Hello anyone, I was recently diagnosed with T1D, I’m 29, female. At first everyone thought it was type 2 and that I was an “early onset, thinner type,” but after bloodwork results came back my PCP told me the news. I feel like I’ve been taking it all in stride. Diabetes has been so prevalent throughout life, it’s never seemed mysterious or unmanageable for those who have it. A number of family members have type 2 and one cousin also had type 1 onset in her 20s. So at least I have one person to help me out. But I’ve come to find I literally have no one in my immediate life who is also diabetic. I’m in this boat alone. And now that I’m injecting insulin I feel like everything has gotten so much harder…
Does everyone fluctuate a lot while they’re figuring out insulin in the beginning? It’s so hard… my hypoglycemic symptoms started happening before I was ever actually hypoglycemic. Around 150. I was told that if my blood sugar has been high for a long time then I would feel those things as it starts to lower, even if it’s not actually too low. So that sucks… I feel strange almost immediately after injecting… And I feel like I get panic attacks around 150mg/dL, but only get the typical hypoglycemic symptoms at 70 or lower- the shaky sweaty dizzy faint feelings. There is a huge difference in these sensations and as far as I can tell, no correlation between time of day or what I’ve eaten, just that the panic feelings come on around 150/160. Those are the worst times. I feel like I could faint, my breathing becomes shaky and difficult, talking is hard, and I go rigid trying to maintain some feeling of control over my body. And then I cry because I’m so scared and don’t understand why I’m feeling that way if my blood sugar is in fact high. Has anyone had similar sensations? It’s like feeling ungrounded and part of my “self’ is floating out of my body, hence the feeling of impending fainting, I guess…
That was a lot… if anyone has similar experiences or any suggestions I would be so grateful. Thank you.
hey welcome to our club. type 1 isn’t all that common, so it can be rare to know anyone else with it and it kinda means unless we come here to help each other out, we can be very alone.
In the beginning? yes, after 40 years of trial-and-error? yes. you see, automatic blood sugar control is awesome… the manual version isn’t so much. with only 30 grams of carbohydrates separating a hypo from a high… and “fast” insulin that takes 20 minutes to start working and hangs out for 4 hours… it’s pretty darn amazing if I get to feel normal for any length of time.
if your body is used to 200, then you will feel like you are going to die at 100. it’s the change that triggers that response. Now don’t hate the feelings… this is what wakes you up at night if you go low and the reaction is really very important. With a good year in training, you will get to feeling OK at 80-150 and feel low when you’re supposed to feel low.
get the “Think Like a Pancreas” book. get a good CDE and work with them to figure out an insulin strategy that works with your lifestyle. regular exercise is good… and we are here for you. please let us know how you are doing.
For me, once my body figured out what it was supposed to be doing with the insulin I was giving it, it all got better. Im not a doctor but I always just assumed that my body had trained itself to be “normal” at a higher BS number and then, once insulin was introduced, it had to re-train itself to what “normal” actually should be.
Wild fluctuations were always typical for me. I got my first insulin pump in 2001, and that helped A LOT! A pump helps you fine tune insulin to help smooth out the fluctuations.
I recommend a pump and an endocrinologist you communicate well with as the two things that will help you live the best life over the long haul.
had a lot of fluctuations and some scary lows when I was diagnosed in '85. They still happen but less often as long as im sticking to my carb ratios and count carbs
But the lows (and highs) sometimes do just happen for no apparent reason. Maybe a continuous glucose monitor would be helpful especially whi8le you’re getting accustomed to the diabetes.
Hello I too am newly diagnosed type 1 adult I was diagnosed in June 2018 at age 31 my sugars are EVERYWHERE no matter what I do. This shit is crazy and I feel very lonely too so even though we are in different pods we both are peas. I have been doing the sticks and pokes and jabs I do 60 min of intense exercise I pee on strips if I am too high and it all amounts to diddly! It has not gotten easier or less confusing in the 7 months I have been playing this very twisted game but according to others here it will. I have found that waking in the morning too high or too low is better than not waking at all and that all this shit to stay alive is better than not. So bring on the diddly cause that’s really the only choice we have. Keep it up and try to keep diabetes small. Every time I start to think negative I set a timer think and cry all I want for 5 min then I set the timer for 10 min and think of all the things I would have missed if I didn’t take care of myself I hug and kiss my girls put on my big girl panties and test and treat again. I don’t want to miss any of them and will do whatever it takes to be here find your I have to be there and look at that when it get hard.
Hi @jimjamz. What struck me about your post was your saying you started feeling strange almost immediately after injecting, and your reference to panic attacks. I’m no psychologist, but just as an observation I’m thinking you are feeling more stressed than you realize about the diabetes, even though it has been prevalent throughout your life. After all it is now “yours” - not your cousin’s or another family member’s.
There is a lot to learn (as you know) about how your body responds. I know when I hit 120 my numbers start to drop quickly, even though I feel perfectly fine. There will be some tweaking involved as you work with your doctor, diabetes nurse educator, and nutritionist to balance things out; but don’t forget about your mental health - get treatment to learn to cope with this new stressor and for your panic attacks. You do have a lot on you right now but working with your team should balance things out.
That was much appreciated and made me laugh, thank you @MOJomama I’ve recently found myself in a lull of comfort where the finger pokes and numbers either aren’t seeping in or somehow are not affecting my mood, which is great except I was awoken from this lull earlier today when I had a moment of remembering this would be my life for however long it lasts… and I was like, wtf? Forever? I’m in denial still. On the bright side, I have used the excuse of needing to inject my long lasting insulin at night as a way of getting out of conversations and going places with others, ha. It was true though, I did need to go home and inject. Now “I need to feed my dogs” isn’t my only excuse to avoid other people.
I’ve recently found myself in a lull of comfort where the finger pokes and numbers either aren’t seeping in or somehow are not affecting my mood, which is great except I was awoken from this lull earlier today when I had a moment of remembering this would be my life for however long it lasts… and I was like, wtf? Forever? I’m in denial still. On the bright side, I have used the excuse of needing to inject my long lasting insulin at night as a way of getting out of conversations and going places with others, ha. It was true though, I did need to go home and inject. Now “I need to feed my dogs” isn’t my only excuse to avoid other people.