First of all i must compliment you on the fact you’re doing your utmost best to understand what your daughter is going through!
I hope she will feel better soon!
It is normal for a body to adjust to insuline therapy, i just got from there about 8 months ago.
As i was misdiagnosed as a type 2 the doc told me to go on a diet (my weight was 65 kgs at that moment, normally 75)
I lost 6 more kgs and feeling worse than ever asked for a second opinion.
At that time i was diagnosed as a type 1 / lada or type 1,5.
Now insuline therapy could start and getting used to it took me about 6 weeks.
After that i started gaining weight back and as for now my weight is 78 kgs (i’m trying to find a way to not gain more weight :o).
I really hope you get all the answers to your questions on this website!
We have a friends who’s daughter is 12 and diabetic since 3. They say the diabetes camps are a great way for the kids to meet other kids. They are a typical summer camp but they have doctors and nurses there that help the kids. My son is doing really good. He never complains about diabetes. However, we are still giving all shots and he won’t try to get a shot in his belly. It’s only been three months since diagnosis and I’m sure he’ll get there soon enough. We just want him to be as indepedent as he can be, so when we are not around he can manage. I’m hoping after a week at summer diabetes camp he’ll be there. Good luck with your appt for Defend-2 next week.
YES!!! It took my body a VERY long time to get used to the lower sugars. I was diagnosed almost 8 years ago and when i was taken in my bg was at 790. I should of been comatose. And once they got my sugar down after 4 days on a insulin drip i began feeling tired and very lethargic. My body had gotten used to working over time and so I was finally letting my organs rest for a while and so i was just tired because my body was trying to rest. She will regain her strength and her ability to perform on the court after some time. Her body just needs to adjust to being healthy again. I don’t know what her levels were when she was diagnosed but since she was disgnosed its obvious her sugar wasn’t where it should have been. Her body was working hard to keep her alive when her levels were outta whack and now that they have some of the work taken off of them they just need time to readjust and heal.
Also if she wants to I can talk to her and maybe tell her my experience. I was 13 when I was diagnosed and I played soccer. So I know how she may feel about not being able to practice or play. But after a while I was up to the exercise again and I even played soccer all 4 years of high school. Just let her know that it will get easier. And it doesn’t need to run her life she is in control! I am here to talk and share with either of you just like everyone else here is. This is a great website for support and to share experiences and get advice.
We don’t have it in my family either. So it was all very new to us when I was diagnosed.
Your active girl will get her chance to play again. It will just take some time. ALSO when she IS playing she should check her sugar every 15-30 minutes. Exercise can make a sugar jump or plumet very quickly. That can be another reason she is still kinda off when she is playing. A good thing to keep with her is a juice box and some granola bars. Keep them in her game bag so when she needs them she can grab one, eat, and then get back to play. I used to keep a whole box of granola bars in my soccer bag. I found that they were the easiest thing to eat when I was playing.
Your son will find out soon that if he only uses shots in his arms he will end up with VERY sore arms. He will end up with insulin buildup and it will feel like shoving a needle into a brick if he tries to give a shot there. So he should try to use his legs, arms, and stomach and rotate either daily or ever few days.
My dr’s have been testing my thyroid every year since I was diagnosed in 1984. The test is called TSH. If that is irregular, they will look at other tests.
Be aware those vitamins contain chromium picolinate which lowers blood sugar levels. That should be considered, and if she stops taking them, her insulin requirements will probably increase. Also, she might be having low blood sugar which would lower her energy levels.
I was a cheerleader, volleyball player, and basketball player who was diagnosed at 12. I was the only Type 1 in my town that I know of, except for one 16 year old who had issues. It was very lonely. If you read her postings here, you might want to try to give her space, or at least let her think she has space. She has suddenly been burdened with always being different than anyone she knows and having to learn a lot really fast. She might have been told how well she handles this will determine whether or not she has legs or can see when she is 60 years old. Don’t make her think she has to be perfect, and let her know that right now, while she is honeymooning, it is immpossible to have perfect bloodsugars. It is hard to regulate blood sugars while teenage hormones are decidign what they want to do, but worse when you are honeymooning. I
Also, anemia or low electrolyte levels can cause exhaustion. If you don’t eat red meat twice a week or more, anemia is more common. Low calcium is common in diabetics, because of low vitamin D levels. Maybe see if she is craving any particular type of food. Craving OJ, for instance, can be caused by low potassium levels. The dehydration from the high blood sugars can cause the electrolyte imbalances. Even though those are “normal” range blood sugars for a diabetic, a non-diabetic has a fasting bg of 83+/-, and it never hits 140. Something to at least consider.
Good luck. I know my mom hated that I was diabetic, because she constantly said “life would be so much easier if I were diabetic.”
If she has been running high for some time, she could be recovering from that period. For me, however, insulin was like rocket fuel. I felt so much better after just a couple of days. Diabetes is a very emotional thing. Glucose level can effect moods. Also the diagnosis is a huge one to accept. She may be depressed. Diabetes and depression go hand in hand. Joining Tu Diabetes was a great idea to give her. It definitely may help her to talk to others like her. Check obese if there are any support groups in your area.
He rotates his harms and gets his lantus his leg at night. So he probably getting two shots in each arm per day and one in a leg. He doesn’t mind the shots in his legs (although he does put an ice pack on it first), but it isn’t convenient most of the time because of long pants. I think once he starts wearing shorts again it will be easier. He is terrified of a shot in his belly. He’s pretty thin and doesn’t have much fat there, however, we know that will eventually be the easiest place for him to give his own shots. Thanks for the info.
I will echo the thyroid testing. But don’t just go for the standard TSH, it can be very misleading. If you have an Endo ask for a full panel, free T3/T4, plus antibodies. When I was DX’ed hypothyroid my TSH was just a little high (high TSH means low thyroid hormone), my GP did not want to start me on meds. But when I saw an Endo he checked everything including antibodies and they were thru the roof. He termed it “Clinical Hypothyroid”, meaning my TSH might be near normal for others, but very low for my body. I’m currently on T3 & T4 supplements.
You also need to ask for a Vitamin D test. I went thru a period 2 years ago of feeling run down and muscle pain. They thought I might have Celiac, turns out my VitD was very low. They put me on a prescription supplement (50MU once a week) and things got better. Turns out I pretty much need it during the winter months when I spend less time outdoors. The test for VitD does take 2 weeks to “cook”, so it can be a waiting game.
Just want to say thank you to everyone! I will definitely get Sam’s thyroid checked. It’s hard to get a handle on what she’s going through, because I have no idea. Her body is probably adjusting, mentally and physically. She actually seems to be doing ok mentally, but I’m worried that if we don’t get her feeling better & back in the game, we will be dealing with depression. It’s been great to get feedback from this community so we can check some things out & I have some ideas to give her.
It would be great if you could talk to her. She put her page on here & checks it like facebook & she wonders why she doesn’t have many friends! I told her TuDiabetes isn’t like facebook & we still have to figure it out. I told her to start a discussion, so she did & no one replied 
– she put it in the Teen forum. I’m also trying to find a support group near us or at least locate some other teens she can talk to, because she is the only T1 at her high school.
Me too