The honeymoon period

Earlier in the course, we briefly talked about the ‘honeymoon period’. This refers to the period of time, (often soon after your diabetes diagnosis), when beta cells in the pancreas may temporarily make insulin again. This can give you a “holiday” from injecting insulin

The honeymoon period happens because at diagnosis your pancreas still has a small number of beta cells that have not been fully destroyed. These cells ‘wake up’ when your glucose starts to come under control and will function normally for a short period of time (usually a few months but occasionally longer) before eventually dying off too.

In the early stages (first few weeks) of having type 1 diabetes, your body can also require a higher dose of insulin to get your blood glucose to normal levels. As your body becomes more sensitive to the insulin, you may need to reduce your insulin doses. 

People sometimes think that they are ‘recovering’ or have been wrongly diagnosed as the amount of insulin they need reduces. Occasionally they may be able to stop injecting insulin completely for a short period. It is important to remember that the drop in the amount of insulin you need is normal and you are very unlikely to have been diagnosed incorrectly. Nonetheless, if you have concerns you should discuss this with your healthcare team.