# Looking for a counsellor specialising in type 1 diabetes and toddlers



## RosieH (Mar 4, 2021)

My 2 year old nephew has just been diagnosed with Type 1 and my sister needs someone with experience to guide her through the rollercoaster of emotions and day to day challenges. Does anyone know a counsellor specialising in diabetes and children? We'd be really grateful for a recommendation.


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## Inka (Mar 4, 2021)

Hi @RosieH Sorry to hear about your nephew’s diagnosis. I hope he’s doing well. Has your sister asked his diabetes team? They might have recommendations.


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## RosieH (Mar 4, 2021)

Hi Inka, thank you for replying so quickly. My sister lives in Sweden and I'm not sure they have a team exactly. Its quite urgent, they are understandably it really hard


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## Bronco Billy (Mar 4, 2021)

Hi @RosieH. Has your sister spoken to the hospital team about this? Most teams have a psychologist attached to them. If this isn't available or the waiting list is very long, she could try the IAPT service, https://www.nhs.uk/service-search/find-a-psychological-therapies-service/ This is a nationwide, self-referral service, most areas have paediatric services


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## Inka (Mar 4, 2021)

RosieH said:


> Hi Inka, thank you for replying so quickly. My sister lives in Sweden and I'm not sure they have a team exactly. Its quite urgent, they are understandably it really hard



Ah, I’m not sure if we have any Swedish members here. But I would think that any counsellor who dealt with any kind of trauma would be ok. I don’t think they’d have to know about diabetes in particular. They’d be dealing with the shock of diagnosis, and those feelings are common to other events too.

She could join this forum if she’d like support or to ask questions. The important thing to remember is that it’s not her fault, and that it genuinely does get easier.


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## everydayupsanddowns (Mar 4, 2021)

Sorry to hear about your nephew’s diagnosis @RosieH 

The forum rules don’t permit recommendations (or criticism!) of named healthcare professionals, because these are impossible to verify and/or moderate, but the idea of the parents asking at the paediatric clinic about the psychological support in offer is a good suggestion. 

A new diagnosis with T1 can feel overwhelming at the beginning, but things do get easier. 

Many members of the forum have found Ragnar Hanas’s book a very helpful introduction to T1 - Type 1 Diabetes in Children Adolescents and Young People


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## Thebearcametoo (Mar 5, 2021)

I don’t know what the structures are in Sweden but here we have a paediatric team with a named nurse, a dietitian, doctor, psychologist, and other support staff all with a lot of contact at diagnosis. It’s good to build a relationship with this team as they will be able to answer specific questions knowing all the details. I would presume that there are similar paediatric teams in Sweden.

Even with our team’s support we still felt overwhelmed and at sea. This is normal. There is a massive learning curve to begin with and it’s hard for anyone who hasn’t been through it to fully understand the impact on the whole family. That’s where peer support from forums like this are helpful as well as the professional support. It will get easier.


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