Living Alone with Type 1

Felix Glenn said:
Hi,
I've recently been forced to live alone for the first time and with Type 1, and I'm so afraid of night hypos I think I'm over compensating.
So here's my question:
What strategies do people employ to manage night time hypos when they live alone?
Hope you can help
Felix

Definitely worth discussing your anxiety about an overnight hypo with your diabetes team as fear of hypos is one of the criteria for more advanced treatment e.g. pump or CGMS.

In the meantime have you tried a Libre so you would get a clear understanding of what is happening overnight? Remember though it is NOT a CGMS, so won't sound an alarm should you BS level drop too far but it will give a historical view of what happens each night for 2 weeks. You could also self fund a CGMS, but that's even more expensive than a Libre although, if you're lucky, you may meet the local criteria for a Libre when they start rolling out over the next few months. Again, your diabetes team should be able to advise on whether you're likley to meet the local criteria for that.

Good luck.

Hi, Just thought I would chip in. Now I don't live alone so I can't really put myself in your position, however I travel a fair bit for work and am often 'alone' in hotels for the night. One thing to make clear is a hypo is pretty unlikely to kill you, generally if you have a hypo and go unconscious you WILL recover once your liver pumps out some glucogen. You would have to over dose your insulin by quiet a bit for it to be that serious. That's not intended to dismiss your concerns, its just trying to re-assure you and having people to check on you would not be a bad thing. In this day and age I would suggest that you could manage with a mobile and a text message if you don't mind sharing your mobile number with these people. It might be more flexible than them checking curtains etc.
Have you had many night time hypo's ? I ask because mine usually result in me not being able to sleep, having my mind whirling through a thousand things at which point I always think, hold on check your BG you should be sleeping and I have a few carbs to get me back on track.....