Be Excellent To Each Other

Hi Folks,

Just had the shock of mu life by being diagnosed with diabetes.

Do any of you lot on here have it, and if so any tips..

I am just waiting for the Nurse to pop round to show my how to inject myself..

on a plus note I now get free prescriptions

Bollocks. What type?

Unlucky, chap. That really sucks.

Hope it's not too much of a problem for you, chap.

I'll reassure you with this though - subcutaneous self-injecting is a piece of cake.

Sorry to hear that dude. On the upside, you're allowed to carry sweeties now

Sorry to hear it, but it's completely manageable dude, don't sweat.

My Dad and Uncle both have it and just get on as normal.

Type 1. Well that is what the consulatant thinks..

I am not down about it, it is just one of those things

Indeed, there's no point getting down about it. As long as you're not an idiot, you should be able to easily manage it.

Yes just to basically watch how much sugar I can take.

the inconvenient bit, is that I can't play rugby for a few weeks till i get used to managing my sugar levels.

Isn't sugar intolerance a banning offense around here?





But seriously, that's abit shit.

Ah, shit. Sorry about that. Must be a blow if you play an energetic sport like rugby.

Still, bright side - it's better to be diagnosed than to not, and as you say, you get free prescriptions, and you don't have to worry about be uninsurable. Which would be a worry in Germany, for example.

On top of the free prescriptions thing, you also get to take as many sick days as you like for the next few months.

"I must've fucked up my insulin last night or something, what a feeble n00b I am!" "Oh, er, right, don't be silly, see you in a few days when you've got it sorted out then, haha!"

"Oof, all this heat/cold/work is really screwing up my blood sugar, I've not got enough insulin with me, I'd better go home just in case I fall over and cause all sorts of health and safety problems for you!"

I wish I was diabetic

I don't really. Still, worse things happen at sea, stiff upper lip old chap, what?

Yeah, unlucky man. I'm sure you'll adjust though and be able to carry on pretty much as normal. No idea if you have a holiday booked but if you do then check out in advance what you'll need to do to get on the plane and into your destination country with your meds and needles. They can be a bit funny about that sort of thing.

It is not going to stop me playing at all, i just have to get used to how my body works now.

So hit the gym and train, but no rugby for a month.

Sorry to hear that Kov my nan has Diabetes. It's not as scary as it used to be though, now they do all kinds of stuff and as long as you are sensible then I'm sure you will be fine

Still sorry to hear it though it's a bummer

It's really easy to live a healthy life with diabetes..

They say that cinnamon helps to regulate blood sugar levels and there are alot of supplements out there to help out.

Basically it just requires eating very healthy and taking care of yourself

I used to take a cinnamon supplement and don't have diabetes (though I do get my levels checked yearly) and tbh I felt better for it..

I'm sure very ripe bananas are good for you aswell. Potassium and natural sugar or something?? Don't quote me on it though, I just remember something like that from when I did that carers course

Sorry to hear that dude!

How do you catch Diabetes then, and how should one behave in such a way as to not catch it?

I had a girlfriend with Diabetes, and she got along just fine by keeping up with what she eats and jabbing herself in the leg with an insulin syringe every now and then.

Did I diagnose this a while ago, or am I imagining that?
[edit]That was RyuSan. No Doctorhood for me

Absolutely. There are loads of diets that will regulate blood sugar very well.

Some diabetics hardly need to inject insulin because tbh if you don't consume much sugar then your pancreas can handle it well.

I've been guilty in the past of massive sugar intake. I'm amazed I'm not diabetic tbh. I guess my pancreas work really well..

And by massive I mean at least a 12 pack of cans a day along with all kinds of sweets and quite frankly shit.

Thankfully since working for a natural healthcare place I have culled the ammounts of sugar.

Former Spurs captain Gary Mabbutt is diabetic and had to frequently inject himself prior to games.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/4674166.stm

Probably worth reading anything Gary has to say on the subject that you can find. He played at the top level for about 20 years with the condition so it need not hold you back.

Thanks Chin, a few top rugby players are diabetic too.

My consulant treats a few, and said he will ask some of them to chat to me to show me how diabetes and rugby work.

haven't got tested yet. I have about 6 pharmacies in my block (i'm serious) so i have no real excuse.

my cousin played football at the highest levels domestic and international and was diabetic so dont let it stop you doing anything

I already mentioned him!

Famous diabetics

Halle Berry
Brett Michaels

And loads of sports people.

And Freddy Mercury (subs please check).

Cool sorry I didnt read the whole thread.

Mine was discovered at a health check up on Wednesday last week.

Very high sugar levels in my blood... oh well.

Only 3 jobs I can't do, Fly Planes, become a HGV driver or join police (or any services).. so no great loss

No worries. I mentioned Gary straight away as he was a model professional aside from the fact he had to cope with being diabetic.

Can you imagine if Ronaldo was diabetic? After being diagnosed he'd spend a month rolling around on the floor clutching his knee!

Sir Steve Redgrave is diabetic, and won 2 (I think, but at least one) of his golds after being diagnosed with it.

Malc

Yeah, but he didn't get a giant hat in the shape of the FA Cup:

This is only type 2. Type 1 (the one you get when you're under 50 and not massively overweight) is where your pancreas gradually (over the course of a few months) stops producing insulin altogether.

I've had it for thirteen years. It's a shock at first, but it is manageable, and can (if you follow the dietry guidelines carefully - more so than I do these days, I have to confess) actually lead to you being healthier than you were before.

Do you know yet which type of insulin you're being put on, and whether it will be two or four injections a day?

My advice is don't panic, try (if you're on two injections a day) get onto four a day as soon as possible, as it makes like much easier and more flexible, ignore "diabetic chocolate" as it's just as bad for you, costs twice as much and gives you the shits - you can eat normal sweets (with reason) - just make sure you inject enough and test your blood sugar level later on, and above all, take advice from medical professionals, rather than a bunch of us spouting half-truths on a web forum!

Good luck chap!

Quick piece of advice.

Don't eat the sugar free boiled sweets !

I got some from Marks & Sparks a week ago. First night I ate two raspberry and strawberry. Had untold stomach cramps and the runs all the next day.

Not realising what caused it I ate about 4 the next night (inc the tangerine ones) and inverted my stomach all the next day.

I still have pains.. When I read the back of the box it gives a caution about being a laxative if you eat too many. That's 2 then.

As I said, it (sorbitol, generally) gives you the shits.

Thanks.. I might be quizzing you a bit then, if that is ok.

I am on 2 pens
Lantus - once a day
Novarapid - 3 - 4 times a day.

Awaiting a meeting with the nurse, to show me how to use my new toys.

I don't eat / drink a lot of sugar anyway, so won't be too hard to adjust.
As long as I can still have beer, I will be happy

I have a story from the nurse who came round to teach me how to self-inject. I will tell this story only after you've been shown how to do it

that is something to look forward too

No worries - happy to help if I can!
Ah, same as me! They are (compared to insulins I've used previously) really good ones. Lantus releases itself at the same level for 24 hours. Before that I had Insulatard which tapered off slowly. Before Novorapid, I was on Actrapid, which was a pain because you were supposed to wait half an hour after injecting before eating (which was fine in theory but qutie inconvenient if you were eating out or didn't know what time you'd be eating for whatever reason - or if you just forgot until the last minute).

They were nothing compared to the pain-in-the-arse (not literally - the needles are so small you don't feel them, as long as you change them regularly enough) of Mixtard though, which was a mixture of slow and quick release that you were only supposed to take twice a day, once in the morning and once in early evening. This meant you had to have lunch exactly the right time or risk going hypo/hyper.

This is all of no real use to you, but goes to illustrate how it could be worse and how far treatment has come on in the last few years.

You'll be fine there. They have to be usable by fairly young kids, so are obviously pretty user-friendly.

MUST RESIST... MUST RESIST.....

Is it a tiny prick?

GAH!!!!

just no... lol

Can I have my story now... I has been shown how to prick myself and stuff

I knew someone who went blind. He had a pretty dark sense of humour and he was sent someone who would help him acclimatise.

The woman ended up walking out because he wound her up so much. Which was abit unfair as he was the one who had gone blind and he was only having a laugh at his own expense.

Cheerful stories please !!

This nurse I had visited a young chap who had to inject himself (this was needles, none of your fancy pen nonsense) around the outside of the belly. He was a skinny lad, and you are recommended to do it with force, like throwing a dart, so you don't really feel it. The lad proceeded to do so, and whacked it straight into his hip. The needle snapped and he had to go to hospital to have it cut out.

She looked at me and said "I guess we won't have that trouble with you". Bitch.

Did you keep trying to snap a needle on your hip just to prove her wrong?

Needles weren't long enough

I am just reading up on 'Hypos', what sort of stuff do you carry for it?

Lucozade tablets are a good bet. They don't melt like chocolate, and they keep for an age.

another question..

What do you use to carry all your stuff.

Currently I use my blood glucose case, but it does not have room for my insulin pen nor lucozade tablets.