Type 1 Diabetes

Yes, the lows and highs are very difficult. It's hard on him but also the family.

Tell dugan to hang in there. I am 38 y/o male in texas and Ive had it since I was 10. Let him know that there are people out there who understand and Im sure my wife and kids will tell you its not easy for them either, but know this, your support and encouragement are very important to him. I know it is difficult to handle for everyone involved. Hang in there family!!!!!!!!

PS I am also a bit moody with low or high sugar and this is a normal but unfortunate side effect, but I try not to use it as an excuse to be a crab!!!!!!!

I have been a diabetic for 10 years. The lows he is getting measns he is taking too much insulin for what he eats. I would definitely suggests he sarts to lower his insulin intake slowly as to avoid the lows.

Oh man I totally understand! I am a diabetic type 1 and when I get a low blood sugar I get so mean. I try not to talk to anyone but everything bothers me. I explained to my boyfriend that I dont mean to be mean but its just a side effect that I can not control. Having a low blood sugar takes control of your body. The only thing that can stop it is food or sugar. Maybe for next time your husband gets a low blood sugar make sure that you know that the mean person is not him and that it is just a stage that diabetics deal with.

Yep. I've been type 1 for 38 years. My lows lately--well, for the past few years happen pretty quick. I get mean...Over the years I have had several severe lows..where I am still able to walk and talk---but have no clue what I'm doing. I have had only had one ambulance trip....in all this time. My husband has been supportive and caring...we have been married 18 years. We have 3 sons.

I have just joined the group and have just read your post. I have sympathy for you. My boyfriend is type 1. He is 58. He is having alot of lows, usually 1 a day, sometimes in the 30's...last week down to 22. He can get very mean and sometimes fights me. It is very scary. One time I grabbed my carkeys and stayed away. He had grabbed me from behind and held on. He is normally very mild mannered. I am really frustrated. If I am not around I guess he would pass on if no one else is either. I have saved him probably 100's of times in the last 3 years.

It IS very scary and no one really understands unless they're living it. I too have saved my husband's life many times. He's had two episodes in the last year when his blood sugar was 17 (the lowest it's ever been). He does not like to check his blood sugar and there are many times it could have been avoided if he had just checked. He is a very good/mild mannered man also but he gets so agitated and "out of it" when his blood sugar drops, he doesn't even remember a lot of it. It is very frustrating, isn't it. I wish I had advise for you, but I'm not sure what to do either. I called 911 at 6:00am the other day and after his blood sugar came up, had to go to work, but I was a mess. Maybe we can be a sounding board for each other! Hang in there!

my also has husband has type 1. we've been together for four years now.

i thought T1 might get easier to deal with but, that's not what i'm noticing.

my husband is very healthy, vegan, doesn't drink or smoke. he doesn't have the pump, he has a dexcom machine that is supposed to give him an idea in which direction his blood sugar is going. it doesn't always work.

it's 2:40 am in L.A. now and i just called 911 to have the paramedics come since he wouldn't listen to me and was acting irrational and angry. i've never had to do that before, and i really need to talk about this - so, i searched for an online support group, and here i am.

we just had a huge fight. he's back to normal now but he's upset that i called 911. he says that i over react. but i tried for a long time to get him to drink juice, take a glucose tablet, check his blood sugar. he refused all of that in a very pissed off way because when he's very low he's not rational. he was calling me names, saying i'm insane and to go away - all along refusing the juice i'd bring him. he screamed that i was crazy, which is not like him. he's normally a loving, good guy who loves me very much, so, it's even stranger and scarier that this happens. it's like he becomes someone else. he keeps saying that i should have waited. waited for what? for him to pass out? i had no idea of knowing what his blood sugar was since he wouldn't let me check him.

it's all too much sometimes. i thought i was happy to take care of him for the rest of my life, since i love him so much, but i don't know if i can do it like this. if he thinks i'm not doing it "correctly." that makes all of this so much worse.

he was acting like a mean drunk and the paramedics said that it gets worse as they get older.

so, i guess this is normal. normal isn't so great.

thanks for reading. i needed to vent.
love and peace,
annie

called 911 tonight for the first time.
my husband refused to take juice or glucose and was acting very mean with me. i didn't know what to do as i thought he would just get lower if he didn't have any glucose. finally i called 911 because i was scared.
then - when he came back to his normal self - he was pissed off at me! telling me that i didn't need to call. but when i ask him what i should have done, he doesn't have an answer for that. it's very difficult when one person is not in their right mind. i thought we'd move forward and say "that was scary." but instead, he angry with me.
yes, let's be a sounding board. i don't know anyone in my life in this exact situation, so, thank you internet!
love and peace,
annie

I wish they would find a cure for this awful disease. My husband has had this for 40 years and he's done pretty good taking care of himself-sometimes in spite of himself. He's doing ok but these lows sometimes come so fast. I don't know anyone else going through this either, and I've looked for many years. My husband does not like me calling 911 either but, like you, there's a point where we know it will just get worse if they don't eat or drink; we have no choice. He understands that, I think. Anyway, it is upsetting to go through for BOTH of us, to say the least; especially when you don't see it coming.
I thank everyone for sharing-it really does help to know we're not alone.

Just wanted to touch base with everyone and see how things are going. I hope there haven't been anymore 911 calls recently for any of you. We had a close call on vacation and have decided traveling and being out of the day to day routine is a challenge. My vision of retirement has changed. Does anyone have an insulin pump or wear a device that detects the highs and lows? I would love to know how successful they are.

Pat, I loved my pump. I found it much easier (although it does take a lot of work) to get good control. I tried a CGM for a while (continuous glucose monitor) but I didn't find it that accurate. Some people have success with it, but I think it depends on if you get a good one or not.

Cora

hi. no more 911 calls and he seems to be really on top of things - especially before going to bed, which is great. he doesn't have a pump but he has a dexcom monitor that detects which direction he is going. he's had that for 2 years now and it really does help figure out where he is but it doesn't always work correctly so it's not 100%. he still has to check his insulin himself a few times a day. but the dexcom has an alert beep that goes off when he starts to get too low or too high.

bottom line is - we both have to be on top of things and live our lives happy and healthy the best we can.

i DO think the dexcom has helped a lot though. check out more about it here - https://www.dexcom.com

love and peace,
annie