I am 13 years old and all of the sudden i am having a really tough time managing my diabetes. I don’t know why but the fear of lows is taking over me and im not sure what to do about it. At home my blood is usually good. At school it’s been horrible because of my fear of getting low and embarrased. If you have any suggestions please let me know!
I had the same issue at work as you, the fear of the low for a little in the middle of the day. You know you can feel it comming under normal situations but during a certain time of the day you feel like you cant control the number. What I do now is test to calm my fears. You could test in between classes. Just to make sure. After a while i grew a little more confident that I was not going low so my testing become less frequent. Before testing I would over correct and then when lunch came around I was way too high. Find a snack that you can carry around for safety. Kinda like a lucky charm. If you know you have something to keep you from going low it calms your fears. I usually keep an orange or an apple and hard candy in my bag for precaution.
Understand how you feel, Sam. I hate lows. No matter how old we are, it’s still embarrassing. I find myself forgetting things, unable to follow conversations, can’t finish sentences & feel like an idiot when low. Know I’ve got this glazed eyed expression.
What helps get me over my fear of lows in public is testing a lot. Testing keeps me more in control & reassures me that I’m fine, or to catch the low before I plummet into stupidity. I don’t want to be high by eating too much, or taking too little insulin. Guess I’ve got a fear of highs also! I tell myself that no one is really paying attention even though it feels like we’ve got a flashing sign over our heads when low. I also remind myself to keep my eye on the goal of as level BG as possible.
Nothing to fear, but fear itself, right:) Do whatever you can to build your confidence since that’s a big part of fear of embarrassment. Think of all the years you’ve been managing your diabetes & how strong & mature this has made you. How many of your friends could handle it as well?
Don’t know how you feel about a CGMS or if your insurance would cover one, but lots of people swear by them. You’ll have constant readings to head off a downward trend.
Hi Sam… I understand how you feel… Lows sucks! Makes me draw mind blanks sometimes. Its important that a school authority knows your condition…prinicipal, teacher, a guidance counselor perhaps? Pack some glucose tabs always…Skittles are fine too…or juice boxes. Some use sugar packets. Try not to be scared…but it is very understandable. Get to know your body…some diabetics sometimes can feel…when they are starting to get low… By understanding your body and learning more about our condition…gives us more power and confidence how to deal with it.
You are not alone Sam. A brave man also asks for help… =)
Jelly beans work fast & are portable. They’re pure sugar. Jelly Bellies makes great flavors. Each jelly bean has 1 gram sugar, so easy to correct lows if you know how many to take. One gram glucose raises me 10 pts. Skittles are good for correcting lows. Gummy bears & lifesavers work quickly. Trick is to keep candy in your mouth & let them dissolve so they get into your bloodstream fast. I can’t stand those yucky glucose tabs.
Sam
My 14 year old son is recently diagnosed type1
He deals with his hypos by drinking 1/2 a can (200mL) of regular coca-cola (other cola drinks may be available) then follows this up 10 mins later with some slow acting carb.
This plan was recommended by his healthcare team.
Sugary fizzy drinks hit the spot really quickly, rapidly absorbed as they are fizzy liquids and are usually readilly available. Also they are not a “special” food so won’t make you stand out from the crowd.
Hi Sam,
I’m a quasi-old fart now, but I remember the days of school and being worried about acceptance and embarrassment. Everybody goes through it, so try not to worry too much.
I keep a vial of glucose tabs with me everywhere I go. 10 tabs to a vial, with 4 carbs/tab = 40 carbs per vial (does this sound like math class…?). Usually I can treat a low BG with 4 tabs or less, so 1 vial has enough carbs for me to recover from 2 low BG episodes. I always keep a 50-tab jar nearby. At work, I keep one in a desk drawer so that I can refill my vial whenever I need to. And I’ve got a ton at home. You could keep one in your locker.
And the vial is very discrete. I wear cargo jeans 100% of the time and there’s a little “sleeve” on the side that will hold the vial. Whenever I’m going low, I just slip it out, put in a few glucose tabs, and put it away, and get on with life. I know of some others around here who don’t care for the tabs, and will instead fill the vial with skittles or some other candy that quickly raises their blood sugars.
Do your teachers know about your 'beetus? My guess is they might not like the idea of you cracking open a can of coke, or opening a bag of skittles in the middle of class, especially if you are acting a bit “wonky” from a hypo, if they don’t know what a hypo is. If your teachers do know, that’s great. If not, you and your parents should give them a little education so that they will know what is going on.
There are some groups on this site that you might find helpful, including:
Type 1 Teens
Teenagers with Type 1
Cheers and best wishes, Mike
When I was in high school, I ate 2 proteins at breakfast to keep my sugars up until lunch. At lunch, I ate 3 proteins with 3 complex carbs to keep myself up for the rest of the school day. Sports after school were treated 1/2 hour before exercise with 2 proteins and 1 carb. Not sure if this is what you were looking for, but I was a teenage girl in the late 70’s-early 80’s and this was the treatment recommended. It helped that the school nurse was my neighbor too. The school should have a list of all students with health related issues that was passed out to all your teachers. They probably already know and you didn’t realize it. My only problem was having a 4th period Algebra class in 9th grade and I would start to go low, but the teacher could tell when I closed one eye to focus on the lesson. She kept snacks (peanut butter crackers) in her desk and would give me 2 or 3. No one ever said anything about it to me, kids or teachers. Don’t let this make you miserable. Just be PROACTIVE and let one friend in each class know you use insulin and explain what your lows look like. Have your buddies over and discuss it with them in private instead of at school. Let them ask questions too so they aren’t afraid. That’s what my parents did for me when I actually understood what I had. We did it once in jr. high and then once in HS.
when i was in middle school i would eat life savers if i went low. please do not be ashamed to be diabetic. there is no need to get embarassed if you have a low and need to treat it. you may even come to learn that the other kids are jealous of you that they can’t eat in class. in high school i always had a juicy juice with me. they are easy to drink fast. also let all of your teachers know the very first day of school that you are diabetic and ask them if you have their permission to be excused from class without asking to go to the nurse to treat a low blood sugar. that way you can get up and leave without interupting anyone. if someone wants to judge you for being diabetic well then it’s their loss not yours. hold your head high and be proud of who you are, then other kids will respect you whether your diabetic or not. make your health your first priority, not what other kids think of you!! best of luck!! i know it can be rough sometimes, i’ve been diabetic since age 9…just hang in there!! 
Hi Sam…I go to the gym every day and the first thing I do when I am done working out is check my blood sugar because alot of times I find that the endorphines form the workout mask a low. Your body is low but you dont feel it becuase of the workout and the chemicals your brain releases. I usually find it to be in the upper 70’s or low 80’s. One time it was 58. But I found these milk shake type drinks called Boost Glucose Control. Little red plastic bottles. Very convenient and tatsy too…so far Ive had the Chocolate and the Vanilla. Im not sure what other flavors they make. Have to check next time I go to the supermarket.
Hi Sam,
It can be embarrasing but always remember almost everyone in the world has something wrong with them my youngest daughter has ADHD and was embarassed by it alot in school until she found out alot of her friend had some kind of problems just make sure people are aware of what can happen people I work with are very supportive of me and have no problem helping if I need them to. A handful of skittles works well.