Type 1 diabetic, always hungry, high a1c, but doc gives no helpful advice!?

Question

I'm a 21 year old female & have been a type 1 diabetic for about three & a half years. For about the last year & a half/two years, my blood sugars have been high despite my efforts to control them & my a1c tests have been horrible. I am constantly hungry & try to ignore it to the point where my stomach hurts & I finally have to eat something. (I'm talking, literally, hungry ALL THE TIME.) My doctor tells me I need to control my blood sugar better & he constantly promotes the pump (which I've told him I DON'T want, the injections work for me) but when I say that my blood sugar is out of control because I eat all the time, he just says something about females being more hungry at that time of the month & it's probably hormones, nothing to worry about. But that is the reason my sugars are so high!!! I am 5'7" 157 lbs & not a big girl by any means (thank God for good metabolism) but the constant hunger works against controlling my blood sugar. ANY advice on dieting, lifestyle changes, etc?

Answer 1

Hmm.. the injections work for you yet your blood sugars are high and your A1C's have been horrible? Yeah that sounds like it's working real well. Granted your doctor sounds like an idiot, but you need a reality check yourself. When blood sugars are high and out of control, a ravenous appetite is a common symptom.

Answer 2

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Answer 3

It sounds like you're hungry because of high bgs. When you're high all the time your body is burning fat to function - not the food you're eating. This is why you're also thin - not your metabolism. You're simply not taking in all the calories you're eating.

Also, injections are not working for you - or your bgs and A1c would be better. You should check into a different doctor who can give you more options about the type of insulin you're taking/how many shots and even look into insulin resistance.

If you're set on shot therapy, you might want to consider lantus and humalog or novolog. This means you'd have to take a shot before each time you eat, but you'd cover all the food you're eating with insulin keeping your sugars down. A pump works on the same premise.

I'm 33 and have had type 1 for 20 years. I was very much against a pump for a long time also. You should talk to your doctor about trying one on for an hour or two with saline. This way, you didn't make any commitment and you can see what it would feel like. It honestly changed my life. 97% of all people who try a pump stay on it.

Answer 4

First of all, get the he** away from that Dr., I FINALLY found a Dr. that understands the idiosyncrasies of MY Diabetes. I would suggest you add more fiber into your diet, that will help control the hunger. The other thing is ask about going on Metformin or Actos. Those usually control the BS even though you'r eeating all the time. Yeah, it's true that women are like that during their cycle but it was pretty stupid of him not to appreciate that it's happening all the time. Remember that carbs will instantly raise your BS so try to eat non carb foods when you're hungry in between meals. If you know the diff between simple and complex carbs, try complex cuz they don't break down as fast and don't break down into sugar hence, raising the BS. If you've never seen a Diabetic Educator, ask your insurance about one, mine is AWESOME and I can ask her about anything. It's really an ez problem, you just are dealing with dumb medical people.

Answer 5

If your A1C is high, then something's wrong with your diabetes treatment. You may need a different kind of rapid-acting insulin or long-acting insulin.

The hunger is definitely from having a high blood sugar so often. It was how I felt before I was diagnosed! Always insatiably hungry.

The pump is an excellent solution, but some people can do fine on multiple daily injections. It just sounds like your injection program is what's at fault. Diet/activity won't do much at this time, particularly if your sugar is elevated. A blood sugar of 250+ at the time of exercise can actually be RAISED by the exercise!

Oh, and IMHO your doctor is at fault!!!!!!!!! Find a new one ASAP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Answer 6

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Answer 7

Short answer: more protein, fewer carbs, lots of water and exercise.

You are right to be concerned, and there is no better time than now for you to develop those good habits that will help you remain in control of your diabetes. Shame on your doctor for blowing you off! You do NOT want to be 50 and trying to get your appetite under control.

See if you can get a consult with a nutritionist. This doc seems a little lacking in the diabetes education department.

Answer 8

Sweetheart, you need a new doctor for starters. My husband is a type 1 also, and we've changed doctors recently because of our old doc's 'tude. He's now on a lower dosage and doing great. Some hospitals offer diabetic teaching, they help you identify what foods are high carb and how much to eat and so on. There's a good support net out there for you, you just need to widen your search away from Dr. Quack a little, and you'll see a big improvement, I'm sure of it.

Answer 9

I am type 2 diabetic and here is what works for me. I have to eat generally 30-45 grams of carbohydrate per meal. I do nto eat snacks. You are on insulin. You should eat 45gms or carb per meal and eat a snack between lunch and dinner and then after dinner eat a bedtime snack. You do not want to go longer than 5 hours without anything to eat. You want to try and eat at the same time each day. Try this and see if this helps with keeping the blodo sugar in better control.
I am on the pill Metformin and it has made me gain weight.
Your insulin could be a facotr in making you hungry and gain weight. This happened to my mother.
I wish you the best with this.

Answer 10

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RE:
Type 1 diabetic, always hungry, high a1c, but doc gives no helpful advice!?
I'm a 21 year old female & have been a type 1 diabetic for about three & a half years. For about the last year & a half/two years, my blood sugars have been high despite my efforts to control them & my a1c tests have been horrible. I am constantly hungry & try to ignore it to the point where my...

Answer 11

do you see an endocrinologist? I am a type 1 for 3 1/2 years now too. I am 31 I won't let my doctor treat my diabetes only my endo. My family doctor has strange diabetes advice he keeps thinking I am type 2 when he tries to tell me stuff. If you are not happy with your doctor and his treatment get a new one.