# Another New Type 1...



## Type1oClock (Jul 3, 2012)

Mine seems to have come on for a couple years.  I've always done triathlons and my running just seemed to get slower and less enthusiastic.  I started to drink about 3L of water a year ago and started to get up more in the night.  I had fibroids removed via myomectomy a few years ago so just naturally assumed the fibroids had done something to my bladder.

In April, I suddenly seemed to crave fruit juice - water shot up.  Things started to taste rubbish.  Thirst went mad - stopped being able to produce my own spit.  Started getting up about 4 hours a night to pee.  Heart rate increased, battled to breathe.  Legs started to battle.  12kms runs were HARD at 3kms.  60kms offroad cycle was hard from the start.  I was too embarrassed to say anything because I just thought I was losing fitness.  Battled to walk up stairs - my legs were tired and sore.  

Eventually, I went to a doctor to register (moved house) and told the nurse.  She booked me in to a doctor 3 weeks later.  Saw the doctor and told her.  She booked me in to get blood tests 2 weeks later.

It all got worse.  Started to shake.  Completely thirsty and drinking about 6 - 8L of liquid a day.  Up every 45mins at night to pee.  I know every toilet on the way home from work.  Battled to breathe, think, see, HR high, couldn't walk, make my own spit. Was very frustrated and annoyed with myself.  I had no idea what was wrong!  We've been trying to have a baby for about 10 months and I just keep thinking maybe I was pregnant.  I had blood in my nose, sinusitis, dry and cracked hands, headaches.

I went for a swim on Sunday 3 weeks ago and did 1km - nothing compared to normal.  The water was freezing and yum!  Got home and started to vomit.  Vomited all night.  Couldn't eat or drink and the next day, decided to get to an A&E.  

I guess we can all guess then.  I had pretty far advance Diabetic Ketoacidosis.  All the vital minerals were depleted.  My body temp was 32, veins and arteries were collapsing, BS was 37, vomited in the hospital (another proud moment) and was diagnosed within minutes of arriving.  I cried more when they said we needed to stop trying for a baby.  And was worried that it was the "unhealthy" one - but was calmed when heard it was Type 1.  Was in HDU for 3 days and discharged late at night.

Today it's 3 weeks later and my sugars are down to 5 - 7.5.  I am working hard to bring my HBa1c down to "conception" level.  It was 15.5% when I was admitted and 2 weeks later, it was at 12%.  It's now two weeks since the last blood test.  

Where they also found I had high cholesterol but apparently, there will be nothing I can do for that if it doesn't come down on its own and will need to pop a pill for that too.

Yeh so I need to get on the DAPHNE course ASAP.  I did a fair bit of carb replacement and stuff with running but this is learning all over again.  

Anyway....hi  

Any advice is more than welcomed.  Stories too


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## Pumper_Sue (Jul 3, 2012)

Hiya and welcome to the forum.
All I can say is wow to your journey  in achieving type 1 status 


> Where they also found I had high cholesterol but apparently, there will be nothing I can do for that if it doesn't come down on its own and will need to pop a pill for that too.



Not if you are going to try for a baby.


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## Type1oClock (Jul 3, 2012)

What do you mean? 

He said to leave the cholesterol for a couple weeks to see if it comes down with my BS


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## Pumper_Sue (Jul 3, 2012)

Type1oClock said:


> What do you mean?
> 
> He said to leave the cholesterol for a couple weeks to see if it comes down with my BS



Do your research on statins before taking them. I'm not 100% sure on this but there's something nagging at the back of my mind re statins and child bearing age and or pregnancy.


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## Type1oClock (Jul 3, 2012)

I will definitely look into it.

I am at Guys and St Thomas hospital in London and they seem to be very clued up.  They've done blood tests of FSH, put me on 5mg folic acid and booked me into a preconception clinic.

I trust them.  I am sure they wouldn't do anything that won't benefit me.  But thanks for the heads up


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## robofski (Jul 3, 2012)

Welcome to the forum, you couldn't wish to meet a nicer more helpful bunch of people, they've helped me a great deal.

Good luck getting everything on track, sounds like your making great progress already!


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## am64 (Jul 3, 2012)

welcome from me too ,there are a number of members who are ..have been...or wanting to be pregnant check out the pregnancy section ....and good luck


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## Northerner (Jul 3, 2012)

Hi Type1oclock, welcome to the forum  Wow! I could have almost written that story myself!  I have been a marathon runner for 30 years, a couple of years before diagnosis started with symptoms - put them down to age and all sorts of other things. Never even thought about diabetes, I thought you either had to be born with it or have an unhealthy lifestyle. I was a week away from flying out to Stockholm to run a marathon when I became extremely sick, just as you describe. Called ambulance and ended up in hospital for 8 days (missed the marathon! ). My BG was also 37! 

Since diagnosis in 2008 my Hba1c has always been in the 5s and my overall control is pretty good. My consultant believes my running helped delay my diagnosis and now it is helping me manage my diabetes. I would recommend two books that you will find enormously helpful:

Type 1 Diabetes in Children, Adolescents and Young People by Ragnar Hanas - known as the Type 1 bible, and Diabetic Athlete's Handbook by Sheri Colberg.

What insulin regime are you on? My chol was high when diagnosed and I was put on statins for a while, but decided to ditch them after getting side effects - I'm doing OK without them now.

Anything you need to know, just ask!


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## Pumper_Sue (Jul 3, 2012)

Type1oClock said:


> I will definitely look into it.
> 
> I am at Guys and St Thomas hospital in London and they seem to be very clued up.  They've done blood tests of FSH, put me on 5mg folic acid and booked me into a preconception clinic.
> 
> I trust them.  I am sure they wouldn't do anything that won't benefit me.  But thanks for the heads up



Here you go one of very many articles http://www.jfponline.com/Pages.asp?AID=3769

I wouldn't get your hopes up to soon for a baby though, as it will take your body quite a while to recover from your DKA and also to stablise your diabetes. Take one day at a time and make sure you are fit and well and in control before you attempt to have a baby the heartache of miscarage etc would be awful for you.

Learn as much as you can without getting overwelmed by everything and you can't go far wrong.
Everyone finds out sooner than later that it's your diabetes and diabetes has to live with you. Medics can say what they like but they don't live with the condition. They close the door and leave work at the end of the day. Diabetes lives with the person who has it 24/7.


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## Northerner (Jul 3, 2012)

Sue is right - it took me at least a year to get back to health and recover the weight I had lost. I felt healthy enough during this period, but with hindsight I really wasn't anywhere near fully fit.


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## Type1oClock (Jul 3, 2012)

Shew thanks for the replies.

Northerner - I am on Levemir and Novarapid.  I take 8 units basal and pretty much evaluate what I eat to take my Novarapid (sp?).  They started me off on 8 units per meal time, but I kept getting hypos so worked out that I needed to be more personal with it.  I test very regularly so I know when I am not 100% right with my dose.  I have also bought a bunch of books, including a calorie counter book.  I've kind of figured that it's approximately 1 unit per 10mgs of carbs - so I watch what I buy and what I eat.  I am trying to err on the side of lower carbs and eat brown pasta / rice etc and limit higher GI foods if not trying to bring BS up.

DKA is fine I think - I have no ketones and haven't for a while.  My BP is normal, and am getting my body to bring back the muscle by running up stairs a bit.  The docs reckoned 2 -3 months before I can try for a baby again.

I am just trying to figure things out by I also think (maybe erroneously) that my coping mechanism right now is to try and control what I can - the knowledge of it for instance.  I know I can't control the diabetes 100% but I can control what I put into my mouth and into my brain.

Thanks again for the input.  It's appreciated


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## Type1oClock (Jul 3, 2012)

I also realise that I may come across as rather "gung-ho" and know-it-all but I am far from it.  I am a control freak and this has completely thrown me.  I'm trying to learn as much as I can so that I learn to deal with it and live with it without becoming hysterical and panicking.  It's my coping mechanism


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## Northerner (Jul 3, 2012)

Type1oClock said:


> I also realise that I may come across as rather "gung-ho" and know-it-all but I am far from it.  I am a control freak and this has completely thrown me.  I'm trying to learn as much as I can so that I learn to deal with it and live with it without becoming hysterical and panicking.  It's my coping mechanism



Not at all, I was/am exactly the same. Knowledge combined with a growing body of experience is what will help you to manage your diabetes well  And help from us, of course!


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## Pumper_Sue (Jul 3, 2012)

Type1oClock said:


> I also realise that I may come across as rather "gung-ho" and know-it-all but I am far from it.  I am a control freak and this has completely thrown me.  I'm trying to learn as much as I can so that I learn to deal with it and live with it without becoming hysterical and panicking.  It's my coping mechanism



No you def do not come across like that at all 
Slow down though or you will suffer from burnout and hit rock bottom.
You are going to go through what is known as the honeymoon period at some point where everything will go t*ts up as in your pancreas with cough and splutter and then do the dying swan on you hence the warning re the baby just yet.


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## trophywench (Jul 4, 2012)

Hiya - aaarrgh, it may be 40 years ago but snap ditto thanks for reminding me LOL and here we are, I'm retired - how did that happen?  LOL

I think being a control freak is a positive advantage for a diabetic, frankly!  D shouldn't control you - you should control IT.

Of course there are things about it we can't control so we have to find out which things they are - and what we can actually do to counteract them - stuff like female hormones for instance and if you should find the effects (on BG) of the monthly ones are a pig to fathom out, boy oh boy, just wait till you are pregnant!  It can be done, lots of ladies do - but to get it as right as you can throughout you are far better off a) sorting it out to begin with and b) taking a while to actually truly understand your body and how it reacts to 'stuff' - nobody can tell you exactly - cos we are all different.  

And when you do know, that 9 months of high hormones and the general diabetic mayhem they cause, will be FAR easier to get through and any embryo will have a FAR greater chance of flourishing - which is the main point of the whole exercise.

After Ragnar Hanas - Using Insulin by John Walsh is another good book; as is Think Like a Pancreas by Gary Scheiner.  However - I deliberately didn't buy Ragnar first because I didn't quite fit any of the 3 categories so thought it would be N/A LOL - but in hindsight - I wish I had really!  I may not have needed either of the others for quite some time if at all .....

Last thing - take Baby Steps.  Much like climbing a hill - where you get there quicker and less cream crackered by taking small steps, diabetes is exactly the same.

You are training right now for a marathon - NOT a sprint!

Good luck!


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## everydayupsanddowns (Jul 5, 2012)

Hi Type1oClock

Nice to see you here (but sorry you've had to join!)

Sounds like you've made a brilliant start getting your head around things. Stick around and ask/moan/rant as the mood takes you.

If there's one thing for sure, living with D will give you a fair few "Eeeeeeehhhh?!?!" and "OH FOR GOODNESS SAKE!!" moments. Having a chance to vent when the D gremlins are royally messing things up for you - and have some a few people say, "Oh yup, I get that too, but it's easier if..." is just about the most helpful thing in the world.


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## Type1oClock (Jul 5, 2012)

More people!  How exciting!  Thanks for the feedback and please keep it coming!  

I was quite chuffed reading some peoples' stories and most seemed to stay in hospital for a week or more.  I take it as a good compliment to my fabulous body (and bull-headed stubbornness) that I wanted out ASAP and was sent to the general ward and then immediately discharged (within hours) because they can't discharge patients from the High Dependancy Unit.  I was in hospital for a grand total of 3 days - with severe DKA, collapsed veins and arteries etc etc.

I think the issue here is that I am more depressed that I can't have a baby than I am about the diabetes.  I know that there will be issues with the diabetes that I need to work out - but not everyone with diabetes who falls pregnant does it under control or does it the right way.  I am not saying that I want to stupid but since I've been trying anyway for nearly a year, who KNOWS how long it could take.

As soon as my hba1c levels are right, I am getting back on that horse and I will deal with whatever needs dealing with to cross that bridge.  I am more saddened by the fact that I can't be a normal woman and have a baby, and give my husband a baby, than I am by the diabetes.  It is more depressing and worrying to me that for every month I can't conceive, I get closer to having children at the "dangerous" age anyway.  Coupled with diabetes, I can't imagine now what having a baby at an older age could present.  And yes, I just want to breed.  It's that stubbornness that keeps me alive really so I can't be selectively stubborn

I understand that it's a hard road but my life has never been easy.  Typically, something large and eventful happens to my health the year I decide to do an Ironman.  It happened last time in 2008 and I as hoping to do IM Nice next year but I am putting that off (obviously). 

So, if you could all support me when / if I fall pregnant when my levels are right, that would be great.  And the thing here is that the longer I can't be "normal", the more impact it will have being diabetic.  Does it make sense?  

*A question though!*  

I took my sugar this morning upon waking and was a nice 5.4.  I had breakfast - injected 2 units to match the amount of cornflakes (I weighed it, got the grammage, worked out the milk grammage and worked out the total of units I would need) and ate right away.  Two hours later, my sugar was at 9.1.  I had also increased my basal to 9 units because I want my sugar to be slightly lower (I am not getting hypos when I eat properly etc etc).  

NOW - when I injected, it stung a bit.  I also ate my corn flakes right away and then on the tube in, I read that insulin can match the rate of sugar created by cereal in 20 - 30mins so I should inject 20 - 30 mins before eating my cornflakes.  Coupled with potentially injecting into muscle - which I know uses the insulin up quicker than injecting into fat.  Nothing else was changed in my morning - apart from potentially getting a bit mad because there wasn't any hot water (random issues with my geyser) - can you find any other reasons why my BS would have been that high?  Normally, it raises to about 7.6 after breakfast and then takes another hour to settle back into the 5 - 6 range...


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## everydayupsanddowns (Jul 5, 2012)

*a question back*

Are your previous results also with cornflakes?

Cornflakes (and most breakfast cereals to be honest) are usually listed in the 'high GI' category, with a reading of 75-80. Table sugar is often listed at 60. Bizarely this means that if you spoon sugar on (and stick to the same carb count) you may well get a slower absorption! 

GI (you may know this already) is an averaged measure of how fast BG rises in 100 or so people when eating 50g of carbs of a specific thing. It (along with GL) can give a useful guess as to how fast the carbs in something might hit your bloodstream. Better to test things for yourself as individuals can vary, but it's not a bad guide. It's only an average and won't necessarily apply to you - but for cornflakes I would certainly expect a fast sharp 'spike' in my BGs.


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## Type1oClock (Jul 5, 2012)

Yep - all results are with cornflakes.  At exactly the same time of day.  I think the only other difference as well was that my coffee this morning tasted a little bit stronger than any other days.  I don't add sugar to anything - I even switched my sugar to sweeteners when I was discharged so I've not had table sugar since before I went into hospital.

I am thinking about switching this breakfast for a higher protein based breakfast so I don't get those spikes.  Cornflakes has a lot of extra rubbish in it anyway but I have a box that needs eating.

I just found it strange that I've been eating the same breakfast and had steady morning readings upon waking and erring more towards a BS low two hours later, rather than a spike.  In fact, this week alone, my BS level has dropped 2 from breakfast to two hours later.

Hmmmm the other thing I was doing was thinking that maybe 3 units for the cornflakes wasn't enough and I dropped it down to 2 units (took the carbs - fibre + milk carbs etc) but I also didn't factor in my cup of coffee (with milk and sweeteners) - so maybe that extra unit just held the spike off a bit. 

I like this.  It's like constant problem solving!  Who needs a job?!!


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## Northerner (Jul 5, 2012)

If you like toast for breakfast, Burgen soya and linseed bread is very tasty, low GI and has fewer carbs than most other breads  I gave up eating cereal within about 6 months of diagnosis - spiked me to high heaven! Something else to consider is possibly injecting around 15 minutes before eating, as this allows the insulin to get working and tends to match the rise in BG from the subsequent food better. It's a bit of trial and error to get it right, but another part of the equation that helps with good control!


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## Type1oClock (Jul 5, 2012)

Hey Northerner!  Good to see you again - glad you're not sick of my whining (I read some of your advice on other threads!)

Yeh, I definitely think I am going to inject 15mins earlier.  I tend to have a bit of chicken and salad for lunch - with some dressing on it - and my BS holds nicely so I don't think it matters that I inject closer to eating.

But I do think that it's the problem in the morning.  As you said, cereals spike about 20mins after eating so I need to try get the insulin to spike at the same time.

Cool will try tomorrow.  I have a feeling it's going to sort it out.  Also, the drop off on other mornings was probably from too much insulin and that's what hid the spikes.  Since dropping it to 2 units, it probably covers the carbs but not at the right time.

Hurrah!  

Oh and will try in the tummy.  I am shooting up in the leg this week and I keep finding it stings a bit or sometimes I get a spot of blood.  I know that is potentially shooting up into the muscle then so will see if I get the same reaction from the tummy. Well - will try the leg again tomorrow and see the reaction and then will do the tummy on Saturday.  Go Compare dot com


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## everydayupsanddowns (Jul 5, 2012)

Ah OK. Right... If you've had other results with (almost exactly) the same morning routine then one or other of the following may apply:


It might be to do with the coffee (which *can* raise BGs in some people, especially if strong/filter)
It might be 'just one of those things' - no two days are _really_ identical... You will find this more and more with your D. Minute differences in hormones/activity the previous day/stress/ambient temperature (no really!) a thousand and one things can have a noticeable, but not really predictable effect 
It might actually have been the same result after all. Test strips only need to be within 20% of a 'lab' test 95% of the time, so our datafeed can be pretty sloppy. Fortunately they are usually *much* more accurate than that, but a 'real' reading of 7.5 could show as 6.0 or 9.0 or anywhere inbetween and still count as being '*the same*' as far as the requirements for meter accuracy is concerned

At the end of the day we can strive for 'perfection', but it's not worth getting massively stressed over the teeny tiny differences because the number of variables and/or method of measurement aren't really up to it 

Fun fun fun!


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## Type1oClock (Jul 5, 2012)

Yeh I guess this is the thing.  Sometimes, when people say "good control" to a control freak, I don't think they understand the impact that that can have.  My idea of "good control" is knowing everything, having everything perfect, having an answer to everything.  But I guess (from what I've read) that a lot of diabetes is unknown as well so I need to accept that sometimes, I need to just accept that on occasion it will be an anomaly. 

Being able to say "it's just one of those things" means that maybe my idea of "good control" is TOTALLY too controlling for something like this.

I don't mind though.  Rather go in and figure things out - read books (the math equations are what are leaving me a bit....erm...."maybe I will do these later"), chat to people, gather information, do a full-body audit, figure out what makes my body tick....then chuck in some variables.

I am going running this weekend so that could be interesting too!!


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## everydayupsanddowns (Jul 5, 2012)

Type1oClock said:


> I am going running this weekend so that could be interesting too!!



Take water with you, take your meter, take some fast-acting carbs (ideally liquid and carbonated) and test about every 30 mins or so - at least for the first few times 

Oh - and don't run if you are over 12 (not that you seem to be up at that level  often)

www.runsweet.com is a useful resource


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## Type1oClock (Jul 5, 2012)

Awesome thanks! 

I found runsweet my first week out of hospital - brilliant site and massively positive.

I am going to run for 30mins to see what happens.  Thanks for the pointers though - will definitely take the lot.  And my husband can run with me and carry all my goodies.  He will be thrilled that I can get out and run with him again!

I've not hit 12 since I was discharged (yay!).  But I will definitely not run if I am either too high or two low.

Thanks so much


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## robofski (Jul 5, 2012)

Type1oClock said:


> I took my sugar this morning upon waking and was a nice 5.4. I had breakfast - injected 2 units to match the amount of cornflakes (I weighed it, got the grammage, worked out the milk grammage and worked out the total of units I would need) and ate right away. Two hours later, my sugar was at 9.1. I had also increased my basal to 9 units because I want my sugar to be slightly lower (I am not getting hypos when I eat properly etc etc).
> 
> NOW - when I injected, it stung a bit



*EXACTLY *the same as what happened to me this morning, had some pain/stinging when injecting with breakfast and FIVE hours later my very nice and lowest ever waking reading of 5.8 was up at 11.5!!!

I ate the same as I did on Monday and Tuesday with the same dose of NovoRapid but this time it just didn't work!

I think I hit an area that maybe hadn't recovered from the last injection or maybe even muscle (though I don't have a lot of that!)

I'll chalk this one up to experience and keep an eye out for the same effect again.

Hope you're feeling well and confident enough to try for a baby again soon, I guess you sure have motivation to get on top of everything!! 

PS, does you're husband know you call him a horse 



Type1oClock said:


> I am getting back on that horse


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## Type1oClock (Jul 5, 2012)

I call him lots of things  

He feels left out with all the attention I am getting with the recent diagnosis and has just managed to get himself some man flu.

I have never seen anyone in a worse state!!


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## shiv (Jul 6, 2012)

Hi! I noticed you're in London - have you heard of North London Young Diabetics (NLYD)? It's a social/support group type thing for people with diabetes in London. It's aimed at people under 30 but noone checks ID  we meet once a month, roughly, alternating between drinks in a pub (last time we went for 2-for-1 cocktails in Be At 1 near Piccadilly Circus in central London) and social outings (next one should be to a beach at the end of July!).

The FB page is here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/115827781765066/

S x


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## MrSugarLover (Jul 6, 2012)

What a way to be broken in.


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## Type1oClock (Jul 7, 2012)

Yeh the doctors and therapists said that yesterday as well.

They said I'd pretty much done much more than most other patients and have taken on board my desire to breed.  They're booking me in ASAP to all the preconception clinics and DAPHNE etc etc and have said they've pretty much not seen many people get a handle on their diabetes as quickly.

I spoke to her about the cholesterol thing and she said seeing that I am young (ish) and fit, she isn't going to bother about checking it again until my BS is back under control.  She said the sugar will make it higher anyway and she will check when it's "normal" to check.  She also said cholesterol will increase with pregnancy anyway and it wasn't something she was concerned about.

I also voiced some opinions of people of the forums I've visited and she said that she didn't think I would "burn out".  The therapist also said that I am dealing with it how I deal with everything (the quicker I have it under control, the quicker life goes back to semi-normal).  She said as a result of that, if I felt like I was getting overwhelmed, she had no doubt that I would either ask for help or just adjust my coping mechanism.

I also asked about the "honeymoon" period and they said given that they don't know how long it lasts (weeks, months, years) or the extent to which I am even in it (if I am), or if I will be - they don't think it's a reason to put off pregnancy at all.

They seemed that positive with my attitude and the progress made, as well as taking on board what I said about pregnancy and are all keen to get me to pregnancy point asap.

I did say that the diabetes is manageable but the more they put off pregnancy or things like training, the more I believe diabetes affects my ability to live a normal life.

I was really happy with my therapy and clinic session.  My hba1c has gone (in 4 weeks) from 15.5% upon being admitted to A&E (BS at 37), 12.7% 8 days ago and 11.9% yesterday so it's coming down nicely.


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## Type1oClock (Jul 7, 2012)

I joined that group, shiv - that's awesome thanks


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## Northerner (Jul 7, 2012)

All sounds really positive!


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