Don't know how to help my husband anymore.?!
Question: My husband has been a diabetic for 1 year now he takes 2000mg of metmorfin, 20mg of glucotrol and 22 units of NPH a day. Lately his blood sugars have been running 330 to 477. I know for at least the last three he have been taking his meds religiously because I have watch him take them.
He went to the doctor Saturday to have blood drawn for labs. His doctor called him and said I want to see you today because your A1C was 13.9.
A month before he had just forgotten to take his meds. He would take them here and there. BUT he has taken them religiously for the last 3 weeks because I have watched him take them.
I have talked to him about taking his meds and he has the attitude of I am tired of having to take meds everyday, I am tired of watching what I eat and STARVING all the time. He is a pharmacy he takes 8 meds a day.
I don't know how to help him. I am so afraid he is going to keel over and leave me a widow and the kids without a daddy. How do I help him.
Answers: My husband has been a diabetic for 1 year now he takes 2000mg of metmorfin, 20mg of glucotrol and 22 units of NPH a day. Lately his blood sugars have been running 330 to 477. I know for at least the last three he have been taking his meds religiously because I have watch him take them.
He went to the doctor Saturday to have blood drawn for labs. His doctor called him and said I want to see you today because your A1C was 13.9.
A month before he had just forgotten to take his meds. He would take them here and there. BUT he has taken them religiously for the last 3 weeks because I have watched him take them.
I have talked to him about taking his meds and he has the attitude of I am tired of having to take meds everyday, I am tired of watching what I eat and STARVING all the time. He is a pharmacy he takes 8 meds a day.
I don't know how to help him. I am so afraid he is going to keel over and leave me a widow and the kids without a daddy. How do I help him.
It seems as if your having the same issue as i am having with my baby brother,he has been diabetic for just over a year and been in ICU 3 times for not taking his meds .The docs told me all the loved ones can do is tell him how important it is ,try to guide them in the right direction and if that doesent change their ways ,there is no helping for them except their-selves.I can only tell you to remind him how much he is loved and keep him in your prayers that is what i do. GOOD LUCK!
This is a serious problem. If your husband continues on this track, the impending problems are..
1. Diabetic ketoacidosis (coma) -- reversible
2. Heart attack -- potentially fatal, always life-altering
3. Stroke -- potentially fatal, often disabling
So, how do you get him to understand and comply? It sounds as if he is just a big child about this.
The only way he is going to improve his attitude is either:
1. he has a complication (above) and "sees the light"
2. you get him in to FAMILY THERAPY. Talk to your pcp about recommending a good psychologist for FAMILY THERAPY. You and he and the kids will go and talk about these issues and get them all out on the table.
he may be having a hard time adjusting to being a diabetic. sounds to me like hes suffering from depression. is it that he doesn't want to take his meds, or that he is forgetting? talk to your doctor about seeing a psychiatrist to see if anti depressants would help if in fact he is suffering from depression. a lot of the times when a person is diagnosed with a long term illness, they tend to sink into a depression that leaves them not wanting to take care of themselves.
Eat a low-cholesterol, low-fat diet. This kind of diet includes cottage cheese, fat-free milk, fish (not canned in oil), vegetables, poultry, egg whites, and polyunsaturated oils and margarines (corn, safflower, canola, and soybean oils). Avoid foods with excess fat in them such as meat (especially liver and fatty meat), egg yolks, whole milk, cream, butter, shortening, lard, pastries, cakes, cookies, gravy, peanut butter, chocolate, olives, potato chips, coconut, cheese (other than cottage cheese), coconut oil, palm oil, and fried foods.
Eat small quantity of food more times in a day.
I know it's so hard to accept this new 'lifestyle' of being a diabetic & that one wants to rebel against it (after all, being told what to eat, when to eat, how much to eat, can be a pain after a while). Maybe also contact the American Diabetes Association - they may have resources for families dealing with this disease. Good luck to you. I hope your husband gets the guidance/inspiration he needs.
A lot of medicines to take.Tell husband to start doing these exercises daily- a)the sugar level will be controlled b) side effects will decrease c) feel generally better from day 7 d) will be able to reduce the medicine over long term guided by the sugar level. Will notice improvement daily as he has to monitor the sugar.Both of you can do the exercises.
The breathing techniques(pranayam) will help with the side effects.Over time your diabetes will get better gradually.Start with a few minutes and increase your timing gradually.After you have built up your timing you will notice benefits within weeks.If you feel dizzy or tired then stop and resume later.Tell your doctor that you are doing pranayam.Print or save this to refer to all the time.You will be glad to help your body heal itself.The doctor will say there is no cure.Only by doing you will know.
The pranayam techniques:
Bhastrika - Take a long deep breath into the lungs(chest not tummy) via the nose and then completely breathe out through the nose.Duration upto 5 minutes.
Kapalbhati -(Do it before eating) Push air forcefully out through the nose about once per second. Stomach will itself go in(contract in). The breathing in(through the nose) will happen automatically. Establish a rhythm and do for 20 to 30 minutes twice a day.(Max 60 min/day) Not for pregnant women. Seriously ill people do it gently.
Anulom Vilom - Deep Breath-in through left nostril keeping right nostril closed
then - Breath-out through right nostril keeping left nostril closed
then -Deep Breath-in through right nostril keeping left nostril closed
then - Breath-out through left nostril keeping right nostril closed
and repeat this cycle for 20 to 30 minutes twice a day(maximum 60 min/day).
Bhramri Pranayam -Close eyes. Close ears with thumb, index finger on forehead, and rest three fingers on base of nose touching eyes. Breathe in through nose. And now breathe out through nose while humming like a bee.
Do this 5-10 times.
Being a new diabetic male is sort of akin to being an alcoholic! Most refuse to take the initial steps toward control until they loose something very precious to themselves.
Being hungry is from following the no or low fat diet forms!!! If we eat sufficient fat, protein and carbs, even very small servings will satisfy us. Fats make us feel fuller much sooner. Full fat milk, cheese, butter, and not trimming the meats of all fats will help lots towards not feeling like we are deprived and starving all the time. Don't go overboard, just forget about the warnings to not have fats at all!
He needs 33% protein, 33% fats, and 33% carbs.
A 3 to 4 ounce piece of meat is about the size of a deck of cards or bar of soap. It is one chicken thigh or breast!
Full fat salad dressings are good, not vinegary and as my granddaughter says, sour! A little goes a long way!
Has he given up the potatoes, pastas, rices, carrots, corns, peas and dried beans?
As far as his bad A1c test!!! This is the one test we cannot study for nor cheat on! It measures the glucose percentage sticking to the red blood cells over the past NINETY DAYS!!! It is weighted on the last 30 days, but is the overall percentage of 3 months!!!
Get a book called "Type 2 Diabetes: The First Year". It will answer a lot of questions for both you and your husband. It is a very good reference bible for lots of us even if we have been diabetic for more than 10 years.
Back to my first statement: If your husband doesn't want to pay attention to his health, you may have to be like the wife of the alcoholic and leave him for a while, taking his children away!! I know how harsh that sounds, but it is much easier than sitting there watching your loved one kill himself.
I do hope he wakes up and smells the coffee! Prayers for you and the children!!!
sound's like he refuses to accept his condition,i to was in denial,when told i had chronic kydney disease,and would be,on dyalisis,within a year,took a liittle over a year before it finally sank in,it's been twenty year's now,ive had three transplant's,way to many surgeries to count,taken thousand's of med's,and been on dyalisis,12 years out of the twenty,rite now i'm taking 10 different med's,three times a day.every other day i dyalized with folk's that hadn't taken care of their diabetes,,,and most were missing a foot ,a leg and some both leg's...not to be cruel...but here's an idea.....if u could take him on a little tour through any dyalisis unit,mabe he'll see what the future hold's,and open his eyes......he's lucky to have you...
the way I look at it,....since I understand,..being a diabetic myself,....
some things are difficult to deal with. he may be feeling sorry for himself, and in-a-funk. maybe some tender loving care will help. a shoulder for him to lean on, to talk out his fears.
I myself hate all the medications I have-to take, and some days I get so damn mad.
I have only been a diabetic for less than 2 months, and it ticks me off too.
otherwise,...have him talk to a counselor, or his doctor,....
someone he trusts.........
you have my best wishes.......