Calling all DIABETICS or Parents with Diabetic children

headchef

As I'm writing this Martin is on Radio 2. Good 'ole Martin. (Well i will be saving on snacks and biscuits quite soon...)

Weggy

Happy to help, and dont hesitate to ask if there's anything further I can help you with.

Having read your post though, can see where his problems are! I forget the last time I had a chocolate bar like a penguin! But strangely, after a few months, I really dont want one - not bothered. Only occasion treat I do have will be dariy milk - pure chocolate which is fine in moderation.... so I'll have like 2 of the small squares but that's only maybe once a fortnight - not stuffing my face full of it!
As for biscuits - try him on 'Digestives Light'. Dont tell him - I doubt he'll notice the difference unless he looks at the writing on the biscuit!

tenuissent

I am worried about my 72 yr old husband at the moment. He is at the tip of South America in atrocious weather, out and about on a research project with younger colleagues, taking much more exercise than he is used to and eating goodness knows what (type 2 diabetes controlled by diet and pills). He seems unaware of hunger and the need to eat regularly. When we are out together, I carry food and offer it to him after a few hours, but he refuses it. I have experienced a hypo with him, I think, but he denies it and doesn't remember it. I'll be relieved when he is safely back.

Can anyone describe for me a hypo experience where the person doesn't actually collapse but becomes vague and forgetful, doesn't seem to know where he is and seems generally exhausted (but still won't eat)?

Before he left, I wrote down some rather firm notes on how he MUST carry food AND eat it, or risk embarrassing himself and his colleagues by collapsing miles from anywhere and having to be rescued. If I know him at all, he'll put some chocolate at the bottom of a heavily packed rucksack and it will never be the right moment to unpack everything in the snow or rain to get it out..... I have ORDERED him to keep it in an accessible pocket......

anguk

fruityslh wrote:

I have a 37 year husband with Type I and poor control, it doesn't get any easier, he doesn't like being singled out as different, I think it will be failing health that'll make him follow things correctly, but at the moment I try to keep things healthy in the home.

Your husband sounds just like mine! He's a head-in-the-sand-it-won't-happen-to-me type and has badly controlled his sugar levels for about 20 years. Unfortunately that means that at the age of 43 he has high cholesterol, high blood pressure, had many bleeds behind his eyes and just to cap it all off he had his right leg amputated below the knee two years ago. He's also just been told that he has mild heart disease. When he had his leg amputated I thought it would be a bit of a wake-up call and he did control his sugar for about a year and lost about 2 stone but slowly he's started to drift back to his old ways (eating what he wanted & sometimes missing injections) although not as bad as before.

fruityslh wrote:

I've just learnt to accept that it is his body, his illness, ultimately he has to deal with that (I know I will too) but until he has his lightbulb moment I just do the best I can.

That's the thing, you also have to deal with it, that's what I find so frustrating, my life is also affected by his lack of diabetic control. I've only mentioned a few of his health problems but he has many more and I'm now his carer, my life has totally changed because of his attitude to his health.

I know all this might sound very selfish and I don't mean to be but if someone has an illness it does affect their loved one's. OH doesn't have a great quality of life now and my life revolves around him and it didn't have to be like this if he'd listened to the doctors and took some responsibility for his health. Luckily I love him to bits regardless

I've found that nagging just makes things worse so I just try my best by being creative with food so that he doesn't feel like he's having to watch what he eats. He can also enjoy all his favourite puddings and sweet things without missing out (granulated sweetener is my friend)!

I do hope your hubby has his "lightbulb moment" before the health problems start because I found that once he's got one the rest soon follow.

anguk

tenuissent wrote:

Can anyone describe for me a hypo experience where the person doesn't actually collapse but becomes vague and forgetful, doesn't seem to know where he is and seems generally exhausted (but still won't eat)?

My OH has had hypos like that, he gets very vague, can't remember if he's had anything to eat or an injection and gets a bit argumentative. I've had to check his sugar levels and firmly explain that he's having a hypo and make him have something to eat or drink, thankfully we've never reached the point where he's needed medical assistance. After his hypo he gets a terrible headache and feels really tired, he says it's as though all the life has been sucked out of him but he normally feels better after a few hours in bed.

tenuissent

Thanks for this, anguk. I thought he was having a small stroke, and as we were abroad I even wondered about calling in the insurance and flying him home at once. However, as you say, once he fell asleep for the night, he seemed to recover and was his old self in the morning. He's very good about what he shouldn't eat, it's remembering to eat at all that is the problem. I did consult a doctor the next day and she went for the stroke option, but I now think it was "just" a hypo. He won't discuss it at all with anyone, of course, as he doesn't believe it happened.

Your husband's health problems sound awful - I'm so sorry.

gravitytolls

Please, please, please look after your diabetes. My MIL is coming to the end of her time on earth; we are awaiting the call from the hospital now.

She has had diabetes for years, and blithely thought that she could eat whatever she wanted, as the Dr simply adjusted her insulin accordingly.

She went into hospital 5 weeks ago, and for the first time since diagnosis, it's been the best ever, needing insulin only at night, as opposed to the 4 huge daily doses previously. If only they'd taken her in for a month years ago, and proven to her how to look after the condition.

Now of course I'm not suggeting that every diabetic is going to have a shorter life because they don't care for it, but they risk so many other problems.

MIL's heart was weakened severly, auntie had diabetes and heart condition. When she was diagnosed some 40 years ago, she was told she only had 20 yrs, so she went hell for leather on living. Smoking, drinking eating whatever she liked.

Medical advances improved, and she didn't lose her life, but she had done so much damage to herself, that she suffered loss of both legs, before her heart finally gave out.

Please, all diabetics out there, you may not notice any change in yourselves now, but in the future any damage will become apparent, and it may be too late to turn the clock back. Listen to your Doc's, and follow their advice. And hey, the diabetic diet is a great one, it'll keep you slim as well as healthy, and you'll be the envy of all your sugar, fat laden friends.

MSE_ForumTeam1

Sorry guys, this is now too close to discussing medical issue/advice now so I will have to close the thread. The forums are for moneysaving issues. Although I'm sure there are many UK diabetes forums, the best advice is to ask a health professional.

Thanks