Question for diabetics ONLY!! - Steel Magnolias (1989) Discussion

[–] brownfamily082303 7 years ago

My 8yr old son is a type 1 diabetic, for 4 yrs now. When his blood glucose (blood sugar) goes low, he gets sleepy, shakey, feels weak.

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[–] KeiraVatt 7 years ago

I've had Type 1 since I was a young teen. When I have a low, I usually feel it coming and it's not that bad. My heart begins to beat rapidly and I shake and sweat a bit. You feel a bit 'off' and a little confused. However, I've had severely low blood sugars (Lower than 40) where I woke up in a huge sweat and my heart was beating rapidly but it also felt heavy and hurt as if it were being squeezed. My fingertips felt numb and it was very difficult to control them since they shook and twitched badly. My brain would tell me to get some food in me. All I cared about was getting juice or milk or gluco-tabs (or similar). But when I'm that low, it's difficult to tell yourself to stop pouring milk down your throat. That you've had enough and you'll be okay in a few moments and you don't want to bounce from being too low to being too 'high'. Having your mgdL reaching up to 400 afterwards because your over treated your low can happen and you feel so tired, as if you've just had a swim through a vat of taffy and your entire body feels exhausted.

A main feeling that I know I have during a low is mental irritation that can trigger a bit of blunt anger. For example, if I KNOW I'm having a bad low and my husband knows it by the way I'm acting and STILL wants me to go and fetch my blood glucose monitor and test while he stands there looking at me shaking and twitching out of control.....well, I'll start yelling. I feel I can handle it all myself and if you're just going to stand there gaping at me, leave me alone. I realize people are trying to be helpful but are not so aware how. With regular blood sugars, I would just laugh things off. But my level of tolerance and ability to control my anger seems to go out the window. It seems more acute during a low.

Some cause happiness wherever they go; others WHENEVER they go.

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[–] funnyeyes 7 years ago

Feelings a diabetic has when low are extremely difficult to explain, mainly because it's different for everybody and it depends on many factors (daytime/night; after hot bath it intensifies, it may differ before and after sport....)
You feel very weak at first, like you have been running for a while. Breath is fine, heart rate is fine, but you feel it in your legs. Then you start sweating, cold sweat (it's worse at night), then shaking. Your mind is elsewhere, you are struggling to control your body, your tongue is thick, you have difficulty pronouncing properly, your vision gets blurry. It gets better after getting some quick carbs (coke, sugar...), but afterwards you feel exhausted. Sometimes you have funny thoughts like "who am I?" or "does it even matter? Do I?".
I have also experienced hypoglycemic coma, it comes when you are low and don't get carbs soon enough. Your body just shuts down, it starts shaking, gets tense and starts sweating and shaking rapidly (sweating like sweating through blankets and pillows). Afterwards it's like being heavily drunk, you can't even breathe properly, you are dizzy, can't coordinate your movement. Those were the worst moments in my life. And in my mother's and fiancé's lives, because they were the ones making sure I won't die.

I have been living with DMI for 19 years, if you have any other questions, feel free to ask.

Testing is organized skepticism

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[–] NotedMom 7 years ago

I get very shaky, break out in a cold sweat, sometimes my vision gets blurry, and if it happens at night it seems like I can't catch my breath. I don't notice this, but I guess I get very moody, too. It at least my co-workers say so. Most of the time I can feel it coming on, but once in awhile it it hits me like a ton of bricks. I'm a Type 2, and have been for 30 years.

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[–] TMC-4 (19392) 5 years ago

https://www.reddit.com/r/movies/comments/dgc817/steel_magnolias_and_diabetes_steel_magnolias/

I understand Shelby has diabetes and she gets pregnant; as well as showing bad symptoms when she has to much insulin. I also remember multiple doctors (I’m guessing multiple) have told her having a baby is I’m guessing high risk, but when she tells her mom she’s pregnant and her mom tells her she’s a special case... what makes Shelby so special? Like what about her having diabetes makes it so high risk for her to have kids... like is it really that big of a deal for her to have kids if she’s a diabetic?

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[–] duckofprey (1533) 3 years ago

In my case the first sign is everything looks much brighter. I then get a bright spot in the middle of my vision, like I stared at a lightbulb for ten seconds.

I also feel, weak, confused, unstable on my feet. Sometimes my hands will shake.

A few times I had to have friends fetch me some juice or a Hershey’s bar. At home I keep glucose tablets here and there and at work too.

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[–] duckofprey (1533) 3 years ago

In my case the first sign is everything looks much brighter. I then get a bright spot in the middle of my vision, like I stared at a lightbulb for ten seconds.

I also feel, weak, confused, unstable on my feet. Sometimes my hands will shake.

A few times I had to have friends fetch me some juice or a Hershey’s bar. At home I keep glucose tablets here and there and at work too.

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