Need Info on Diabetes

My husband has had Type 1 Diabetes since he was three years old, and both my son and daughter have it.

The doctor will refer him to an endocrinologist, hopefully affiliated with The International Diabetes Center and both you and he will receive the training that you will need to manage the disease.
You will meet with an endocrinologist, a dietician and a nurse educator who will walk you through every aspect of care.

Websites didn't really help us at all. The information given by the diabetes nurse educator is extremely helpful.

There are no special diets for Type 1, but Gamma G. is exactly right about artificial sweeteners. They are bad, bad news for people with diabetes.

Many doctors and nurses don't know much about Type 1 diabetes unless they specialize in the disease, so make sure they are doing all they can to connect you with the right people.

Please, please feel free to PM me at any time. I am not a doctor, but I am immersed in Type 1 diabetes 24 hours a day and I would love to be a support for you!

Last of all, HUGS. Type 1 diabetes is very, very difficult, but you will all get through it!

*Edit- I do want to make it clear to anyone reading this that insulin therapy is the ONLY treatment for Type 1 Diabetes. You cannot manage T1D with diet, exercise, natural treatments, etc. Insulin can be given through syringe or insulin pump, but cannot be substituted by medication, diet or exercise.

I suggest you listen to the doc very well.

I also suggest you consider doing some research on your own too. I have a friend who did artificial sweeteners for her diabetes and it was really bad.

She finally got a new doc and he told her that if she cut out all that artificial stuff and just counted her carbs and didn't use items full of sugar she would improve and she did, drastically.

now that she is not using any artificial sweeteners she is off her insulin pump, off all meds, eats much healthier, is able to be a lot more normal.

I would not do anything the doc didn't know about though. I am just asking that you do some research on the subject and consider trying to use less real sugar, and not use sugar substitutes.

I hope he is okay and that diet and exercise will help him a lot.

You can find out much about diabetes online but your husband's doctor should talk with him and you to know how to respond if he has issues in the future. Here is one link that has some helpful information.
http://www.healthcoach4me.com/en/index.html
Below are two other links.
http://www.medicinenet.com/diabetes_mellitus/article.htm

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/diabetes-diet/DA00027
I hope your husband gets regulated quickly as this is nothing to mess with.
Sleep issues are part of the disease as well as many other symptoms you can find on mayo clinic or web md sites.

You have a LOT of meetings with doctors ahead of you, and BOTH you and your husband must attend so you know all about his condition and his new regimen. It's going to be OK, it really is, but information is power right now, so be ready to take notes, ask questions (no question is dumb!) and be assertive if you don't understand something.

The doctor should be hooking you both up with an endocrinologist (specializing in diabetes); a registered dietitian or registered nutritionist who also specializes in diabetes; and others who will show you and him how to take his blood level readings, how to give him shots, what a "high" or "low" episode will look and feel like -- and more. Use the experts.

Then find support. A great resource is the American Diabetes Association at www.diabetes.org. They can help connect you with other patients and families in your area and give you so much help and support. Be sure to type in .org and not .com, as the .com link would take you to a site for a drug company that just wants to sell you stuff.

Your family can handle this if your husband is willing to take charge of his body and you are willing to help him do so and make changes. Take care of yourself, too, so you have energy for the learning curve ahead, but in time you will establish a pattern and your family will be OK.