# Independent injecting cont...giving a teenager confidence



## BettyB (Mar 16, 2013)

Hi,
Thanks for the replies to the question I posted about the best age to inject independently. I have passed the info on to my friend and her daughter and they both feel that it is the right time to take this step.

However the daughter (just 15 and sensible,but shy) is lacking confidence in herself and feels a sense of panic that she might get it wrong. She has been making the decisions and administering the injections for a couple of years now so the only real difference would be that the dose dialled up and the type of insulin would not be double-chcked prior to her injecting it.

My friend has asked me to talk to her and reassure her that she can do it and that it's o.k to do injections without the 'safety net' of someone else being there etc. I am not the most confident person with injections really though and I don't want to say the wrong thing to her.

Therefore if there is anyone with experience of this stage -either as a teenager themselves or as the parent of a teenager- who has any words of wisdom then both me and her would appreciate it very much.
Thanks for your time. Betty


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## XandersMum (Mar 17, 2013)

Hi

Whilst my son is younger (8), he had this problem at first.  Our DSN came round and he practiced on a squishy teddy thing they had and then himself.  She gave him the confidence from a 'professional' point of view (after all none if us are complete experts . ) Maybe ask if her DSN could do the same kind of thing? Other than that its just a case of perseverance unfortunately . 

?ndree x


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## BettyB (Mar 17, 2013)

Thanks Andree, your time is appreciated. 

She has spoken to her DSN, and was told that 'very few people do themselves serious harm with insulin and as long as you concentrate you'll most likely be fine'. I realise that this is probably true, but in terms of building confidence in her own ability to trust herself it didn't help much.

Perhaps once she has done it completely unchecked for a while the worry will just naturally become less - it's just the doing of it for the first few weeks that will be the most stressful I guess! B


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## trophywench (Mar 17, 2013)

Well it is - I mean a lot of us were diagnosed as adults and it is quite scary the first few times even with a nurse by the side of you!  And definitely when you get home and she isn't there at all.  There's no harm in suggesting she does it in stages.  Work out the dose. Dial it up.  Leave it.  THink about it.  Check calculation and window on pen.  Can have 5 minutes or longer in between stages.  Take deep breath - inject!

Enjoy meal, and test test test.  If necessary, every half hour if it makes her feel better? Paranoid maybe, but BY testing she will know straight off that she hasn't killed herself, won't she?  It shouldn't last too long I don't think, it's a PITA having to do that many tests !


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## bev (Mar 18, 2013)

Hi Betty,

The very fact that the daughter seems concerned is a good thing in itself! It means that she will be extra careful and think about things in a way that others may not. I know it is easy for us parents to say because its not us with diabetes - but she will soon learn to trust herself and has to get used to the idea that she might make the odd mistake - (even parents have given the wrong insulin and needed to feed lots of sweets!) - but it really is just down to practice I'm afraid. Has the daughter ever attended a diabetes break with DUK or any other diabetes support groups? I dont personally like DUK but they do help children to meet up with others over a weekend which might help her to feel more comfortable injecting as everyone else will be doing it. Also has the mum joined the CWD list? We also meet up once or twice a year and there are lots of teenagers who are all now friends from all over the UK. My son is 15 in a couple of weeks and he absolutely loves the meetups we go on and has made lots of friends and cant wait to see them all again. Maybe this might help with confidence?Bev


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## trophywench (Mar 18, 2013)

Well quite a lot of kids and parents are in JDRF and they do stuff for kids and families too, as well as DUK, don't they?

I tell you what, I went to DUK 'The Big Event' last year and they did things on that day for ALL kids - diabetic and their non-D siblings - from really little kids to about 16-ish year olds -  and to a man they LOVED it.  Different venue this year but I can predict they will be in terrible trouble if the kids stuff isn't as good, cos I'm certain the kids will be pressurising the parents to go again !


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## bev (Mar 19, 2013)

Hi Trophywench,

JDRF do have days out and those sorts of things - but I am personally not aware of weekend events like DUK have.

Alex and I attended a DUK weekend when newly diagnosed and even though it was early days for us I knew that they didnt have a clue and were giving out rubbish information which is why I now support JDRF instead. Yes Alex had a nice time on the weekend - but the information they were giving out wasnt good and even Alex (aged 10) thought they didnt know their stuff! DUK are so far behind the times with Type 1 and childrens needs in particular that they are an embarrassment and Baroness Young's interview on 'Daybreak' was useless/pointless/embarrassing in my view and that of many others.Bev


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## Monica (Mar 21, 2013)

Has your friend's daughter Facebook? There is a group called "Type one Teens"

Maybe she could join them and ask them for help. It's a closed group, which means it's private.


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## BettyB (Mar 21, 2013)

Thanks for the suggestions.
She has spent time at events with others, which helped in some ways she said, but not particularly at giving her more belief in herself or her abilities from what i've observed.
I will certainly pass the info about facebook on to her so thanks for that too.
Betty


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