Do You Need Insulin After a Diabetes Diagnosis?

​

Do You Need Insulin After a Diabetes Diagnosis?

One of the most infuriating parts about being diagnosed with diabetes is that you have to take on a list of new responsibilities, and one of the more feared ones is having to administer insulin to yourself. It just seems like such a hassle, but do you really even need to administer it?

The answer depends on a few different factors. Most importantly, which type of diabetes do you have? If you have type 2 diabetes, there are certain situations in which you may not always have to take insulin.

However, if you’re a type 1 diabetic, you will always have to take insulin, since type 1 diabetics cannot produce their own. However, if you’re a type 2 diabetic, you might be able to skip the syringe early on by simply maintaining a healthy lifestyle, which includes regular exercise and a healthy diet.

However, if you can’t do that, then you will need to make the switch to insulin. Unfortunately, the lifestyle changes alone only really work for type 2 diabetics who have only recently developed diabetes.

In its early stages, diabetes can be controlled through the healthy lifestyle, but as you get older, insulin will be required in some capacity. This might sound a bit devastating, but fortunately, administering insulin to yourself these days is easier than it ever has been.

There are a few different methods which all sound a bit scary at first, but due to advances in medical technology, really aren’t too big of a deal. The classic method if administering insulin, though it’s losing popularity, is by syringe.

You would typically have to draw the insulin up into the syringe and use the needle to give yourself a shot, making sure to administer the right amount. This obviously would make most people uncomfortable and scared, but you can be assured that the needle doesn’t actually hurt that much.

The vastly more popular method which has been recently introduced is using insulin pens. These pens are like preloaded shots, and are much easier to use. By using preloaded cartridges for the doses, it makes it impossible to get the wrong amount in.

The pens are way more comfortable to use, are less intimidating, and hurt far less. Some are disposable pens, only good for one use before needing to be thrown away, but others can use the cartridges, allowing you to keep using the same pen with different needles.