Hi all,
I am new to the board and only newly diagnosised with type 2. I have some awareness of the condition as my brother and father are also type 2, but are affected in different ways.
My main question is about working with this condition.
I am an assitant team leader in a call center, and a lot of my day is spent dealing with irate customers or customers with complaints. When I first started in this job, I was more than capable of dealing with this and even in turning around the situation, but a few months before I was diagnoised, I began to be become quite annoyed with having to do this, and even started to dread having to take one of these calls. It started to become quite frustrating and I would find myself getting quite upset. (this never used to happen before). Also I have a lot of reports and other work to do for my team leader and these have to be done to a deadline.
Again, in the begining I could take all this in my stride, but this too, has been piling up on me and I am finding it harder and harder to cope with the pressure.
It even came to a point where I had handed in my notice, but could not give an exact reason for leaving, just that I could not cope. My bosses talked me out of it.
(sorry for rambling, but I am almost there, I promise!)
Since being diagnoised, I have been off work as I also had a kidney infection, but I am due to go back to work tomorrow, and I am filled with a sense of dread.
I have arranged to have meeting with my bosses tomorrow to see about moving to a less stressful area or reducing my working hours.
I really dont want to give up work, but I have read that stress can be a factor in controlling or rather not controlling your sugar levels.
What do you guys think? Am I overreacting to this, or do I need to give myself some more time for the medication to kick in.

thanks

I really dont want to give up work, but I have read that stress can be a factor in controlling or rather not controlling your sugar levels. What do you guys think? Am
I overreacting to this, or do I need to give myself some more time for the medication to kick in.

If I understand correctly, the concern is. Is my work stress
affecting my blood sugar levels? I think there is an easy
way to troubleshoot this problem. Blood sugar levels can
swing up and down all day. From not eating in the morning it can be lower, then eating lunch it rises, then later it can drop again. Since blood sugar levels have the
potential to swing so much during a single day, you can monitor you levels easy with a blood sugar monitor.
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Lets assume you don't work Sat & Sun, but work M-F.
Take a morning score on Saturday before eating. Later eat
lunch, take another reading 2-3 hours after, then take
another reading before bedtime assuming little snacking
and way after dinner time. Get 6 data points.

During M-F, collect the same data, same time frame
assuming the same foods eaten.

Compare notes between your relaxed state {Sat/Sun}
vs. the stressful times {M-F}.

thanks for that thylanar. I just have been a bit worried about it, along with everything else.
I have read elsewhere that anxiety, nervousness, irritablity etc can all by signs or side effects so to speak.
I have been feeling all of these a lot over the past few months and had just figured that maybe if I took them out of the work equation it might help.
I really just want to do what I can to manage this condition in the best way possible.

thanks again

The stress of dealing with a chronic illness could possibly be affecting your overall stress level, thereby making the job seem more stressful than it had been before. Also, there's a lot of stress on the body when your blood sugars are yo-yo'ing up and down.

I would definitely give yourself some more time. It sounds like your bosses really want you to stay, so you might just want to apprise them of your situation and explain that it may take a few weeks to a month or so to get your blood sugar levels managed really well.

It also sounds as if you may be experiencing some low blood sugar levels. Next time you find yourself getting super stressed over a call, test your blood sugar...if it's below 80, that's probably what's causing those feelings. It's not uncommon to start experiencing lows, especially while you're trying to get your medications adjusted. If it is, indeed, lows that are making you feel this way, keep something sugary handy to eat when you're too low...but don't eat too much, or you'll have a rebound high, which will make you feel even worse. I keep those red and white peppermints handy...you can buy them in big bags at the supermarket. They're around 4-5g carbs each (depending on the brand), and two of them will raise my blood sugar about 20 points. I like them enough to be able to get them down when I need them, but not so much that I'm tempted to snack on them when I don't. Another thing that would work is glucose tabs, if you can stand them, and they're available at any drugstore.

Ruth

..... I really dont want to give up work, but I have read that stress can be a factor in controlling or rather not controlling your sugar levels.
What do you guys think? Am I overreacting to this, or do I need to give myself some more time for the medication to kick in. ....
High BG, low BG and rapid changes in BG level all make us feel like we are not coping. So you have to do what it takes to reduce the volatility in you BG level. The medication should help. But don't expect it to make the problem go away. Remember that the eating carbohydrate is the main main reason why BG levels go up, starting a yo-yo effect. And the best way to cut both the peaks and the valleys of BG movements is to go on a low-carb diet.

Cheers,

Mark

thanks all for all your help. It has definitely helped. I couldnt meet with my bosses today, but will be meeting with them tomorrow.
I going to ask to be taken out of the area I am in and change maybe to an admin role until things settle down.
I took a call today, and by the end of head my head was pounding and vision blurred. Def think I need a break from it for a while.
Again thanks for the help, I have checked some other forums, and this is by far the best, most informative and friendly one I have come accross.
Hopefully when I get a better handle on this I will be able to return the favour to someone else.
Sorry for rambling!

thanks

annemarie