…. ok, ok – I’m sure there are a few of you witty ones who were thinking of drug references when you saw this headline…. not so, I’m sticking with the diabetes for now.
I was on the phone to a woman the other day. She has an eight month old son with type 1, and I’ve had several chats with her over time about what it’s like. One of the things she mentioned to me in our recent conversation is that she has some, but ultimately not very much, idea of what it’s like to have high blood sugars. There is a limit to how well her young son can articulate it, and of course she can’t feel it herself, being a person with a working pancreas. (Jealous, much?! 
)
I thought about this and wondered how I would describe it. Given that I spent years of my teens and twenties in a state of hyperglycaemia, I’m sure I am a bit more de-sensitised to it than some of you! I generally feel: thirsty; tired; have a headache; sometimes feel a bit nauseous and heavy on my feet.
How about you? Drop us a comment in the comments box (please) so we can hopefully articulate this as a community!
Posted in Community, Hypos & Hypers
Tagged as BG, support
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29 comments have been made on this post
Saffy wrote
You sure know how to write the attention grabbing headlines!
8 months and Type 1? Poor little sausage!
I usually describe it for those lucky souls with working bits as feeling hung over – not refreshed, kind of slow and tired.
Nic wrote
Oh dear, that should read 8 years….
Meg wrote
I’ve had type 1 for 9 years now, i would describe having a high blood sugar as feeling kind of sluggish, can’t be bothered to do anything, i sometimes feel sick, and i get really tired, i also get very grumpy and will snap at anyone who annoys me
Sophie wrote
Whenever I have high blood glucose for long-ish amounts of time (about a day or so), I get a terrible headache that no amount of pain killers help with. This headache, combined with an awful sluggish, fatigued feeling, for about three years wasn’t much fun before I was finally diagnosed with T1… I thought feeling ‘high’ was how everyone felt!
Saffy wrote
Sophie – I’m with you! They thought I had chronic fatigue syndrome for months before they worked it out.
Aaron wrote
The predominate feeling I get is of being annoyed at everyone (to put it politely). I really get quite agressive! I can also feel horribly nauseous and my appetite totally vanishes. Even once I’ve come back down I feel feel crook and won’t eat for a while – leaves me feeling tired.
The other thing that cues me in is this HORRIBLE taste in my mouth and the sensation of having eaten something akin to glue. I swear I can taste a high before I feel it…
jamielee wrote
I have had type 1 for a little over 25yrs now and when mine is high I like Aaron have a terrible taste in my mouth, I feel very tired and heavy on my feet, sick at my stomach some, but mostly I could drink a river!!! I get very thirsty more than usual, I stay thirsty!
I know my mom could tell a low BS before she could a high one, but me wanting water and lots of it was a big sign for her. I was 7yrs old when diagnosed and I would drink water right out of the water hose outside I would get so thirsty….
Sarah wrote
Thirsty, grouchy, dry-eyed, bad taste in my mouth and filled with self-loathing – not sure whether that’s a biochemical thing or it’s my perfectionist streak kicking in! I HATE being high.
Renata Porter wrote
My daughter said headaches and my son said he has no idea.
SaraM wrote
Dry eyes !!!
Like Aaron I can totally taste it.
I like to describe it as the feeling of molasus in my blood stream, or walking through a thick smog, everything is difficult to move, think….yadayada, and you want to cry and hurt people…..( a continued high will push me to this point)
Kathy wrote
Yes, yes, yes to all the above. Sometimes, if it is very high I have an odd feeling in my nose and my toes go ‘funny’ along with the heavy legs, back ache etc. What annoys me is that even using the correction facility on the pump it can take hours to come down, and then I wait for the crash!
Nic wrote
I’m coming down from an 18 right now – gahhhh. Feel tired, headachey, bleeeeurgh and not as sharp mentally as I like to think I normally am
Erin wrote
According to my workmates I get rather grumpy ;>)
I would describe it like having a hangover – which is why after a night out on the town it’s hard to tell whether I have a hangover, or just suffering from being high.
Alison wrote
I agree with your description Nic, I get very thirsty(thats when I test). I also get a headache and feel sick and tired and don’t want to do anything – but that always seems like tiredness and part of being a mother, then when I get thirsty I realise its a bit different to my normal tiredness.
Jolene wrote
Hi everyone,
What I really love about this site, is that I learn so much first hand from all of you having type1. As my daughter is very young and not able to tell me how she feels physically when she is high, reading all of the above gives me more insight as to how she must feel. The signs for me when she is high : GRUMPY, thirsty, GRUMPY,tired,GRUMPY and she often complains of tummy ache??? Do any of you have the tummy ache one?
Becs wrote
I’ve had Type 1 since I was 12, so 24 years for me now. Over time my hyper and hypo awareness has diminished. Sometimes I have classic symptoms of being high. Firstly thirst is a biggie, sometimes feel nauseous, have the occasional abdominal pain (seems to be lower right side), and tiredness is a huge one!
Nic wrote
There you go, Jolene – another tummy ache symptom from Becs…. I’ve never noticed a tummy ache myself but all of these comments prove even more that diabetes is one thing to one person and entirely different for the next.
Jolene wrote
Thank you Becs, yes always lower right side for my little one too. Interesting !!
Jill wrote
I have had type 1 for 33 years. Sore tummy and very, very tired and life seems too hard.
Alana wrote
I’ve only found out I’m diabetic as of 5 days ago.. My Hypers, which apparently I’ve been experiencing for close to a month are craziness! My eyesight has been like looking through the bottom of a glass bottle, burning pains in my stomach, bad hearing, ridiculously thirsty – I was drinking up to 8 litres of fluids a day (I’m not exaggerating either), what I call cotton tongue (which is dry mouth beyond dry even after drinking). Not to mention the Grumps… I yelled at a fly the other day because it was buzzing around my windscreen.. Craziness!
Aaron wrote
Alana – that sounds very familar. Even after quite some time I can well remember the feeling before I was diagnosed.
Welcome to our community and never hesitate to touch base with us to get some advice, get through the day or have a laugh!
- Aaron
Alison wrote
Hi Alana, Glad you found this blog. You must still be in shock, I can remember it so clearly. I was diagnosed 10 years ago, at 32 years old. I didn’t think it happened to adults, I thought I was a strong healthy person. After diagnosis I tried very hard to accept it until my diabetes nurse educator said I suppose you keep thinking ‘why me’ and I told her I didn’t. She told me I had to grieve for my health, it was an important part of the process. That was it – I started crying and cried for the next couple of weeks.
I remember the thirst, tiredness, blurry eyes and weight loss – always wanted to lose a bit of weight and then suddenly I was too skinny!
Now its harder to tell when I’m high unless I’m really really high.
I hope you have the support you need – there’s always more support here. Just getting the daily emails is encouraging.
Nic wrote
I second Aaron and Alison’s comments, Alana… welcome to our little club (shame you had to have your pancreas putt out on you to gain membership). I wish you all the very best in getting up to speed and I hope it will just become a part of your overall life soon. We’re always happy to help out over here at BeingDiabetic so just drop me a line or head to the Facebook page (www.facebook.com/beingdiabetic) if you want to discuss anything in particular.
Cheers
Nic
Kiri wrote
Im new to this site and I was so excited to find it…but been a T1 diabetic since I was 13..the greatest age when your starting high school and the hormones are really going NUTS!!
Alana, it took them 7 weeks to diagnose me with diabetes, yet I had every single symptom of it you can get. Weight loss, huge thirst, peeing all the time, vometing, loss of appetite, porridge blood, and after they diagnosed me I had blurry vision for a week but it passed. My sugars were at 46mmol when they found ou And thingsdo get better. Good thing us diabetics are tough wee cookies.
And Nic, I am 9 weeks pregnant so any tips would be awesome!!!!
Oh and everyone, my family have an article running in the Sunday News Newspaper this weekend with regards to diabetic services having been deleted here in Queenstown. Should be a good read and any support is fantastic. We cannot let diabetics fall through the health system cracks!!!
~ Kiri
Aaron wrote
Welcome to the site Kiri!
Nic wrote
Welcome, Kiri – and congratulations on the pregnancy! I have listed all the posts I did about pregnancy here: http://www.beingdiabetic.co.nz/2009-12-20/pregnancy-with-type-1-diabetes-the-summary/.
Cheers
Nic
Nic wrote
Sorry one more thing Kiri, please scan and send me a copy of the Sunday News article if you get time
Velocette wrote
Damn it is so good that I got given this site address. I have had T1 for 16 years now since I was 6 years old and I have felt so alone because there were no others I could really talk to about diabetes without being dissed or runaway from as the kids at school thought I had AIDS.
I am so desensitised from hi’s as I regularly run high but the main symptom I get is a craving for milk (was always what you would call a strange or Dangerous Diabetic though)
Heidi-Jane wrote
Just reading this a few months late…
I often feel like I have a back ache…sore head…thirsty…tired…grumpy with everyone and everything…heavy.
After almost 18years with T1 I hate the highs more than the lows.