I was diagnosed with T1 diabetes 8 years ago this January and I have just begun taking the steps necessary to get my health under control. I rarely checked my bs rarely took insulin shots (just enough to keep me alive). I feel like my eyes have just been opened to diabetes and what its all about. I’m slowly learning why my bs goes up or down, what foods trigger my bs to go up or down more than others. My WHOLE issue is my weight. I feel like I’d be a picture perfect diabetic if I didn’t pack on the pounds every time I ate or took insulin. I need my energy to come back so I can start walking or something I DO NOT move like ever, and I just realized it, its bad. I still have symptoms of diabulimia. I thought starting the pump (which I did 2 weeks ago) would force me to take all my insulin. BUT I noticed I can just set a temp basal for 24 on 1% and the pump doesn’t deliver me insulin- SO BAD! but I always go back on insulin the next day, something I never did, I would just continue the bad cycle but at least now I correct myself. I also need to keep busy to stay away from food because I always binge. Any ideas on what I can do to distract myself, any books to help me, any food ideas, and exercise ideas. ANYTHING would help. Let me know what you all think! -Kristen
Help me TRY to lose this stubborn annoying weight that always seems to set me back!! AHH I weight around 146, I’m 5’2 Medium build and I want to weight 126 by Feb 1st!
Hey Kristen!
um im a pretty keen exerciser in the past few months really been getting onto a regualr programme which is easier said then done for an 18 yr old student! my problem was never motivation but it was discipline, if i dont have a structure then i wont go! which sounds a bit like your the same- for exercise what helped me is setting out a timetable, or goin to a set class at the gym whether its for core stuff or cardio (which is great for loosing weight!) Basically have a regular timetable/ structure seems to be way easier to stick to rather then free-wheeling it, and going to classes means you meet people who will spur you on.
good luck girl!
If I was a diabetic on a pump who intentionally set the pump to not give me insulin, I would hope someone would force me to get professional mental and medical help!! Not wanting to be bothered to take a shot (been there) and not wanting to be poked again by the syringe (done that) are somewhat understandable reasons to attempt “suicide by ketoacidosis” but if the pump infusion site is in your abdomen, I see no reason to stop the insulin flow into your body!!!
As a teenager, I went through the rebellious “I don’t want to take my shots” phase and would skip days, end up in the hospital if I skipped enough in a row, then realize that the fact I have to take it to stay alive wasn’t going to change. All that caught up with me when I was 24 and they told me I was most likely going to be blind in one eye and halfway blind in the second. The possibility of going blind so I could be normal kinda backfired. Luckily for me, after thousands and thousands of laser zaps, a remarkable ophthalmologist saved my daytime vision. I can not see in the dark because of the retina damage my years of wanting to be normal caused so in the winter when it is dark at 4:30, I am home for the night. There’s nothing normal about not being able to go buy groceries because it is 5:15.
Even after home blood glucose meters came on the market in my 20’s after they had saved my sight, I hated using them. As neuropathy and gastroparesis set in, I realized that I needed to get with the program and check my BG. When my daughter was born, I really started to worry about not being around for her and I agreed to the insulin pump that my docs had been suggesting for a while. 14 1/2 years later, still attached to the tubing connecting my lifeline to me is my 3rd insulin pump. I can’t imagine life without one at this point. It covers me even if I am too burned out to test my BG.
Your energy level will not come up while your BGs are high. Plus if you force yourself to exercise while your BGs are up because you don’t have enough insulin on-board, you could push your body into ketoacidosis. It’s not an enjoyable way to die. I hope you can pull yourself together or get someone else to help you pull yourself together.
Michelle
Western Washington State
Hey Kristen,
I hear you… I was diagnosed 6 years ago, when I was 15, and NOW am I trying to get things under control.
With college and drinking and eating very bad food - it’s hard… but I have been successful at this before.
I just recently started taking 30 units of Lantus! That’s insane… I used to only take 3.
Our bodies are prone to weight fluctuation. Basically, I am getting back into the same routine I was in about two years ago:
Cardio 40 mins/4-5 times per week, walking lots, weights. Eating about 1300-1500 cals/day mostly fibers, protein and good fats. Some examples of food:
edamame
apples
celery with peanut butter (same with apples)
handful of almonds for a snack
sandwiches on low carb breads with veggies and protein
sugar free popsicles!
skinny latte’s at starbucks
Low fat diet that are high in fiber seem to work for me. I am not sure about others… I am meeting with a nutritionist in the new year to discuss what I can do to lose about 15 lbs. For now, I am going to stick with the low fat high fiber and exercise thing. Don’t make it an unhealthy way of living, though. It;'s good to test up to 6 times/day. It’s motivating to eat well and take care of yourself once you get the good readings 
Hope this was somewhat helpful. Good luck I’m right there with you.
You’ve made a good start in correcting previous behaviors, continue. Managing D is not all about weight it’s a combination, which I know you’re aware of what has to be done, give yourself time. You know what has to be done so continue heading in that direction.
First thing you need to accept that low blood sugar is far far FAR more important than your weight. It’s good to hear you’re starting to take charge-- but don’t let setbacks get you down either. As long as you’re doing better than you were before, thats the only thing you can really expect of yourself-- progress.
The main concept regarding exercise is you progress in proportion to how far you exceed your comfort area. Generally speaking, the harder it is, the more progress you’re making-- though that’s highly simplified and you don’t want to hurt yourself, it’s basically your bodies guiding factor for growth.
The best advice I would give people is to start out with baby steps-- push yourself out of your comfort zone, slightly. A bunch of little successes like that will build the momentum and motivation to push yourself even more. Starting out exercising is the hardest part (stick to it for a couple weeks, and you’ll be addicted), so make it easy as possible for you at the beginning. Small, achievable baby steps at the beginning will lead naturally into more rigorous productive exercise later-- and you’ll like doing it.
Glad you’re correcting & taking better care of yourself.
Yep, baby, you’ve got to move to get weight off. It’s a vicious cyle of letting yourself go too high & then having no energy to exercise. You gotta start by getting the BG down first & the energy will be there. Don’t exercise if you’re 240 & over, not that you’d much feel like it then anyway.
Start with something you enjoy & just do it for 10-15 minutes a day. Long walks, dancing, biking, stretching, yoga–whatever. I’m not a gym person & can’t stand the boredom of exercise machines. Weights are great because building muscle mass helps increase insulin sensitivity. Easy to get a couple of weights & do it at home.
In other discussions of yours about food, members offered a lot of suggestions. No point in repeating it again here. People can give advice, but it’s up to you to take charge.
There’s no magic formula to distract you from binging & not taking insulin. Want to feel better? Take appropriate doses & let your body heal from the highs.
If you are constantly dehydrating yourself, you may end up with low potassium and sodium levels. You should have the doctor check on that every so often. I was once like you, so now I have kidney problems, so the water pills make my potassium levels drop. I found that coconut water, not coconut milk, is a great source of potassium with not too many carbs. It is slightly sweet. It has like 650 mg potassium with 15 g carbs. That is like twice the potassium of a banana with like half the carbs.
As far as getting the weight off, you are in a precarious position, because you have to move. The higher your blood sugar is, the harder it is to move, and the better control you have, the more weight you will gain, at least until your body doesn’t think you are trying to starve it.
Good luck.
First off, good job on fighting the urge to not use insulin…like stopping the temp bolus. I sympathesize since I have similar weight issues (I’m also about 5’2 and weigh about 150~ which is down 10lbs). It is possible to lose weight while having good control though it’s difficult.
I think focusing too much on having a specific weight goal makes it harder too especially when you set a deadline…because if you don’t make it (even if you’re losing just more slowly) it can be very depressing/frustrating.
One of the things that’s helped motivate me and to stick with both exercise and taking care of the D is having a fitness rather than weight goal. Currently, I want to be able to do a marathon in the next 12 months and to do well (i.e. not look like I’m dying at the end) This requires running several times a week, but also to run well I need good numbers…so having a goal like this gives me more motivation. You’ll also notice improvements in fitness more quickly than any weight loss (though I lost the initial ten pounds from running too …it just took a long time). I think every little thing you do for yourself that creates a positive outcome reinforces itself …more exercise creates more energy but also creates more desire for stable numbers…which in turn gives you more energy which you need to burn off by exercising…also reaching fitness and health goals gives you positive feedback which boosts self-esteem (in some ways more than just losing weight would…because you could be really thin and decrepit like an old woman or you could be not quite as thin…but able to run several miles or walk up several flights of stairs easily)
It would probably also help to find someone else or a group to help you reach your goals…whether they help motivate you because they’re also trying to lose weight/become fitter/get more stable numbers or to help hold you accountable. Or if you have friends that are really healthy eaters/tend to exercise spend more time with them or try to find some because their habits rub off and make you indirectly accountable (it’s hard to binge when you’re the only person doing it…)
Glad to hear you’re on the right track. There is a great article at www.healthcentral.com/diabeteens/c/27511/52047/interview-berry which is about losing weight with diabetes. It explains how insulin is a fat storing hormone and how building muscle will allow you to take less insulin. This might help you out. I also think that if you start exercising you may not binge so much. Finding the discipline and motivation to exercise might solve alot of your issues. One day at a time kristin.
kristen, im so glad you have the pump!
i use this site all of the time
http://www.exercisetv.tv/workout-videos/all/?videotype=free-full-length
just twenty minutes a day of one of these workouts makes a big difference
Hi Kristin
I’m going to approach this from a little different perspective than the others. I know you know “in theory” that your diabetes and your insulin are more important than a number on the scale, but in your gut you feel that number is the most important thing in your life and it is a major struggle to do anything counter to that feeling inside. (Like take your insulin to control your blood sugar and eat a healthy diet). I understand exactly that conflict between mind and gut because I suffered from an eating disorder for thirty years. I never, on the other hand had insulin in the mix because I have only had diabetes for two years and I got into recovery from my eating disorder fifteen years ago.
When I got my diabetes diagnosis I didn’t change much about my diet because I figured I ate pretty healthy at this point, no sugar at all for thirteen years, vegetarian, no junk food, no snacks. That is what my ED abstinence looked like and it had become routine. But as a vegetarian I was eating way too much carbs and when I started on insulin in February I had to completely rethink my diet. I became grateful for each and every day of my recovery because managing diabetes is hard for someone with an eating disorder. One of the things I’d learned in my recovery was to enjoy my food but not obsess about it. As a diabetic I am forced to obsess a bit about food.But now, just six months later, I have gotten into a routine now where I can once again enjoy my food with a minimum amount of obsession.
In order to get into recovery from my eating disorder I had to recognize first and foremost that it wasn’t about the weight at all! I had lost and gained the same 30 pounds for years. It wasn’t about the 30 pounds it was about how absolutely insane my obsession made me. My life had come down to nothing but an eating disorder. You know what I mean. So I had to learn to stop worrying about the weight and instead focus on eliminating the insanity. With time it worked and I haven’t suffered from that craziness for 15 years. I eat a healthy but enjoyable diet (I love to cook and enjoying my food, not feeling deprived is important to recovery). My weight has remained within a four pound range since my diagnosis.
You can do it, Kristin, and while some of the posters gave you the truth about complications (scary stuff but real stuff!), I’m going to give you the truth about Eating Disorders. (I have worked professionally with others as well as my own). Nothing else in your life including your diabetes, your health and maybe most of all your happiness, will work unless you get into recovery from your Eating Disorder. That’s the harsh news. The good news is that recovery is possible. I no longer struggle with mine and I suffered from it for 30 years. But you do need support. My suggestion would be to talk to your doctor and get a referral to a therapist with expertise in eating disorders. If you could locate one with experience with diabulimia all the better. There are always emotional issues behind eating disorders that need to be dealt with with a therapist. In addition I’d recommend you attend meetings of OA which are available in most large towns. There you will meet others who, whether they suffer from binge eating, anorexia, bulimia or diabulimia, will understand how you feel and support your recovery.
You can do it!
Zoe
let your pump do what it has to do and give insulin, because in order to exercise and attempt loosing weight you should try to get your blood sugars below 200 so you will not produce ketones and so you will have energy
hey guys , um what is a Bolus that i keep hearing you guys talk about? ive never heard this in the UK!
Bolus is the dose of insulin taken to cover a meal.
Ohhhhh Ok thanks haha i thought i was missing out on some key diabetic control that my doc had never though to mention to me! ha
I couldn’t agree with you more, Zoe.
Knowing that diabetes could take my life at any time, I never pushed it by intentionally trying to kill myself, but I have never had an eating disorder either. I researched this some since yesterday and am amazed. I would say that if you are not getting professional help with this, you absolutely should be! To let your self image take over your sense of self-preservation is a scary thing!! Here’s a website I was reading this morning: http://tinyurl.com/ye98c6a .
I am far from skinny since my celiac diagnosis 5 years ago. Gluten-free food replacements tend to be higher carb and my body is now absorbing all the nutrients I eat. At 4’10" and 140-150 pounds, I am definitely trying to lose weight. However, I am not willing to be disabled by blindness and dialysis or dead to attain the weight loss I desire. I hope you get to that point before it is too late.
Best of luck to you,
Michelle
Western Washington State
I don’t have type 1 but I do have type 2. Hang in there!! Just wanted to say I will be thinking of you!!
Best wishes!
Good link to videos-- helping her find something she would ENJOY doing is key.