by Rachel Furniss, Health and Wellbeing Facilitator
Meet Gemma; Gemma is a young woman with various health concerns including Type 3c Diabetes, Wagr syndrome, learning disabilities, autism and is also registered blind. Although Gemma has numerous health conditions, she is an extraordinary lady who lives life to the full. She has won many music quizzes including ‘10 To The top’ on BBC Radio 2. Gemma is employed by MacIntyre as one of our Oliver McGowan Co-trainers, and for Diabetes Awareness Week Gemma would like to share her experience.
What is Type 3c Diabetes?
Type 3c diabetes develops because of the damage to the pancreas, which can happen for a few different reasons. Although it's different to other types of diabetes, you can get a wrong diagnosis of type 2 because type 3c isn't as well known and the term 3c isn't always used. Type 3c can also be called diabetes related to disorders of the pancreas or pancreatogenic diabetes mellitus.
Gemma says:
‘It is a little bit different to normal diabetes but is more closely like to type 1 insulin-dependent. I have to watch how much fats and sugar I eat each day”.
Background
Gemma was diagnosed with type 3c diabetes which is linked to her pancreatitis. She has been living well with diabetes for many years. Gemma has a diagnosis of learning disabilities, Wagr syndrome and more recently autism.
In 2009, Gemma went to America due to her rare condition Wagr syndrome. She was given an MRI scan and was then induced to sleep for 4 hours, for which she was given an anaesthetic (Propofol). The anaesthetic was high in fats and oils which wouldn’t normally cause damage, but due to other health conditions, the medication caused a build-up of fats and oils in Gemma’s body, causing damage to her pancreas.
If Gemma’s diabetes isn’t managed, the damage to her pancreas can cause pancreatitis, which, to date she has had 7 episodes of. Gemma also has to take enzymes (Ceron); 4 capsules 3 times a day with meals and if she has any fatty snacks, such as a little piece of cake or chocolate, she need to take 2 more, all to control her diabetes.
Daily life
Gemma says she doesn’t fill in a food diary and can easily identify what she can and cannot eat. She can eat chicken, turkey, pork and fish but she limits herself with beef and lamb to once a week, as she doesn’t want to be ill, due to the high fat content in the meats. One of the struggles she has, is she loves beef and lamb.
Other restrictions include chocolate sweets and biscuits. Gemma says she can only have one piece of chocolate a month - she doesn’t like crisps and she isn’t bothered with biscuits (although working with Gemma for the last month I know she likes them if they're there!) Gemma prefers fruit much more than crisps and biscuits, however, some fruits have a higher sugar content that she has to be aware of.
‘I love pineapple but I can only have 2 rings per day and pears every now and then - bananas are really high in sugar as well.’
It's important to highlight restrictions need to be in place when living with type 3c diabetes, however, it’s not all doom and gloom. Gemma has a very healthy social life and enjoys eating out:
‘I tend to have chicken or fish options with vegetables and salad’.
We can all agree that sometimes people who have learning disabilities and autistic people don’t receive equal access to treatment. Still, Gemma seems to have a fantastic support network that helps her.
‘My new diabetic doctor talks to me, and not my mum and carer, she takes the time to help me understand - I hope she stays.’
Technology that has helped
Gemma has a LIBRE monitor (flash glucose monitor*) that tells her what her blood sugars are throughout the day. It also connects to her phone for wire-free 24-hour monitoring and gives her a lot of freedom as she no longer needs to continually prick her fingers and carry a glucose monitoring kit with her. Gemma has explained that the LIBRE monitor helps her to understand how food, daily activities and other things affect her diabetes.
Flash glucose monitors and continuous glucose monitors let you check your sugar levels without having to prick your fingers. You wear a small sensor on your body, day and night, that reads your sugar levels so you can see the information on your mobile, or other device. If someone helps you look after your diabetes, their mobile can be linked up too.
With a CGM and a flash glucose monitor (FreeStyle Libre2), you can also set an alarm to sound if your sugar levels go too low or too high.
Gemma has said the LIBRE monitor has given her freedom in her everyday life and it has a great function that will identify whether her sugars are low by a red indicator and if her sugars are really high it turns orange on her phone. The LIBRE allows Gemma to look at the moment blood sugars so if she doesn’t feel right she can go and check her blood sugar levels. Gemma carries extra insulin with her in case she needs it. Gemma also wears a medical bracelet and carries a card that identifies that she is a diabetic and has emergency contact information with her.
Regular monitoring
Gemma has regular health checks such as:
- Blood sugars every 3 months at GP or the diabetic clinic
- Blood pressure every 3 months,
- Retina diagnosis every year
- Podiatry every 6-8 weeks
Shout outs
Gemma would like to give a shout-out to the Diabetes centre in Manchester, Diabetes UK who have a helpline for diabetic advice – they are open 8am-8 pm 7 days a week
Gemma top 5 tips
• Always take your insulin at the same time every day
• Always check the packaging when buying food for sugar and fat content
• Always know your signs of high and low blood sugars – with me, it’s always feeling thirsty, needing the toilet, low pain in the top of my leg and/or shaking cannot walk well
• Always get your feet checked by a professional podiatrist; you may be able to get this treatment on the NHS speak to your GP or diabetic clinic for more advice
• Always ask for help when needed
Gemma wanted to offer some words of comfort to anyone who might be going through something similar.
‘I can still do what I want to do but I have to carry my diabetes equipment with me. It’s not the end of the world having diabetes and you can have a little of what you fancy as long as you are careful’.
