https://www.sweetvictoryproducts.co.uk/blogs/diabetes-coeliac.atomSweet Victory Products Ltd - Diabetes & Coeliac2018-08-25T19:21:00+01:00Sweet Victory Products Ltdhttps://www.sweetvictoryproducts.co.uk/blogs/diabetes-coeliac/guest-blog-post-dafne-course-week-52018-08-25T19:21:00+01:002023-11-23T14:07:06+00:00Guest Blog Post – DAFNE Course Week 5Dan @coeliacanddiabetic “Well, it came around quickly. Too quickly for me to be honest. I have just got home after the final day of my DAFNE course.
It has certainly been educational. Not only have I learnt new things about the condition I live with but I have also learnt how to manage it, give myself the correct amount of insulin and I have also learnt that I am not alone.
Meeting regularly with people who have Type 1 Diabetes (like me!) was a daunting prospect a first. Why? I was afraid that they would have it all under control; that they would look at me and wonder what I had been doing all this time. Worst of all, I feared that once we were all in a room together that we would just talk about diabetes, that we would just focus on the negatives. How wrong was I! I have met some of the nicest, funniest and caring people ever. They shared their stories, good and not so good, about living with ‘the D’ and the more they spoke, the more I spoke and, you know what? I discovered I wasn’t alone and that people had come across the same problems I had and they had tips, advice and new knowledge to share with me. We became friends, not because we are diabetics but because we had something in common (just like making friends because you all support the same football team or all like going to the gym).
The DAFNE educators who deliver the course, as I’ve said before, are compassionate, understanding of the ‘real world’ and are eager to take the time to share their knowledge and to help. I even discovered today that one of the people who lead the course (the dietician) doesn’t even work on a Thursday (the day we attend the course) but comes in, unpaid, to lead the course! Woah! We asked why and she looked at us and smiled and said that it was because of patients like us – those who come on the course, embrace the principals and whose control, mental health and outlook (one or all of these!) improve because of what they learnt during their time on DAFNE.
Is DAFNE for everyone? I couldn’t honestly say. I can only speak from personal experience. When I was diagnosed I was certain that it wasn’t for me, that it was too overwhelming. Now that I’ve completed the course (we all received a certificate too!) I don’t honestly know how I made it this far without the knowledge. One thing I can say is that you should definitely inquire with your healthcare team about DAFNE and what it involves and decide for yourself.
After today, we don’t meet up again for six weeks – we’re flying solo. Well, not quite solo, we have all the DAFNE information, an app and the contact details of our health care team and the DAFNE educators. I still have complete my food diary, count my carbohydrates and give myself the correct insulin dose but now, I feel more confident than ever before.
Is it the end of my DAFNE journey? No. It’s the beginning of a new journey, a new adventure: the adventure of my life in control of my diabetes.
Thank you all for taking the time out of your day to read my blog. I look forward to sharing more of my adventures with you. Don’t forget to check out my Instagram:” @coeliacanddiabetic
For more information about DAFNE (the people who are responsible for the course materials that were given to me today and feature in my photographs) you can visit: http://www.dafne.uk.com
Stay tuned for a product review from Daniel, he will be testing out his new Novopens 5 and Echo. See our Reviews page.]]>
https://www.sweetvictoryproducts.co.uk/blogs/diabetes-coeliac/guest-blog-dafne-course-part-42018-08-25T19:04:00+01:002023-11-23T14:07:35+00:00Guest Blog – DAFNE Course Part 4Dan @coeliacanddiabetic
Sweet Victory Products are back with Daniel again, our guest blog writer, on week 4 of 5 of his DAFNE course. We wanted to follow his progress and share it with our readers, in the hope it will encourage others. We understand the devastation a diabetes diagnosis can bring the sufferer and their family members too. We ourselves have had to make adjustments when a very close sweet-toothed relative of ours received a type 2 diagnosis, which is one of the many reasons why we set up our company.
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We are in awe of Daniel, a type 1 diabetic and a recently diagnosed Coeliac! How does he do it? Read on to find out.
The weeks seem to have flown by. As I write this, my penultimate blog of my DAFNE journey, I think about where I was compared to where I am now. I have learnt so much and come such a long way, with more yet to learn!
This week began with the usual review of the previous weeks blood glucose levels and conversations around how we are all finding carb counting. It has got much easier, almost routine now. I am not perfect but this week we had the results of our HbA1c test. This is a regular blood test that gives our healthcare team the opportunity to look at our average blood glucose levels over a period of weeks/months. Now, everyone is different and has their own targets and, without going into detail, I have always run above my target but this time my results were SO much better. My blood glucose average is in line with the expectations of my healthcare team and they are pleased and I can tell you, so am I!
This week on the DAFNE course we had the opportunity to talk to a specialist Consultant and pose questions to them and, most interestingly for me, hear about the new trials, studies and improvements in the field of diabetes, particularly the progress being made with the artificial pancreas. A lot of work is still to be done, but it is comforting to know that there are many people working hard to make the lives of people with diabetes better.
Our day ended with a goal setting session. We were told that as our DAFNE course was coming to an end, the next time we would meet as a group wouldn’t be for another six weeks after next week. We were asked to think of what we would like to achieve in that period. I’m not sure what my goal is yet. But I can say this; when I was first diagnosed, it was all too much (and then put the fact that I have recently been told that I have Coeliac disease!) and I pushed the world away – including investing time in looking after my diabetes. With the support of my wife, family and friends it got better. The DAFNE course has done so much to improve my confidence and belief that I can control this life-long medical condition and have a good quality of life. So, my goal? To live. To live well, to live strong and to live each day as a journey and as an adventure.
I now have homework! We have been given a quiz to answer and we will be marked on it next week. I’m good at quizzes, especially as I want to get the most out of the DAFNE course because ultimately, whatever I put in is what I get out of it. So I have and will continue to give 100% (even if I don’t get 100% in this quiz!).
Before I finish, I would like to share with you a quote that someone hung in my office at work a few months ago and that has meant a lot to me, especially over my time on DAFNE:
Life is short. Take the trip. Buy the shoes. Eat the cake. It’s good to know that now, being able to count carbohydrates and give myself the correct dose of insulin, that I really can have the cake!
Have a great week.
Dan
Thanks Daniel, for sharing with us. Show him some love, follow him on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/coeliacanddiabetic]]>
https://www.sweetvictoryproducts.co.uk/blogs/diabetes-coeliac/dafne-course-part-32018-08-25T19:01:00+01:002023-11-23T14:08:01+00:00DAFNE Course – Part 3Dan @coeliacanddiabetic I can’t believe that the 3rd session of my time on the DAFNE course has come to an end. I have learnt so much. We all have!
The DAFNE Educators (made up of a Diabetes Specialist Nurse and a Dietician) are excellent at delivering a lot of complex information and teaching new skills in such a way that the learning is incremental and doesn’t seem overly stressful.
Last week we were asked to put together our new carbohydrate counting skills and, using a specific ratio and calculation, administer the appropriate dose of insulin. Along with recording this information in a diary, we were also asked to record our blood glucose levels. We would then take our diaries back and would take it in turns to review our week with the DAFNE Educators and our peers.
I have to admit, I was nervous. Nervous on the same level as presenting work to my teacher at high school. Nervous on the same level as presenting work to a crowd of thousands! It turned out I had no need to worry and neither did anyone else. With equal supportive comments and recommendations for better control or improvements to insulin doses, the DAFNE team gave their feedback thoughtfully and in a way that made us feel that we had all achieved so much already and were on the right track to once again feel ‘in charge’ of our bodies.
On a lighter note, we were told that at the end of the course, we would officially ‘graduate’ and be given access to even more information and support. With this in mind, someone made the comment that we would officially be ‘qualified diabetics’!
Next week, we will be getting the results of our average blood glucose levels (known as Hba1c results) along with results of other tests. With the help of the DAFNE team and a Consultant from the hospital, we will review these results, their importance and significance to us, in order that we become more aware of the results of good or improved control of our diabetes.
If there is one thing I can say at this stage is that for the first time in a long time, I feel in control. I know what’s happened to my body, what’s happening and how I can live and make the right lifestyle choices in order that diabetes lives with me and that I don’t live with it. For me, living with diabetes for so long and then to recently be told I also have coeliac disease was hard to swallow.
Now, with new knowledge and having the opportunity to talk face-to-face with other people in a similar situation (both on the course and through social media!) I’m on the road to better health.
Thank you for taking the time, each week, to read this blog and share in my journey. I look forward to sharing the next two weeks with you. Don’t forget to check out my Instagram: coeliacanddiabetic and on Facebook: Coeliac and DiabeticUK
Photos belong to Daniel – (The author of this guest post.)
Sweet Victory Products will continue to follow Daniel as he embarks on his 5 week course. Come back next week to find out more. If you can’t wait until then follow him on his social media.
Don’t forget to follow Sweet Victory Products for more posts and product news and special offers.]]>
https://www.sweetvictoryproducts.co.uk/blogs/diabetes-coeliac/dafne-course-part-22018-08-25T18:47:00+01:002023-11-23T14:08:29+00:00DAFNE course part 2Dan @coeliacanddiabeticMore]]>
Wow, day 2 of my DAFNE journey came around very quickly! My homework from week one was to begin calculating the carbohydrate content of the food I ate over five days, this is commonly known as ‘carb counting’.
Filling out my food diary. Using a simple (I say simple; it took my 3 out of the 5 days to really get it right!) formula this would then allow me to work out the correct amount of quick acting insulin to administer.
I am not going to lie. When I got home from the course I was confident; I was on a high, my thinking: “you’ve got this!”. Reality? I felt overwhelmed and consumed by the feeling that I couldn’t just eat. I felt I had to calculate, divide, multiply and on top of all that…I had to inject myself.
To put this into a little bit of context, when I was first diagnosed I didn’t take it well (not that I believe anyone would!) I went through a period of being very upset, feeling down, isolating myself from others. I was mentally exhausted and overwhelmed.
It took many months, perhaps years, to feel I had any sort of control over my life again. Thankfully, with the support of my (then girlfriend, now wife!) family, friends and healthcare team, I made it through the other-side to a more positive me. So when I was told that I needed to do something else different on top of injecting myself before I could eat, the same emotions came flooding back!
Again, with that same support network, I came to the realisation that in order to get to a place where I could manage my diabetes and not have the diabetes manage me, I knew that I had to commit, record all the details so that the DAFNE team could find the right strategy and doses of insulin for me.
Well, it’s now 5:30 and I have just got home from the course and I feel so much better. Hearing the experiences of the past week from others, I wasn’t alone. People found the same as I had (to a greater or lesser degree).
I realised; being a diabetic, much like anyone with a long-term medical condition, there are other people in the same boat. To carry that analogy on, I suppose by attending the DAFNE course, someone is giving us the oars so we can steer our boat on our own course towards happiness and ‘normality’.
This week’s homework? To carry on carb counting but now we take that figure and administer insulin in relation to that. There are other details and considerations to make but that is the basic theory. I’ll let you know how that goes.
Honestly, if you are a Type 1 diabetic (number one, join the club, I have badges!!) and number two, if you haven’t done it already, find a DAFNE course and enrol. The prospect can be daunting; meeting new people, changing some old habits but believe me, I’m only on day 2 and I feel that this is a change for the better and, after all, everyone needs an oar! ??
Follow Daniel on instagram: @coeliacanddiabetic
Have a great week, Until next time! For more information about DAFNE (the people who are responsible for the course materials that were given to me today and feature in my photographs) you can visit: http://www.dafne.uk.com/]]>
https://www.sweetvictoryproducts.co.uk/blogs/diabetes-coeliac/daniel-s-progress-on-his-5-week-dafne-course2018-07-15T16:15:00+01:002023-11-23T14:08:55+00:00Daniel’s progress on his 5 week DAFNE courseDan @coeliacanddiabetic
Sweet Victory Products asked to follow Daniel’s progress as he embarks on his 5 week DAFNE course. Read about his first week
Sweet Victory Products asked to follow Daniel’s progress as he embarks on his 5 week DAFNE course. Read about his first week below.
It has been a long time coming for me. After being diagnosed with diabetes for 8 years I finally made the choice to get to grips with it properly. I took the plunge. I contacted my Diabetes Specialist Nurse and told her I wanted to go on the DAFNE course.
DAFNE is an acronym and it stands for Dosage Adjustment for Normal Eating. In real terms, it means that I would learn new strategies so that my overall control would improve.
Sounds straightforward? Well, there aren’t many health authorities that offer this course and near me, even fewer and those hospitals that do offer the course have waiting lists longer than most rolls of toilet paper! After my place had been confirmed and each time the courses were cancelled (people pulling out at the last minute, funding problems etc.) I was offered a place and naturally, I said Yes!
Fast forward 2 months and, after attending a pre-assessment appointment, I arrived at my local hospital to take my place at the education centre. As I sit here now typing, my head is buzzing with new knowledge, ideas, tips and most importantly, homework!
I have to fill out a food diary and begin counting the carbohydrates in the products I eat. Once this is done, I then I have to use a simple formula to calculate how much insulin I have to give myself.
The two specialists leading the training aren’t just experts but they are real people with real knowledge of diabetes, not just the knowledge of how a ‘perfect diabetic’ should be and what they should do but they are professionals who understand that we’re all human and life happens. They understand that we might get things wrong; eat lots of chocolate, forget to have an injection and they support and show us how to deal with this. I honestly couldn’t have asked for nicer people to help me on this new journey.
I’ve made this first day and what I have learnt sound short and snappy when all this information was given to me (in much greater detail) over an eight-hour day.
How do I feel right now? Excited, scared, hopeful but most of all positive. Positive that I have made the right choice, a choice that will hopefully lead to a better, more controlled approach to living with diabetes. I think that’s key, you know? Diabetes is not my life, its part of my life. I live with diabetes, it doesn’t live with me.
I hope this insight into my thoughts and what’s happening in my journey with diabetes (I have coeliac disease too, but that’s another story!) goes some way to showing that even though it can be hard living with an auto-immune disease, there is help out there and sometimes, its ok to ask for that help in your own time.
For more information about DAFNE (the people who are responsible for the course materials that were given to me today and feature in my photographs) you can visit: http://www.dafne.uk.com/
Photos belong to Daniel – (The author)
Sweet Victory Products will continue to follow Daniel as he embarks on his 5-week course. Come back next week to find out more. If you can’t wait until then follow him on his social media: @coeliacanddiabetic
Don’t forget to follow Sweet Victory Products for more posts and product news and special offers.]]>