Boyfriend with Type 1

[irisheyesbee]

My boyfriend is 18 years old.  He has had type 1 diabetes since he was 7 years old, and about 4 years ago was given a pump to regulate his insulin.  I'm concerned because he doesn't eat properly, and I think it's because he relies on the pump so he can eat things with high sugar.  He'll eat all the cookies and sweets he wants and then just use the pump to bring his sugar down, which I think is kinda typical since he's a teenager (I am too, so I'm guilty as well).  I went with him to an appointment and I got the impression that he was scolded by his doctor.  Is what he's doing unhealthy?  I'm nervous about approaching this topic with him because he doesn't like to talk about it, and I don't want to seem like I'm his mother.  I have considered going on the diet with him to make it easier for him.  How do you think I should approach this with him?

[JDRF-Team-wak]

I am a mom of a type 1 diabetic who is on the pump, not a physician.  I personally think it great that you are taking an interest in your boyfriend’s health and well being.  .

I can tell you that from my experience with the pump (And one other Great things about the pump) is that you do not have to be on a diet.  As my daughters doctor says  " TREAT HER A CHILD FIRST AND A DIABETIC SECOND." The pump makes doing that a lot easier.   A lot of people and physicians believe this. The only thing that my daughter has that is sugar free is soda, when her numbers are high.  This has worked well for as her numbers have been in target and her A1C (a test that tells doctor how good control you are in) has been very good. There are some websites that might explain it better. I would also suggest checking out the website for the pump that he owns.
Also it is not the sugars that affect his blood sugar it is the carbohydrates.  That  is what affects a diabetics blood sugar, there are a lot of ins and outs of eating carbohydrates, (fast acting and slow acting),and proteins. Check out these web sites:
www.jdrf.org
www.childrenwithdiabetes.com
www.minmed.com- go to pump expedition
You might also want to talk to one of the boyfriends parents; they might give you some insight on how they deal with it, and to handles it with your boyfriend.
You sound very caring, that is a good thing to see.  Hope all goes well.


  

[JDRF - Team- SS]

irisheyesbee,

WAK has given you great input / advice.

My son who is 10 was diagnosed at the age of 3.  He started on the insulin pump about 8 months ago and ONE of the reasons we opted for the pump is because he would have more flexibilty as far as how many carbohydrates he could have at one time as long as he adds them up and inputs them into his pump.  

Possibly your boyfriend's Hemoglobin A1C was not in a good range?  I am unsure why he was scolded or possibly scolded.  If his A1C is too high (hypothetically) then changes such as his basal rate(s) and / or insulin to carb ratio might need to be made..  This is up to his Endocrinologist.  

I allow my son to eat what he wants (except for regular soda - unless low), however, we do our best to add up the carbs -sometimes it is hard to be completely accurate when eating out at a restaurant although we have a couple carb books.  If your boyfriend does not have a carb book, he should get the Calorie King book.  There is still guess work involved.  We cannot always measure everything!

either here (below) or ask his doc for one.
http://www.calorieking.com/

(I keep one in my purse - possibly he could put one in the glove compartment of his or your car and you could carry one in your purse for when you are out.)

You sound VERY caring and supportive.  I applaud you for that!

Feel free to post again!

SS

[Christina McCurdy]

I am a 23 year old diabetic who was diagnosed at age 4.  From my personal experience and most of my friends who are diabetic as well, this is our opinion.  At age 16-20, you know what you are doing (eating sugar, drinking, things like that) is making your life shorter.  The idea behind this thinking is, i can live a shorter, happier life or a longer, miserable life.  At that stage, I too chose to eat sugar and things like that.  So did most of mu friends who are diabetic.  No matter who i talked to and what they said, warned me of kidney failure, dialysis, blindness, amputation, seeing all these things happen to others, i still chose to live the shorter, happier life.  Now that i am 23, i have just had my frist baby. Found out last week, he will be my only baby.  The lifestyle i chose to live then has damaged my kidneys.  If they had told me this 2 years ago, i would have bene upset, but not bothered me as much,but now that i have my son, things are so different.  The dr told me i will be on dialysis in 5-10 years, 15 if i am lucky and all i can think about is...my son will only be 10 or 15.  And that is if i do great care now.  I try now, but it is easy to stray from what you are supposed to do. I have been on the pump for 3.5 years, by the way.  And i still do sometimes cheat, i think everyone does at some point, whether its a coke or a piece of candy.  Even giving your insulin first, letting it drop and then eating the candy can hurt you.  I tried that too.  I hope this helped some.  If he is anything like me, what you say or others say probably wont make any long term differences.  He probably wants to live like other kids or teens and not feel different.  Good Luck!!
Christina