Nightshift

Hello all

I have just started a new job at a nursing home. This work is all year round, with no such thing as 'holidays' in the eyes of those who run it or who live there....... a bit like Type 1 Diabetes, I suppose. Anyway, tonight I have to work the nightshift - 11PM to 7AM. I'm wondering what to do with my insulin dose.

In the past when I worked nights (which was never too often) I found that my blood sugars tended to misbehave and become erratic, no matter how hard I tried to keep them in the so-called 'correct' range. I remember also having a discussion with a dietitian about how I seemed to be able to take more insulin in the mornings and eat less without nosediving into a hypo, compared with if i took the same amount of insulin later in the day, where I would have to eat more just to avoid the hypo. She told me it had to do with hormones - not that I know much about them, but it makes me wonder if I do spend the whole night awake, will my body think it is still in day-time, and how will it react?

I was thinking of not taking my nighttime insulin, and instead just going on my quick-acting, just to see how I get on. This is all new to me, and I have to say I'm not looking forward to it. Nor do I want to hide behind my diabetes and let it dictate to me that I cannot do this - attractive as it may seem to someone who would like to work more regular hours. There must be some n urses or doctors or anyone else out there with Type 1 Diabetes who have to work night shifts - any ideas or advice for me? It would be greatly appreciated.

For now I think I'll just try to go on the short-acting, and see where it takes me. I'm comparing it to a trans-atlantic flight, where you travel east from Canada to Ireland - you lose a night's sleep, and just get back into the swing of things - but then again, you on ly do that once, you don't have to repeat the process later that week - if you do, you tend to travel back from where you came, not forwards again.

I'm confused, a bit scared, but I'll have to do something.

Thanks

John

Online Group for Long-Term Type 1s

Yesterday I was contacted by a Type 1 who has had diabetes for 24 years. She lives in Iowa. Her idea - which I think is an excellent one - is to start a group for people who have had Type 1 Diabetes for longer than (for example) 15 years. She says that most of the groups online seem to cater for those who have been newly diagnosed, which is fine, but that none of them cater to those among us who have had it for a long time. Having it for longer can present different issues than to those who are just diagnosed. For a start, we tend to be older, and they tell us that you are more at risk of developing complications the longer you have it.

I have to say I'm blessed - I've had it 34 years, and no major organs have been affected. I've had laser treatment on my eyes, which was successful, and in fact my eyesight is as good as anyone's. I've never needed glasses. However, that's not to say I won't develop complications later. For the first 32 years of my life I was an extremely physically active person - I swam competitively, I played football (soccer), judo, and went hill walking on many weekends. In between this I was also just out running and doing circuit training - well, it beats watching television - and i think that has really benefitted me. But now, I've moved country, I am married with 2 boys, and my woek schedule along with my responsibilities as a father and a husband do not always allow me the freedom to be as active as I once was. I too face the possibility of complications as I grow older, and as I heard someone say recently, "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure". Hear hear.

So, what would we discuss in this group for those who have had Type 1 Diabetes for, say, 15 or more years? Complications and their prevention, definitely. Insurance issues, probably. Experiences, anecdotes, ideas - well, hopefully. From my own life, I know that when I first heard other people with diabetes telling stories that could just have easily have had me at the central role, I knew then that I was not alone with this condition. No longer was I isolated, the fear and frustration began to dissipate. The joy of being in with this crowd of knowledgeable, caring, and fighting-the-same-issues-I-was people just lifted me emotionally and spiritually no end. It was magnificent! I remember the absolute joy of that weekend, and the huge let-down of having to say goodbye to all of these people at the end of the weekend seminar. This was in the days before the prevalence of such tools as the internet.

Now, however, we do have the internet at our disposal, there sitting, waiting, willing to work for us. If used properly, this wonderful tool can offer lifelines, an online support group of sorts, and hope to many people who might otherwise not be able to avail of it. It's there, it's available, it's easy to use. Why don't we?

Check back later for more details about website etc., but be sure this will happen, and if want it to, it can happen for YOU!

This blog is beginning to work....

Hello all

Just after I had written about the desire to create a community of Type 1s, what did I get only a Facebook message looking for me to join a group on that site. Great idea, and a good start to something which could gain momentum if we capitalize on the opportunity quickly. So, c'mon all you Type 1s out there, get on board and let's change how the world looks at Type 1, and also let's support each other. It's much needed, can cost next to nothing, and will help us all both in the long and short term.

Diabetes Community - Let it Grow

Over the past few years, it has been great to meet up with other people with diabetes to share experiences and advice about how we've all coped with different trials of life with diabetes. For years I had nobody to talk to whom I felt could really understand what it was to live with this condition. Then, after a weekend away to an event in the UK where I met with 119 other people my own age with Type 1 Diabetes, it totally changed my outlook and also my life. I finally found other people who had had similar - and worse - experiences to mine. They understood the nuances, implications and obstacles presented by living life with this condition. Just talking to and listening to them relieved so much burden, some of which I didn't even realise that I was carrying at the time.

It was so good, and I look back fondly on those weekends. I wish they could continue........ and I believe that they could. Since attending these events, I have come into contact with so many people who I know would be willing to join in such a community, where we could organize ourselves into a vocal organization which could represent people with diabetes in a truthful fashion, not one which is all about how things 'ideally' should be.

I have friends around the world now who live daily with Type 1 Diabetes. Are you going to be one of them? This is an idea which can grow with input from others all around the globe. We may not always agree - indeed, we don't always have to - but even the fact of meeting someone else and sharing your opinions, thoughts and feelings will go a long way to improving your quality of life.

This blog will continue, and when the followers grow, maybe then we can mobilise or organize ourselves into an active community. Who's for it?

John

Unbelievable!

I was just talking with someone a few days ago and she was doing her end-of-year exams. This can be a very stressful time for people, and when stress and diabetes mix, often a much more elevated blood sugar is the result. This happened, and as a result she fainted right slap-bang in the middle of the exam. When she came to, she checked and had a ketone reading. However, they didn't believe her, and she had to sit and do the exam all on her own, without them taking into consideration the fact that she was unwell, which would undoubtedly affect her exam performance. Not only did the examiners not believe her, but the doctors and nurses seem to think that it was her own doing, and even blamed her for having the ketones.

My blood boiled when I heard of this. What other condition in the world are there where those who have to live with it day in day out are treated as if it is their own fault, like they decided to get this condition on purpose to see how their lives would improve? Not only did she suffer in the exam, she also suffered in the hospital, where they placed the blame squarely on her shoulders - EVEN THOUGH SHE DID EXACTLY AS THEY TOLD HER TO DO!!!!!!!! They cannot accept responsibility when they mess up, but if anything goes right they are the first to take the credit.....

Even now as I write this I have to breathe deeply to control my anger. The arrogance and intolerance and judgementalism of some people - no wonder so many people with Type 1 Diabetes trust so few who treat them without ever having any understanding of what it is to actually live with the condition. If this type of relationship continues, they will wonder why they are doing such a poor job - without ever admitting it..........

Okay, so today I awoke with a blood sugar of 13, after going to bed with a perfect 6 and a bowl of cereal. Why does this happen? If I'd gone to bed with a 9 or 10, I probably would have woken with an 8 or something. This condition can be frustrating, especially when what you do is right and the results aren't what you would like them to be.

Actually, that is one of the most annoying aspect to Type 1 Diabetes - when you actually do try to do your best, sometimes it doesn't always work out. Then again, this is an inexact science - what works for me may not work for you, and vice versa. Not that it's the only annoying thing, I'm sure you'll agree, but I'm sure we'll touch upon them later - don't want to harp on about them and bring myself down.

Just had lunch, with a pre-lunch score of 6.7 - not bad at all. I must be doing something right - after all, I've had this for 34 years now, and I still don't need glasses, my kidneys and major organs are fine, and I'm probably a lot fitter then many out there, even if diabetes isn't a factor in their lives. Methinks it has paid to have put myself through all of those strenuous training sessions over the years.....just wish I could continue in the same vein. Please God He will sort something out whereby I can become more active than I currently am.

Again, would love to get some feedback.

Thanks

John

Welcome everyone interested in knowing more about, discussing, ranting and raving and even enjoying life with Type 1 Diabetes!

Hello everyone out there, and you are very welcome to this new blog about living life with Type 1 Diabetes, something which I have done for over 34 years now (diagnosed 15 May 1975). I've had ups and downs (very cliched, I know, but forgive and bear with me.... :-> ), learned a lot, discovered a lot of ignorance and myths out there, as I'm sure you did too ("You're on four injections a day? You must have it really bad......") which can either cause you to grit your teeth or smile and nod knowingly at the poor, misinformed creature in front of you, all of which and more I addressed in my book "LIVING LIFE WITH DIABETES" which is well worth a read, believe me!!

Anyway, this is my brief introduction, and this is where I'll be sharing my thoughts and insights about life with Type 1 (and also just life in general, I suppose) - how it can affect us, physically, mentally, and emotionally, even if the hospitals only usually address the physical end of it. However, there is a lot more to living with Type 1 Diabetes than that, as I'm sure you know.

Anyway, enough for now except to say thanks for dropping by, and hopefully you can find a use for these words of mine which will be appearing in front of you. Please feel free to leave a comment or two - I'd love to hear from you.

Best wishes, and God Bless.

John