Type 1 - Connect

My wife asks: Is increased crankiness a universal behavioural change when going hypo?
After 50 years  of being T1, I realised this morning that I get very cranky as my blood glucose drops. My wife says she has been married to two different people. I thought I was just always right. She asks do other diabetics respond in other ways?

I get angry too. It is a good sign to check BSL. On porcine insulin, I thought I was funny and laughed at my own jokes. Human insulin is different. Presume that different insulins affect different people in different ways. 

cheers 
David McK

Low glucose levels will impair the brain's ability to process information and the body's ability to function,  so confusion and fatigue, heightened fight-flight responses, tiredness and short-temperedness are all potential side effects - but different people will have different levels of response*.

Not all bad behaviour can be put down to low blood sugars, and an already difficult personality trait could be made worse by a hypo, so if things are deteriorating stop and assess the situation, and after a blood test, if it's not BSL related,  ask yourself the psychology 101 question, "would you rather be right, or would you rather be happy" and then apply the "happy wife happy life" maxim...

50 years of being T1 is a drag for you - and probably no picnic for your partner either - so regardless of hypos, getting a bit fed up from time to time is not entirely surprising, but it's not a licence to be unreasonable - the important thing is how you manage and negotiate mood imbalances with your partner is the key to both of you feeling happy and secure (low stress). If you think it is worth it, go to the GP and get a health care plan to see a psychologist and get some feedback on your current coping strategies and techniques, some adjustments might make all the difference.   

*A compounding issue for females with Diabetes is menopause ie. low BSL's could exacerbate the discomfort already being experienced by hormone imbalances and adjustments - talking with women's health specialists can be beneficial.

T1 since 1971 when I was 16 - I occasionally get irritable if people are making lots of different demands on me simultaneously . Re wives/partners  - before going on the pump we were  talking to the Diabetic educator I said sometimes I would lose a whole day to post hypo fatigue  (not ones where I needed someone else to fix me) . The educator asked how often that was happening and I said two or three times a year- My wife said - about once a month actually!  I have been on a pump for the last 6 yrs the commonest thing is like a power brown out -mentally and physically- which sometimes happens when the level is dropping rapidly even when the sensor says 5. Occasionally I get paranoid - not good if you're in a down mood due to hard times at work  - I f you're not a talkative type anyway people may not notice you're going off  so the emergence of litres and the other scanners has been life changing for me - I try to check a reader every half hour or hour  when awake and they increase my self awareness and "pacing "ability  

I don't think I get angry I do go quiet because the first thing LBG affects is your brain. I tend to ignore people and I do not answer them. My husband tells me I get very naughty & spit lollies out & do nothing he asks me to. I have had times when I start to come to & I do not know who my husband is which is very scary. I have had T1D since I was 11yrs & now I am 60. Without my CGM I am almost completely unaware of hypos & that is why I wear it all the time. But they are not 100% reliable.

Margaret

Hi David & David Mck,

I have been T1 for 38 years and my wife has noticed this happening with me.   I thought it was my wife responding to me but she has told me that my mood has changed in recent months.   

Therefore it appears that I am in your club.   My current insulin is Novorapid and Optisulin Solostar (long acting).

Now that I know that this seems to be a common side affect I will be more conscious and vigilant on myself.

thanks,

Jeff

I am on the same regime as you are David, and yes i get cranky if I get too low. I am not as bad as I used to be. Sigh!! Your not alone.  

Hi everyone. I am 84 now and have been a type 1 for 70 years on good friday the 7th of April, was diagnosed when I was 15. I think I get a bit cranky at times, my dog does not seem to notice though. I have my 50th and 60th Kellion medal presented by Dr. Alan Stocks and I look forward to the 70th in due course...Too much water under the bridge to talk about THOSE long gone days on Pig insulin. Kind Regards, John Petersen

Wow. Congratulations John. Well done !

Hi John, 
Like like yourself, I was one of the lucky ones to be born under a lucky star 🌟 in the time of the initial production of longer lasting porcine insulin, otherwise I'd be helping the weeds grow. Hypo's and massive mood swings were just a small part of the deal using litmus testing on urine, having  hypo migraines for days that were only countered with a sleep, ketone breath and boiling and sharpening my needles and syringes before school. Scientific innovation keeps on amazing me,  as now my long suffering yet loving wife has to only put up with my CGM alarms continually  going off at 4.5 mml. Like your dog,  my cat 🐱 doesn't give a stuff.