful as when you inject it in the morning it will start to work in about 30 mins so you have to eat breakfast, it will then kick in again about 4 hours later so you have to eat lunch or you could get caught out(hypo), ask your doctor about basal bolus system and see what he/she says, a lot of people start on mixtard but it is less flexible imo Matt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
green_dragon Posted July 12, 2006 Author Share Posted July 12, 2006 Will do mate, cheers. Slight sublect change - is that you in your sig? and is that a real tattoo? The reason I ask is that I want to get my first tattoo in August, but the diabetic specialist said it was not advisable for me to get one done? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattanna Posted July 12, 2006 Share Posted July 12, 2006 Will do mate, cheers. Slight sublect change - is that you in your sig? and is that a real tattoo? The reason I ask is that I want to get my first tattoo in August, but the diabetic specialist said it was not advisable for me to get one done? Yes mate that is me and it is real, i had this done whilst a diabetic, there is some talk(by doctors/nurses) that healing can be slower if you are diabetic, which after long term uncontrolled diabetes there is,it is bollocks really, if your blood sugar is constantly high you can be prone to more infections. medical staff just don't like tattoos(i have worked with doctors for 12 years and am a nurse), go to a reputable tattooist and you will be fine, perhaps wait until you have diabetes under control,but it is not a contraindication.They have to tell you that to cover themselves. cheers Matt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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