[Diabetes] General Chat and Support Thread

Bannasidhe

scarymoon1 wrote: »

I hate this diabetes

Me too.

I really, really hate it - yours, mine and everyone's.

everyday taxi

Two weeks down on this Newcastle diet. Lost approx 13lb. Sugars generally in the morning 4.5 to 5.5. During the day and evening range from 6.0 to 9.5. Have started walking to aid good control. About 25 min walks, once sometimes twice a day. Hope to shift about another stone, and get them afternoon and evening sugars down to "normal". Seems to get more difficult to stop craving something nice.................like a sausage, some bacon, southern fried chicken, lasagne.....a biscuit, a twix, a cake.........ONLY six more weeks...!!

lucernarian

I've been toying with the Contour USB meter recently, on the suggestion of my diabetes nurse. I like the USB charging aspect and how it records more data than my Optium Xceed meter, but the strips supplied are a pain in the ass. With the strips for the Xceed (Now called Freestyle Optium I think) I could throw one or two into my pocket along with the slim meter and a lancet so I could check it in any manner of situations, from going on a walk to going on a night out.

My question is, are there any meters out there on the LTI scheme that might offer better features than the Optium Xceed but still has individual strips that I don't have to keep in an original chunky bottle? The wallet that came with the Contour USB is not very well designed, having one zipped section meaning either I can keep unused lancets in it or else used ones. I don't want to have used sharps lying around in the same section, especially if someone else has to use the meter to test me in an emergency.

Any suggestions or advice on meters or more useful travelling cases for them?

P.S. I will keep the Optium Xceed for my ketone testing, any other interesting meters don't have to have ketone testing features.

CramCycle

You don't have to carry a full packet of strips. you can throw a few in your wallet/purse in a small ziplock bag. As for the sharps, I never carry extras unless I am away for a few days, would you not just use the same one a few times for the day and keep your spare strips in there?

Royal Legend

everyday taxi wrote: »

Two weeks down on this Newcastle diet. Lost approx 13lb. Sugars generally in the morning 4.5 to 5.5. During the day and evening range from 6.0 to 9.5. Have started walking to aid good control. About 25 min walks, once sometimes twice a day. Hope to shift about another stone, and get them afternoon and evening sugars down to "normal". Seems to get more difficult to stop craving something nice.................like a sausage, some bacon, southern fried chicken, lasagne.....a biscuit, a twix, a cake.........ONLY six more weeks...!!

It gets easier, tiredness, cravings, eventually go away, I am going to give it another few weeks, I have not stuck to it rigidly for the last three weeks, still keeping the weight down.
Keep it up, the hard bit comes where the weight stops dropping off in pounds.

lucernarian

CramCycle wrote: »

You don't have to carry a full packet of strips. you can throw a few in your wallet/purse in a small ziplock bag. As for the sharps, I never carry extras unless I am away for a few days, would you not just use the same one a few times for the day and keep your spare strips in there?

Bayer seem very adamant that the strips must be kept in the bottle and lid kept closed. I presume they have a good reason for this, or that the foil-wrapped ones are done so for good reasons also. I presume you mean keeping the one or two lancets in the ziplock bag?

Though I have looked into a few different pros and cons, and the bottled containers of 25 or 50 strips seem to need workarounds of one sort or other whereas the foil-lined ones are ready to carry (in small numbers anyway). I wonder are there other manufacturers who use foil-lined strips that are available on the LTI?

CramCycle

To_be_confirmed wrote: »

Bayer seem very adamant that the strips must be kept in the bottle and lid kept closed. I presume they have a good reason for this, or that the foil-wrapped ones are done so for good reasons also. I presume you mean keeping the one or two lancets in the ziplock bag?

Though I have looked into a few different pros and cons, and the bottled containers of 25 or 50 strips seem to need workarounds of one sort or other whereas the foil-lined ones are ready to carry (in small numbers anyway). I wonder are there other manufacturers who use foil-lined strips that are available on the LTI?

Nope I meant the strips, the strips work through the GDH on the strips, moving a few temporarily into a sealed ziplock bag will not greatly reduce their working ability.

Yakuza

FWIW, My daughter's meter is a Freestyle Optimum, (they gave us a few in the hospital) and I rang Abbott and they sent me a USB cable that I can hook up to the meter and download all the data from its memory (along with software to analyse it).

everyday taxi

Royal Legend wrote: »

It gets easier, tiredness, cravings, eventually go away, I am going to give it another few weeks, I have not stuck to it rigidly for the last three weeks, still keeping the weight down.
Keep it up, the hard bit comes where the weight stops dropping off in pounds.

Thanks. I'll fight on

lucernarian

CramCycle wrote: »

Nope I meant the strips, the strips work through the GDH on the strips, moving a few temporarily into a sealed ziplock bag will not greatly reduce their working ability.

Assuming I do indeed use them up quickly or know how long they've been in a bag for. If I end up using one out of 3 or 4, I would have to use up the remainder in the near future or throw them out. I can leave the foil-wrapped ones in the bottom of a suit pocket or leave them in other places as a backup, and they have the best before printed on each strip.

Anyway enzymes are not something to be mucked around with, and I presume the manufacturers know what is or isn't advisable for their storage!

Anyway, are there many aftermarket cases etc. for blood sugar meters and also, does anyone know where or how I can find out the complete list of blood sugar meters that are covered by the LTI currently?

Eurovisionmad

I'd just like to say massive thanks to Hamilton Long Pharmacy on O'Connell Street for giving me a new insulin pen without any hassle, especially as I only had my LTI number with me and no book! I had lost my original one while shopping in Dublin today, I was worried I'd have to go to an out of hours GP or A&E to get a prescription!

BlackEdelweiss

Would anybody have a contact email for the Diabetic Clinic in Letterkenny hospital. I have moved abroad and the diabetic care here is crap to say the least. I had great help from the nurses at home and would just like to run a few things by them.

graflynn

BlackEdelweiss wrote: »

Would anybody have a contact email for the Diabetic Clinic in Letterkenny hospital. I have moved abroad and the diabetic care here is crap to say the least. I had great help from the nurses at home and would just like to run a few things by them.

Most HSE employees emails are first name.lastname@hse.ie That might work.

CramCycle

Just watching another tv show that has a diabetic character. Great, Diabetes is now common place in the media, it is unrealistic that in any show that has a cast over 100 that you would not have a few diabetics of either type in there.

So a show now has a type 1 in a setting where insulin is unobtainable so one of the main protagonists will eventually die.

So far so realistic except for her OH keeps trying to ply her with food, when she is low on insulin, when she seems hypo, when she seems hyper, sometimes just when she just gets justifiably annoyed.

Apparently we just need insulin for kicks.

Does it annoy anyone else that despite the know the prevalence of diabetes (type 1 and 2), how misleading fiction can be. I realise the irony of the last few words.

The_Conductor

Similar scenario in 'Under the Dome' from about 2 months ago.

People do not understand that there is a difference between Type 1 diabetes and Type 2 diabetes- and seem to think Type 2 diabetics eat too much, and Type 1's- too little. Type 2's get high blood sugars- and type 1s need insulin (no understanding of why they need insulin- they just 'do').

Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes have become hopelessly confused with one another, symptoms, treatments, care, what is needed etc- the episode of 'Under the Dome' from a few months back serves to reinforce this.

Quite a few of the Type 1 diabetes forums brought this up for example here:

http://community.diabetes.org/t5/Adults-Living-with-Type-1/Stephen-King-s-Series-Under-the-Dome-Diabetes-Line/td-p/386226

http://forums.childrenwithdiabetes.com/showthread.php?t=28492

http://diabetescommunity.dlife.com/dlifebookclub/go/thread/view/56735/25640061/Under_the_Dome,_by_Stephen_King

Then again- you also have the likes of Steel Magnolia's to thank for this:

Where Type 1 diabetic women are told they could die from hypoglycaemia in childbirth and shouldn't have children etc etc etc.

Unfortunately- the issue would seem to be that the symptoms and treatments of type 1 and type 2 diabetes have become hopelessly confused with one another- and this confusion is perpetuated in the media, in films, and more often than not, on the internet.

CramCycle

The_Conductor wrote: »

Similar scenario in 'Under the Dome' from about 2 months ago.

Just started watching it last night It's gonna bug me the only realistic thing is her wife stealing the insulin, that is the only thing that makes sense so far.

caligg

Eurovisionmad wrote: »

I'd just like to say massive thanks to Hamilton Long Pharmacy on O'Connell Street for giving me a new insulin pen without any hassle, especially as I only had my LTI number with me and no book! I had lost my original one while shopping in Dublin today, I was worried I'd have to go to an out of hours GP or A&E to get a prescription!

Just in case this happens to others, I've found over the years that in cases of emergency pharmacies are very helpful in dispensing insulin without LTI book or prescription. They do prefer to have the LTI code but they can call your regular pharmacy to obtain this.

Eurovisionmad

caligg wrote: »

Just in case this happens to others, I've found over the years that in cases of emergency pharmacies are very helpful in dispensing insulin without LTI book or prescription. They do prefer to have the LTI code but they can call your regular pharmacy to obtain this.

I think it was discussed a bit back on this thread that you're better off trying small family-run or stand-alone pharmacies for help rather than the big chains as they're less likely to have a corporate line about not giving it out without the book!

herisson

Hi, I'm pixie.

Got diagnosed this morning that I'm diabetic, after 2 months of my doctor knowing. Kinda freaking out over it. I'm on glucophage tablets at the moment. I actually know nothing about it at all. Really freaking out about it.

graflynn

Pixie-Fairy wrote: »

Hi, I'm pixie.

Got diagnosed this morning that I'm diabetic, after 2 months of my doctor knowing. Kinda freaking out over it. I'm on glucophage tablets at the moment. I actually know nothing about it at all. Really freaking out about it.

Hi Pixie, take a couple of deep breaths and shake off the freak out a bit. Here's a bit of information to get you started on the right path.

http://www.examiner.com/article/diabetes-a-beginner-s-guide

For more help on a person to person level enquire about any diabetes courses that may be run in your area; CODE, DESMOND, XPERT, etc.

And let us know how you're doing.

herisson

Hey,

Thank you for the link I will take a look at it and see if I can my head around it.

Toto Wolfcastle

First of all, if your doctor has known for 2 months that you have diabetes and hasn't told you until today then look into lodging a formal complaint.

Don't freak out. My husband was diagnosed a few years ago and I was so worried when I found out. I remember thinking he was going to die in his sleep that night or something. At the beginning it was difficult because his diet was pretty crap so changing his habits was hard. As time went on it became much easier though. He lost 3 stone pretty quickly as he changed his diet and his diabetes is under control. He never has any issues.

Don't worry about knowing nothing about it. We didn't know anything either. His doctor referred him to the diabetes clinic in Connolly Hospital and we attended a Desmond course which gave us all the information we needed, so look into doing that.

We sometimes think that it was a good thing that he was diagnosed because it gave him the kick in the ass he needed to get going and lose some weight. It's not always easy, but it is very manageable if you're willing to put some work in and life goes on.

5live

Bobblehead Panda wrote: »

First of all, if your doctor has known for 2 months that you have diabetes and hasn't told you until today then look into lodging a formal complaint.

Don't freak out. My husband was diagnosed a few years ago and I was so worried when I found out. I remember thinking he was going to die in his sleep that night or something. At the beginning it was difficult because his diet was pretty crap so changing his habits was hard. As time went on it became much easier though. He lost 3 stone pretty quickly as he changed his diet and his diabetes is under control. He never has any issues.

Don't worry about knowing nothing about it. We didn't know anything either. His doctor referred him to the diabetes clinic in Connolly Hospital and we attended a Desmond course which gave us all the information we needed, so look into doing that.

We sometimes think that it was a good thing that he was diagnosed because it gave him the kick in the ass he needed to get going and lose some weight. It's not always easy, but it is very manageable if you're willing to put some work in and life goes on.

You just summarised my life:D

Pixie fairy it may just turn out to be a 'good' thing to happen to you. Like the above story, my diet and lifestyle were pretty poor before i was diagnosed but 21 years later my life expectancy is probably better than my peers due to taking better care of myself.

Just take it one day at a time. There is lots of info out there and lots of support on here so you will be grand:)

herisson

Right i need help. Im getting really paranoid about what i eat and drink

Obviously i know about fizzy drinks, chocolate(which i dont eat anyway), adding sugar into things, energy drinks, sweets, fruit juices etc

But is there any other ones i really should be avoiding, ones that arent so obvious?

Munstermissy

Limit your carbohydrate intake Pixie, bread, pasta, potatoes, rice. Use brown bread, etc if you can't cut back. Watch out for fruit juices, low fat yougarts and fruits as well.

A tip I was given when I was first diagnosed was 2g sugar little, 10g too much. Start getting used to reading labels on foods. It does get easier but stick with it.

Best of luck.

Yakuza

@Pixie, If you've a smartphone, get the Carbs and Cals app, a very handy reference for how many carbs are in a given food (and in given portions))

AlbionCat

Hi Pixie-Fairy (Lovely name:))

I know that feeling about being paranoid about what to eat / drink - got diagnosed back in March but have it under control now.

definitely recommend you get on a DESMOND course - it teaches you about what foods are better to consume when a diabetic.

I also raided my local library and there was a Diabetes for Dummies book which walked me through understanding it. (It is also available in the Kindle store as well). I also read a few other books on the subject and I tend to kick around on the website at http://www.diabetes.co.uk/ . I know it is a UK site but they have a Forum with lots of lovely people (and as with forums - some not so lovely people!). Scout around - you will come across a welcome post that is often posted and has a wealth of info. It helped me a great deal to start getting the sugar levels under control as I had to wait 4 months for the DESMOND.

In the meantime I will say this - please dont panic/worry if you get overwhelmed by it all at the beginning. Take a big breath and count to 10. There is a huge amount of info to take in and it can be a lot in one go. Just remember you will control the Diabetes - don't let it control you!

baby fish

What are the normal steps taken e.g. further GP visits/visit to diabetic clinic / more blood tests etc..etc..taken following 1st blood test which confirms a person is diabetic?

I know of a case where after of 1st blood test the doctor gave prescription for tablets and told patient to call back in 4 weeks. No further advice given re diet, referral to diabetic clinic, nothing

What should happen? Who needs to be seen.

5live

baby fish wrote: »

What are the normal steps taken e.g. further GP visits/visit to diabetic clinic / more blood tests etc..etc..taken following 1st blood test which confirms a person is diabetic?

I know of a case where after of 1st blood test the doctor gave prescription for tablets and told patient to call back in 4 weeks. No further advice given re diet, referral to diabetic clinic, nothing

What should happen? Who needs to be seen.

I am surprised there wasn't a follow up scheduled in at most a week to check if glucose levels were at an acceptable rate and a dietician appointment made to explain what foods to avoid and what ones to bring into the diet. And of course a visit to the clinic, as you say.

My advice would be to advise the person to visit another doctor or make an appointment themselves for the clinic.

baby fish

5live wrote: »

I am surprised there wasn't a follow up scheduled in at most a week to check if glucose levels were at an acceptable rate and a dietician appointment made to explain what foods to avoid and what ones to bring into the diet. And of course a visit to the clinic, as you say.

My advice would be to advise the person to visit another doctor or make an appointment themselves for the clinic.

Thanks for your reply,

I was thinking that something like this should happen but wasn't sure because I have no personal experience. New doc appointed already.