She had no symptoms and her diabetes was diagnosed when she registered with a new doctor in a new town. The GP phoned her at home and said that they have found sugar in her urine. At the GP surgery she was told that the results were inconclusive because she neither fitted type 1 or type 2 diabetes profiles. She was advised to go and buy a glucometer to check her blood sugar levels and to avoid eating sugar. She waited for about three months before she saw the diabetes care team at the hospital. After further tests they concluded that she has type 1 diabetes but what they call LADA (Latent Auto Immune Diabetes in Adulthood) also known as Type 1.5. At first the consultant put her on tablets like for those with type 2 diabetes but after a month she had to start on insulin injections. She is on NovoMix twice a day.

He has been doing his insulin injections since he was eight years old. He started to self-manage his diabetes when he was 15 years old. About seven years ago he changed his insulin from Humulin S to glargine and Humalog. The main reason for changing his insulin regime was the lack of flexibility regarding eating times. He admits that he no longer does glucose tests except when doing things differently such as changing insulin regimen, exercising more, changing diet, etc. A few years ago he was diagnosed by a private consultant as being clinically obese. The consultant put him on a diet and on Metformin tablets. Since then he has loss a total of five stones. Says that his obesity was the product of a bad diet and lack of exercise rather than because he is diabetic.

She remembers that after diagnosis she left the hospital with a bag 'full of medicines. Initially she was put on two injections of Mixtard 30 a day. To start with she found managing her diabetes easy. She learned to inject and was monitoring her blood sugars regularly. Around the age of 16 she began to develop an eating disorder that took sometime before it was properly diagnosed. Initially, the care team treated her behaviour of skipping insulin injections as a 'rebellious teenage phase. It was nearly two years before she was referred to a psychiatrist. Recovery has been a gradual, bumpy process with lapses on the way. In her experience the support of her family and close friends has been invaluable.

She has blurred vision as one of her main symptoms prior to diagnosis. Her driving instructor asked her to have her eyes tested. She was told that she was long-sighted but, her symptoms which also included tiredness and thirst didn't improved. Her mother is a nurse and decided to test her urine and found she had ketones. She stayed a few days in hospital and at first, found it difficult to inject insulin. Testing her blood sugar level was also difficult but found it easier than injecting insulin. She remembers feeling scared of doing her insulin injections and stayed in hospital a bit longer for that reason. Found the nurses really supportive and friendly. Initially she was put on NovoRapid and Insulatard. She injected Insulatard in the evening but found that she had frequent hypos in the morning. Her Insulatard was then changed to Lantus. Once at university her HbA1C got gradually worse and her mum and a nurse talked to her about having an Insulin Pump. She decided to try one and has used a pump since last Christmas. Since then she has noticed an improvement in her blood sugar levels and a reduction in the number of hypos. She is due to have an HbA1C soon. Her mum bought the Insulin Pump.

After diagnosis she was put on Humulin S insulin and she had to inject two times a day at mealtimes and also had to have about four snacks a day. She found it annoying that she had to eat even when she was not hungry. Her insulin injections were increased to four a day to try and improve her blood sugar levels. By that time she was playing golf at a high level and found it difficult to maintain good control. She remembers that her blood sugar levels could go as high as 25 and her lowest were around 12. Physically she felt tired and unable to concentrate plus it was difficult to inject in the middle of a tournament. She and her mum started to look for an alternative to injections and looked on the internet and found an American website that provided information on Insulin Pumps. Her GP didn't know much about Insulin Pumps and she was referred to a diabetes care team in London. On assessment she says that her control is much better since she is on the pump. On average her blood sugar levels are between 7 or 8 and never higher than 13. And her HbA1C's have come down from 12 to 8.

Since diagnosis and until she was sixteen years old she was on a two daily injections of insulin. Until her early teens she had well-control diabetes, but then it began to slip. She found her insulin regimen oppressive and limiting so when it was changed to short-acting and long-acting analogue insulin she had a sense of freedom that she has never experienced before in relation to food and mealtimes. The problem was that around the same time she started to be concerned about her weight and decided to go on a diet. That was the start of her eating disorder that was to last for several years. She realised that she needed help and talked to her GP whom she trusted. Eventually she was able to find a psychologist that worked with her and helped her overcome her eating disorder. Unfortunately she developed diabetes-related complications which affected her eyesight. She was registered blind at the age of 23. She currently uses an insulin pump and her control is very good.

After diagnosis she was put on two insulin injections a day. But now she is on four injections a day; three injections of NovoRapid one with each meal and one of glargine at bedtime. She started to do her injections from the very beginning. She uses an insulin pen and the small size needle. Her diabetes is well-controlled; her last HbA1C result was 6.8. She attributes her good control to a well-balance diet which doesn't change significantly except when eating out; the right amount of insulin and checking her blood sugar levels everyday. She has never had a bad or severe hypo. Her blood sugars usually range between 3.5 and 10 but she finds the blood sugar tests a bit of a pain! She thinks that an important part of having good control is to understand why blood sugars go high or low and knowing what to do about it.

She has had difficulties in finding the right type of insulin regimen for her. Until last year she was taking two injections daily of Mixtard 80/20. When she was 14 years old she had a severe fit and ended up in a coma. She has had several more fits after that but says that at present cannot cope with preparing exams and changing insulin regimen at the same time. Her current insulin regimen is still two injections a day of a mix insulin called NovoMix 30. Her last HbA1C was 10.4 which she admits is too high. She says that she keeps her blood sugar levels a bit high because she is frightened of going low and having more fits. Her new diabetes care team has suggested she consider using an insulin pump but they have also said that it will only work if she is ready for it.

After diagnosis she was on two injections a day of Humalog Mix 25. As a child she used to have lots of hypos and twice she was admitted to hospital. When she was about 14 years old her insulin regimen was changed to four injections a day' a long-lasting injection in the evening (Levemir) and an injection of fast-acting insulin three times a day at mealtimes (NovoRapid). She kept forgetting to take her lunch time insulin and was having high blood sugar levels. She went back to Humalog Mix 25 until she decided to try again the four injections a day regimen. This insulin regimen has worked very well the second time and she thinks it is because she is able to carry her insulin pen with her rather than leaving it in the school office. She has improved her diet by including slow-release carbohydrate (GI food) and more vegetables and fruits.

After diagnosis he gave up smoking, he started to play sports more regularly and made many improvements to his diet. He eats more vegetables and fruits and feels that his life style is healthier than before diagnosis. His diabetes is well-controlled and he attributes this to a combination of testing his blood sugar levels regularly, knowing how much insulin to take with each meal and healthy eating. For a while after diagnosis he tested his blood sugar levels before and after a meal until he became more confident about diabetes control. But says that finger pricking is the only thing about having diabetes that he doesn't like. After diagnosis he was put on two injections a day of Mixtard, but found it didn't suit his student lifestyle and asked his diabetes team to recommend another regimen. Currently he is on Levemir and fast-acting Humalog insulin that he injects every time he eats.