I don't know how some people manage type 1 diabetes, exercise and feel pretty good. I was diagnosed 2 years ago with type 1 and the first year was pretty good for me. I was feeling ok. I went to the gym and every evening I went for a walk. Second year was absolutely the opposite. I don't know what went wrong. I started to get dizzy and was feeling weird, I can't even describe it. I went to several doctors but they couldn't find anything. I was feeling generally sick. Had stomach aches and nausea almost every day. My diet was home made food pretty much. My sugar wasn't super high. Below 200 for sure. But nobody could figure out why I was not feeling good. I quit exercising, gained weight and felt "blank". In 4 months I started to feel better but it only lasted a couple of months and I started to feel sick again , right after I was given four shots of steroids for back pain. I have been all messed up ever since. I honestly don't know how to handle all this. I am usually a positive person. In the past I used to be into fitness but now I am a completely different person. I want to start exercising again but I have a huge fear of getting low or high blood sugar. I don't know where to start. If any one has any suggestions I would appreciate it. Thanks
I can feel your pain. I have been there, and I bet most other diabetics either have been or will be there at some point. I was diagnosed at 13.5 years old. Destroyed my plans for joining the Airforce even though I already had a documented congressional appointment in place for the Air Force academy... meaning I was already accepted and on the way... So, I started out with severe depression over how Diabetes had just ruined my life or at least my plans for my life. I am STILL pissed about that, 30+ years later, but I have dealt fairly well with things since.
We all go through phases in life, things change, and we are forced to adjust. Sometimes it is easier than others. Sometimes those changes can be painful either physically or emotionally, or in severe cases, both.
Your (not you specifically) emotions can and will play a part in how you feel. They will affect your blood sugar levels as well. Steroid shots severely affect those levels, and make it nearly impossible to stay under 'normal' control for anywhere from a couple days to a couple weeks, then things will settle down again.
Anyway, don't let this keep you down, having high sugar levels also tends to add to depression naturally, meaning high sugar, instant depression, even if you don't know it is high. Sometimes a small rise in your regular blood sugar can affect how you 'feel' and other times it takes a much wider swing before you actually notice it.
Keep plugging. You WILL survive it, you just have to try to keep your head up for a while, until Spring hits and you get back in the mood to re-start your evening walks. For me, I can no longer do the walks as I lost my right leg below the knee about 18 months ago now. I still have open wounds from the surgery so I can't even get started with a prosthetic until those wounds finally close up/heal completely. It is frustrating the heck out of me, but I keep trying to keep the positive attitude necessary to allow the body to heal and I know that I will eventually be able to walk again... can't wait for that! Besides, the grass will be getting pretty long so I need to be able to at least hobble out to the lawn tractor to get that cut down neatly!
Spring is on the way, so keep positive and you will make it through.
Hi, got your note. One thing you can do to draw more attention to a post is to post it in the main discussion area on the front page. Not all posts in groups make it to the front page, I am assuming this might have been the issue. Second you have to remember folks tend to come in and out and not all of us answer questions. For instance i was out this afternoon and just came back in. Finally, in order to immediate attention always try chat. We usually try to have a type 1 and 2 in chat usually someone is available to chat, even if that is only to say let me find someone.
So I apologize we missed you this afternoon. I hope you will give it a more time.
Now, the questions asked. As john says below almost all of us "fall off the wagon" many times. I did, do and will. So please do not be too hard on yourself.
The first thing I see are the steroid injections. i hope the doctor told you that steroids drive blood sugar wild and nothing is right for a period of time. I have to have steroids and I often will shoot up to 500 + for a few days after. It takes insulin to and great patience to get it down.
But that is not a year long ride, it is a week or so. The second thing i know is that hovering around 200 is a problem for me. When i get to 200 or 200+ I feel awful. 300 makes me feel worse than awful. So getting my blood sugar under 200 is my first big big step. Just me of course.
Third, try some different exercise or exercise in short bursts. i do knwo type 1's who have used an exercise cycle for 30 minutes every other day for years. They are thin as a rail and have done very well. For me I might as well be taken out back and done in. But they also eat very small meals, take in limited carbs. etc.
I do not know how you manage your blood sugar Multiple daily injections, pump, one or twice a day injections etc. But you might start with your CDE. For me when I have a tough time I call up and go see my CDE. I always review my issues, usually food, (never too little) and exercise. They work in inverse relation of course, the more i eat the more i need to use insulin and exercise.
The less i eat, the less insulin and exercise.
If you are not on a pump, please consider it. Blood sugar control gets so much easier or at least it did for me. It beat MDI hands down. I took Multiple daily injections up too 10 times per day. It was not goign well. So after 28 years i went to the pump and have been on it now for almost 12 years.
Now none of this directly answers your main question and I hope you might explore one additional idea. I have RA and type 1's are prone to have RA. Now, we are also subject to other endocrine issues. Celiac is very common, so are thyriod issues, and RA. Please ask your endo to do a complete work up. It is doubtful that you have any of these issues. But you shoudl at the very least get a work up. They can and do sneak up on folks and RA sneaked up on me. Again i am not saying your symptoms mirror mine they do not. But please ask. Ask for a full work up on endocrine issues.
Ok those are my ideas. When you come back onto get this msg. Stop into chat and say hey. New members get a great welcome and folks will be looking for you.
Rick
oh honey so feel ur pain the steroids really whack up ur bs (atleast they do mine)I honestly can't think why u got to feeling blank though
it really helps to talk to others about feeling that way though I've been a t1 since I was 10 and will turn 51 in a matter of weeks if u need to talk please come to my page here and I will try and help u out
Please come to chat anytime…it helps to talk…u are welcome anytime. There r always people there. Please know we are here for u. U can visit my page and send me a msg. Http://www.tudiabetes.org/profile/Lovinlife.
Hang in and hold on! It will get better!
Hey John. Thank you for your very nice reply. I haven't had a chance to talk to people with diabetes so I felt like I was alone. I am sorry you lost your leg. I hope things will be OK for you and thank you for cheering me up as well.
Before I got diabetes I used to work out a lot. Gym was my second home. I wasn't a bodybuilder but I was healthy and toned. I don't know why I can't make it to the gym anymore. I know I am gaining weight every month and I do realize that it's not good at all, but I still won't exercise. I don't know how to change my attitude. I think if I go to the gym my sugar will drop or something bad will happen. Yes, I do carry glucose tablets and juices but I am still scared. It is probably paranoia. Did you ever experience this?
Hi Rick. Thanks for your reply. It makes me feel better. I was diagnosed in May 2012. I was giving myself 4 shots a day. I had a lot of lows but I brought my A1C from 14 to 6.5. In August same year I got on Medtronic insulin pump. About steroids. The doctor knew that I had diabetes but she didn't tell me that my sugar will go high. The highest my sugar went was in 240s. I am glad I didn't run in 500s. I got those shots in January and even since I didn't feel right. I went to several doctors and one of them finally said that it might take up to 6 month for steroids to leave.
Another problem that I have is I check my blood sugar 15 times a day. I can't relax and take it easy. I know it's crazy...
Also, I just did thyroid test and it's normal. I do A1C test every 3-4 months. How long does it take to develop celiac disease?
Thanks Doris, I really need people to talk to. I am going crazy. I wish I was feeling just a little better. That's all I want.
I haven't used chat room before because I am new. Do I just click on Main Room tab?
click on the chat tab and it will take u directly to the chatroom
Ok, thanks Doris :))
Direct response to exercise and bs levels is going to be different for each person. I know that when I do actually exercise, I have to watch it a bit as I tend to burn through calories very quickly, so I always eat a snack before I being. I also tend to keep my sugar level around 180-200 all the time because using MDI and long acting insulin, my levels will drop pretty quickly if I don't add to the calorie levels. I have to be really careful there, but many folks do NOT have that sort of issue, meaning they don't drop as quickly as I tend to do.
I was on the pump for a bit last year, but ran into insurance problems and also problems with the pods failing all the time... when they fail, if the company doesn't replace them free, then I am totally screwed as the insurance only allows me to have 10 pods on hand at any one time, so I can't even have a backup supply available. Anyway, I had to go back to the shots, which I hate even more. Less control, more varied sugar levels etc, MDI has never really worked that well for me. I am a bit stubborn, and tend to deliberately not eat for up to 18 hours, and then wonder why my sugar level is in the low 30's... typically minutes away from me going into insulin shock.
As I mentioned earlier, I have been a diabetic for well over 30 years, and believe me when I say, "Listen to the warnings" and pay attention to what the Dr's are telling you to take care of certain aspects. While I thought I was doing fairly well with my A1C levels, it apparently did not stop the damage to blood vessels caused by using ANY insulin at all. Insulin, not high sugar, is what damages your veins etc, it makes them very brittle, which means they will develop internal spurs inside the veins/arteries etc, that then collect cholesterol, which clogs them entirely, even if your cholesterol levels are low. My Cholesterol levels have always been below what the dr's worry about, but I still lost my leg due to destroyed arteries and veins.
Anyway, don't let me freak you out on those things, just something to be aware of, and definitely listen to what the Endocrinologist tells you to do.
Beyond that, do your best to at least take a walk in the evenings, most of your vascular issues will start in the legs or feet, so just walking every day will help with that aspect. An exercise bike is also a great alternative... sure wish I could use one myself, but until I can get a prosthetic, I am basically screwed regarding getting good exercise.
I was NEVER one for the gym, I always got my exercise in other ways, riding a mountain bike for instance, boy do I miss that, or just walking, long walks, like 6 miles a day type of thing. I would walk down to the nearest convenience store which is just slightly under 3 miles away, and then walk back. Of course, I had to teach myself to NOT purchase something just because I was there... that was a bad habit and very difficult to break... buying coca-cola or a candy bar or chips or whatever... defeated the exercise that way. Of course, in my case, I am more than 30 pounds underweight, and can not seem to gain any weight no matter what I try to do. I only eat 1 sometimes 2 meals per day, typically only 1 though, but being on insulin has prevented me from ever gaining weight.
Keep plugging friend, you WILL get through it.
I am kind of new to this too. I was diagnosed in February, 2012 and went without insulin for a year and a half. I have been taking at least 4 shots daily and my last a1c was 6.6. I test often too which makes my husband a little crazy but I am still trying to figure up what is going on in my body. I have been trying to figure all of this out by myself.It can be really scary and lonely out here. Happy to have found this website. It’s seem so welcoming and pretty informative. All we can do is hang in there and do the best we can.
Gah... I had typed a HUGE reply here... fortunately for you, I decided to re-read it before hitting submit!
Hang in there yourself.
Never forget that you ARE a diabetic, and that as much as it sucks, there are things you MUST do to take care of yourself.
If/when you run into issues, or emotionally get drained to the point of breaking, don't forget that there are folks around, especially here, that do understand what you are facing and can at least give an understanding shoulder to lean on or maybe even help you to find other solutions that you may not have thought of....
gah... I am getting tooo wordy again. Sorry. Comes from basically living alone and having no one to talk to.
Hey John! Thanks for writing to me. I was pleased to read your long response. I like to wright long letters too, and, of course I have more questions and I need to learn a lot more about diabetes. Thanks for telling me "hang in there". It really helps to hear these words :))
John: do you know about gastroparesis? Sounds like what you are dealing with. Weight gain can happen for you. There are weight gain shakes you can buy online like at Amazon.com. They don’t fill you up as much as regular food and are calorie dense so you can “sneak in” extra calories. It’s hard work, but that’s the secret ticket to getting some weight back on!
T1diabetic24: how are things going for you lately?
For the questions about not feeling right: if, in the moment (s) of not feeling right your blood sugars are in the low 100’s (and you have an A1C around 7) and if your blood sugars are not dropping (example: you were 200’s and a short time later you are now 110), then it is unlikely that the bad feelings are caused from your T1.
Someone posted about getting checked for: rheumatoid arthritis, Celiac, thyroid issues. I’d add on checking for Addison’s toó. For celiac and thyroid, be sure they draw panels and not just a single lab.
Unfortunately many people have more than 1 auto immune disease. It is pretty common since the ones I listed are mostly on the same gene defect.
As far as exercising: someone said “go see your CDE.” If you haven’t yet: go do it! Of course you have to learn extra about blood sugars, insulin adjustments, and carbs, the differences between aerobic and anaerobic exercise effects on blood sugars, but where there’s a will, there’s a way. There are a large # of PWD who exercise often, many are actually athletes.
I hope by now you are feeling better than you were this spring.