Type 1 Diabetes and Losing Weight

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24

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  • jennlowe66
    jennlowe66 Posts: 30
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    Type 1 here, too! I'm with everyone here on the weight loss. Very frustrating! I'm on an insulin pump and love the control that it gives me. It's great to see other type 1's on here, i don't know very many in real life.
  • samanthaspears
    samanthaspears Posts: 18 Member
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    I was just diagnosed as type 1 last October. It's been quite an experience. I admire all of you who have lost weight! I gained 40lbs on insulin and am now trying to get it off, along with an additional 20lbs (I was overweight when diagnosed).

    Feel free to add me if you like :)
  • michelleberard
    michelleberard Posts: 15
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    Type 1 diabetic for 11 years. The only thing I struggle with is getting low blood sugars after working out.
    Also you will find after you lose some weight your body requires less insulin, but you can talk to your endo about that :)
  • merrillfoster
    merrillfoster Posts: 855 Member
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    I've been T1 for...22 years now (man I'm old). Got it when I was 8. It's alot harder to lose weight but doable--I lost 30 lbs last year (and gained 10 back...siiiigh...reset the ticker today). I can't stand the idea of a pump (everyone thinks it's hilarious but I can't deal with needles and the idea of something permanantly 'in' me completely freaks me out) but have been managing pretty well with the lantus and novolog.

    Actually I have a question for you guys: lately, I've had episodes where I will feel really low, but when I test it is completely normal (or sometimes even high). My doctors can't give me an answer, but has anyone else had this happen?

    Feel free to add me if you want :)
  • uniquewrapz
    uniquewrapz Posts: 160 Member
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    Hi all, hope you don't mind me poking in...I am not T1 but my husband is, he's here on MFP...where is your group located on MFP as I'd love to send him over to you...

    We're struggling with violence with LBS...he had a very bad episode this past weekend where he impatiently gave himself too many bolus when he was high and overnight it plumeted. I tried to administer glucose to him but he got violent and punched and beat me and tried to choke my 13 year old son (thankfully I was successful at gettting him off him before he could start)

    Would really love to get some support here for him to help him manage...

    thanks again for letting me pipe in...
  • lizwilby2
    lizwilby2 Posts: 1 Member
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    Hi, I'm a type 1 diabetic (20 years) and I have also started to develop hypo like symptoms when i am actually quite high! I;m not sure eiter why this happens, but glad to know someone has has this happen too. :-)
  • ErinGarris
    ErinGarris Posts: 1 Member
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    I am also a type 1. In the past for me, I have had the sensation of low blood sugar with glucose levels >100 mg/dL when my average glucose was poorly controlled. For example, if my average glucose level is 250, 120 "feels" low. While, if my average is 100, I don't "feel" the low until I'm around 40.
  • popeduane
    popeduane Posts: 6
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    PLEASE TAKE THIS AS A BLOG AND CONSULT YOUR DOCTOR BEFORE CHANGING YOUR LIFLE STYLE OR INSULIN


    Hello everyone. I've been type one for 24 years now, I've never struggled with losing weight. I can lose 4lbs a week when I'm training hard (I'm a road cyclist for a team in the UK), the only problem is I can put it back on twice as quick when I'm not. So if you want to lose the weight the trick is you will need to have an active lifestyle or it will just pile back on FAST or you will never lose it in the first place. Its all in the Metabolism if you can find a low-medium carb diet that speeds up your Metabolism and exercise 3-4 times a week then you will crack it. Your insulin requirements will decrease dramatically and you will feel more awake and active. Everyone's metabolism is different and the type of diet needed to speed it up will be different so trial and error is needed to find the correct one for yourselves. You will know when you've got it right trust me.
    When you diet is correct and your exercising 3-4 times a week you will need to step it up to shed the weight. I use an insulin pump so this bit is easy, I reduce my Basel 1 hour before exercising, when exercising i monitoring my blood levels every 20mins and keep a log. My aim is to adjust my Basal and keep my blood sugar level unaffected during exercise, I can never achieve this so I keep some glucose tablets handy incase I drop below 4mmols. If I stick to this the weight falls off me and good blood glucose levels still maintained. The day and night after exercise your body will be more sensitive to insulin, remember to reduce the insulin and not to feed the insulin.
    what I always think is, insulin is a hormone that opens the gates to let sugar out of the blood and into the muscles. So if the gates are not open enough then body fat is converted into energy for the muscles. please note this is only my opinion and I'm no doctor. Thanks Duane.
  • strangeone25
    strangeone25 Posts: 114 Member
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    This happened to me when I was first diagnosed with Type 1. I had been diabetic for a few months and my body was used to running high and when my sugars dropped to the normal range I felt low. I was never quite sure what to do about it, treat it like a low or ignore it and just work through it.
  • popeduane
    popeduane Posts: 6
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    Its said that once good levels are achieved it will take about 9 weeks for the feelings of low and high blood sugars to return to normal. So keep them good for 3 months, then when your feelings are back it gets easier to judge insulin and food requirements when a blood test is not convenient.
  • lalaerin
    lalaerin Posts: 5 Member
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    Hi,

    I am also Type 1, on an insulin pump. I have 2 children, and am trying to lose those last few pounds that I gained. It's so frustrating at times to try and control my blood sugar and exercise!
  • ausheli
    ausheli Posts: 43 Member
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    T1 here as well, just turned 39, was diagnosed when I was 10
  • piratesaregrand
    piratesaregrand Posts: 356 Member
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    I've been t1 for 20 years now.

    Over the last year I've lost 40kg and halved my insulin :)
  • efitterp
    efitterp Posts: 30 Member
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    Hi, everyone! I have been a T1 for 30 years and am now 35 years old. I'm a stay-at-home mom with 2 kids who are my joy. I wear a Minimed pump and have for 15 years or so. Would love to have any of you as friends. There are very few who understand the difficulty of losing weight and having diabetes. I've decided that patience is key to this one. I was successful at losing weight several years ago. After my 2 pregnancies, I've really put on a significant amount of weight. My goal is to lose enough weight to have one more baby. :happy: Please add me!
  • popeduane
    popeduane Posts: 6
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    Hi,

    I am also Type 1, on an insulin pump. I have 2 children, and am trying to lose those last few pounds that I gained. It's so frustrating at times to try and control my blood sugar and exercise!

    Hi, I understand its frustrating but just write a good clear log of food, exercise and insulin when your training, try doing this in the two weeks after your menstrual cycle (sorry to mention it but it makes a lot of difference). It will take a few months to work out a pattern but when you've got it you will lose weight. Just stick to the same type and amount of exercise and food intake when training. just remember the last few pounds are the hardest, oh and don't eat ANY BREAD that's the killer. ;-)
  • popeduane
    popeduane Posts: 6
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    I've been t1 for 20 years now.

    Over the last year I've lost 40kg and halved my insulin :)

    Hi, sounds like you have it sorted, tell me do you feel more awake and energetic now???
  • popeduane
    popeduane Posts: 6
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    Hi, everyone! I have been a T1 for 30 years and am now 35 years old. I'm a stay-at-home mom with 2 kids who are my joy. I wear a Minimed pump and have for 15 years or so. Would love to have any of you as friends. There are very few who understand the difficulty of losing weight and having diabetes. I've decided that patience is key to this one. I was successful at losing weight several years ago. After my 2 pregnancies, I've really put on a significant amount of weight. My goal is to lose enough weight to have one more baby. :happy: Please add me!

    Hi. Have you had your thyroid check? ask your doctor to do it, its only a blood test...
  • piratesaregrand
    piratesaregrand Posts: 356 Member
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    I've been t1 for 20 years now.

    Over the last year I've lost 40kg and halved my insulin :)

    Hi, sounds like you have it sorted, tell me do you feel more awake and energetic now???

    I feel pretty good!

    All I did was log my food on here, then used the carb count and whether I was exercising or not to adjust my insulin levels
  • popeduane
    popeduane Posts: 6
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    Sounds like you have it well under control, Well Done.
    Do you find that you sometimes need to start all over again? I need to change my patterns about 4 times a year. Think I'm due a re work now.
  • seaf0723
    seaf0723 Posts: 1
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    Have done the pump - several times - was fantastic. Except for one thing - I bloated up like a helium balloon. Has anyone else had this problem? So - even thought my endro wants me on this - I shoot up - Tried Lantus and had a real bad allergic reaction to it. So - Humulin NPH 3X daily - along with Humalog. Work out 5x per week - hard - and the weight just doesn't want to come off. Very very depressing - anyone have a shoulder for me????

    Thanks for listening to me vent......
    Susan

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