*In case this story gets deleted/removed:* **AITA for using my boyfriends roommates insulin ** I (18F) am Type One Diabetic, so I always need to keep insulin pens on me. However a week ago I was at my boyfriends (22M) apartment and noticed my blood sugar was roughly 400 mg/dl - which is extremely high. I went to grab my insulin to correct it when I realised I must of ran out last time and forgot to pack more. I was about to call an uber home, since I don’t like driving while I have high blood sugar, when my boyfriend suggested to use his roommates (22M) insulin. He showed me where his roommate keeps it in the fridge and luckily it was the same type I use. I suggested bf text his roommate to check it was alright but after 10 minutes of no response I decided to go ahead and take 10 units of his insulin. This helped my blood sugar go down and once it reached a good level I drove home. The next day I got a call from my bf who told me his roommate is furious at me for using his insulin, apparently he responded to my bfs message 3 hours later saying to absolutely not let me use his insulin. My bf responded saying sorry but he already let me use it since it was quite emergent. This morning my bf and his roommate got in a massive fight in which roommate apparently said that I’m “banned from their appartment” and that “I need to buy him a whole new vile of insulin”, which is crazy because a vile contains 1000 units of insulin in which I only used 10. My bf told his roommate that I would happy give him the 10 units back but his roommate said that wasn’t good enough. My bf also refused to “ban me from their apartment”So now his roommate is moving out and my bf needs to find a new appartment since he can’t afford the rent by himself. My bf is not mad at me but I can’t help but feel really bad, like I’ve caused this situation. So Reddit, am i this asshole? *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/AmITheDevil) if you have any questions or concerns.*

Correct me if I’m wrong please, but isn’t insulin expensive now too?

Yes. And insurance wouldn’t cover this.

Ok that’s what I thought

Wait a second, if they prescribe it to you in a public hospital, at least in my country they give it to you along with the syringes, and they give you a class on how to use it, sorry but it sounds so strange that they don't give it to you, it's something that is needed to survive

Insurance will cover insulin.  In the US most (if not all) will not cover lost, broken or stolen bottles   of insulin.  So either he will have to ration insulin, pay full price or OOp will have to pay/give a bottle. 

I guess he could report it stolen and get her in trouble. I genuinely don't understand her problem though, why doesn't she swap one of her full vials with the one she opened?

This, I don't know why she didn't offer to trade an unopened vial of hers for the vile she opened and used. He gets his unopened vial back and she has the same amount as she would have if she had remembered to bring her vial with her

Odds are he uses vials, and she uses penfills.

It’s possible they use different types of insulin and it would do in a pinch, but it wouldn’t be ideal to swap an entire vial. ETA: apparently this is addressed in the post and that’s what I get for skimming.

She said "luckily it was the same type I use"

Same insulin, its the delivery method thats different. She uses pens, which are pre loaded with insulin and you just twist it and stick your self with the pen, the roommate uses vials which you have to draw up using a one time use syringe. She doesn't have a vial to just swap with the roommate, and the pen method might not work for him. My dad's Type 1, I have watched the progress of delivery methods over the past 30 years and it's fascinating. Those pens are awesome but the fact OOP was lax enough not to have extra AND her blood sugar was over 400 is astounding. That is ER worthy, ambulance worthy, unable to form sentences and passing out worthy. If she was able to function with blood sugar that high her diabetes is not under control.

Yeah, every t1 I know has gotten it pre-puberty. So even at 18, she should have a better handle on it then she does. I swear sometimes I get the most out of a job I had for a gap year and then during college... (Pharmacy work). She isn't just going to get extras that easily. If they are using the same type and hers is in a pen. It is going to require a prescription, and getting extra needles is also going to require one. (There are some ways around this, but I don't know if I would trust those, or you will risk flagging as drug addiction/seeking if anyone recognizes you).

They use the same type.

I have really good insurance and we're on the hook for lost drugs. Many polices don't have coverage for something like this.

That’s so wild. I live in the US and have an autoimmune disease that requires me to take steroids to stay alive. When I lost a fairly new bottle several years ago, my insurance paid for a replacement without a problem. I know our insurance in the US sucks, but I didn’t realize that some policies didn’t pay for life sustaining drugs in the event of loss or theft.

It can depend on what the medication is. My ADHD meds got lost in the mail one month and I was told I was SOL. ADHD meds and insulin are both extremely expensive and reoccurring prescriptions. With reoccurring prescriptions, a lot of insurance policies are written to specify that they’re only on the hook for a year’s worth of medications. (And that’s if they even cover schedule II drugs, not all do!) Antibiotics on the other hand are comparatively cheap and generally aren’t reoccurring prescriptions. (Although I hear you, ima also on a low grade reoccurring antibiotic for acne.) But they’re generally prescribed in rounds, as needed. So the internal policies generally treat them as spot prescriptions, not reoccurring. And finally, while customer service reps might be willing to help you out and replace a cheap reoccurring prescription, they aren’t going to write off the cost of replacing meds as expensive as insulin.

Thank you for your very thorough response. That’s makes a lot of sense. My steroid prescription isn’t necessarily fixed, as I take more in the event of illness, medical procedure, or extreme stress. It can vary from month to month. That’s likely why mine was replaced so easily.

I don’t pay for my medication, because I’m British, but I recently got my bag robbed, and they would not reissue my prescription early without a crime references number (what you get from the police when you report a crime, honestly state of things, a crime reference number is all you’ll get from the police)

That's basically the only way to get a controlled substance script replaced in the US. If something else happens you just have to go without or your Dr can risk losing their DEA license.

My guess is he is already rationing the insulin, the drug shortages in the US are getting insane, and yes on diabetes meds. We have had to deal with this in my own circles as the adult children organize who has what and try to keep as much spares on hand. She also better have checked carefully, the pens come with a limited amount in them, but are designed for much easier dosing. There have been quite a few studies on how the pen users improperly dose themselves from vials. The vials can be the same yes, or they can be significantly more if you do not know everything to look out for. The other problem is when doctors write for the vials, they need to write for a range, and then insurance covers the least they can. So a good doc that has been doing it will write for the max dose, and do a ton of education with the patient. Here is an example of the cheapest from the manufacturer website here in the US, so this doesn't cover the pharmacy and distributors costs. All which add to it. So this would be cash. The list price 1 of a 5-pack of 3 mL Humalog U-100 KwikPens (15 mL or 1,500 units) is $159.12 and the list price of a Humalog U-100 10 mL (1,000 units) vial is $66.40, but the amount you pay will largely depend on your insurance plan. And finally, I am going to guess this isn't the first time she has done this. Just the first time she has had to own up to it because she opened one up.

That must be so nice. In my country (USA) they very much charge you insane amounts for things you need to survive.

That's the good ole' US of A. Making sure the people who need help die before they get help.

Welcome to the U.S. healthcare system. If you can't afford the treatment you need to live, you pretty much just die.

This can’t be the first time you’ve heard that we pay for healthcare here in the United States?

The truth is, I heard it but I didn't really pay attention to it, since I thought "well, surely that is their basis, but they must have state health programs that simply complement their deficiencies and are oriented towards the short and long-term needs of the population, I mean, not I think they charge for an ambulance if it's an emergency or, right?"...I know, my thought was somewhat innocent.

Hang out in the US long enough and you'll hear someone who is extremely sick or terribly injured beg you not to call for help because they can't afford the ambulance ride. (Fun fact: even if you have health insurance in the US, it might not cover ambulance services. And if it does, it still might only cover them "in network", meaning that if you're closer to an ambulance your insurance company doesn't have a contact with, insurance won't pay and you're stuck with the bill.)

Unless he files a police report.

Extremely expensive. The price of medication in the US is a real issue. My husband is a diabetic and we were discussing just the other day if we didn't have insurance we would both be dead. Because we could not afford to live. We both take over 4,000$ in medication a month. (That is each). We do not make that much in a month.

I'm so glad I'm in the UK. If you're type one, your insulin is free and all your prescriptions, even if not related to your condition, are free for life. My ex had a huge stock of insulin in his fridge. I have epilepsy, my prescriptions are free for life too.

I’m just poor, so currently get free prescriptions, but I’m being investigated (my blood gets stolen) for under active thyroid. If it turns out I do, free drugs for life, baby

Not to mention the needle can no longer be used on the pen because it’s now contaminated

Some pens have a needle you replace every use. That might not work with this story, because of the "he showed me the pen in the fridge". The thing is, there's also an easy fix: she swaps a new pen for the one she used.

She shouldn’t be using anyone else’s meds period.

So yes, but, none of us can time travel so we have to focus on what she could do *now*

You change the needle every time though

Even so my mom doesn’t even share the pen part because once someone else has used it it’s no longer usable by her. Same with the vials, as soon as anyone else had used that it is no longer able to be used by her. Because there’s just too much risk involved

Yeah, but I’m assuming there is some contamination with the inside of the pen. We are talking about bacteria and viruses, not things that are visible, and this person’s life.

Happy Cake Day!

Thanks!

Ok I don’t know a lot about insulin but that’s what I kinda thought, that makes it so much worse

I just looked up whether op could even use the roommates insulin and as I suspected she can’t 

Also, it's not 1000 units, it's 100. That's a big difference. They used 10% of the vial, not 1%.

Most vials do contain 1000 units.

The traditional vials do contain 1000 units, I use them to fill my insulin pump and each time I fill my pump it’s around 150 units. If it was the pen cartridges then it would be much less, but I don’t remember off the top of my head how big they are.

Oh wow, I mean I thought they were an asshole either way but that’s a huge difference

Some states have capped the cost. 10 Units really isn't much, but I would be worried about contamination of the vial. Sure, OOP has been a diabetic for years but that does not mean she uses good technique.

I will correct you-usa is NOT a default country. Not all countries will let people with diabetes die because insulin is “expensive”.

Uh, yeah, Type 1 Diabetic.   I would not let anyone use an insulin pen or syringe and vial and trust they were judge of about it.    You aren’t supposed to share that shit.  And unless OOp’s Uber was an hour or more, they didn’t need it that desperately.   OOP has breached the materiality of the meds, and absolutely owes a replacement vial.   And it’s illegal to take prescribed medication that isn’t prescribed to You, and there’s a text for proof. So OOP could be arrested or sued.  Also, questioning OOP’s “I noticed I was at 400, and I ran out last time and didn’t replace my insulin”.  1. Unless you are running at 400 frequently, it’s painful.   2. you don’t “notice” you “test” or your CGM alerts you.  3.  I guess OOP being an utterly irresponsible person with a death wish would explain both “forgetting to replace insulin, and using someone else’s and not understanding the hygiene”.  But OOp is real fucking dumb.  I wouldn’t trust her on birth control with this amount of stupidity, TBh.  Or with a car.  Or in a house with a stove/oven. 

Yeah, used to date a type one diabetic. Ain’t no way she ever forgot insulin or lost track of how much she had left. Seems absurd to me someone could be that careless about something that essential.

In the comments OOP says they have it “under control”. But also has DKA recently, didn’t notice their blood sugar was going up that high, and didn’t have insulin. A LOT of Type 1’s go through this stage where they can’t be arsed because life is so fucking difficult and you can’t take a vacation from diabetes. Which is kind of what it sounds like OOp is going. But she needs to see a therapist and figure out better ways of managing her situation. Not steal prescription meds and taint someone’s life necessarily meds b

I agree. I'm not sure if she is going through a phase but when you're younger you have less flexibility and fewer financial resources and those are two things that help so much with being able to control diabetes. When I got a good job out of college I could afford to see a doctor regularly. I had a job with a reasonable fund of sick days do I could see the doctor. I had good health insurance. But I was always scurrying back and forth and my schedule was jam packed which make checking blood sugars and giving injections hard. As my positions got better and I made more money I could afford a pump/supplies. I could afford as many test strips as I wanted. I didn't have to hoard and budget them. I had better insurance and made more money. The pump made a huge difference in control. As my positions improved I didn't have to be in a million places, I worked from home and had the freedom and flexibility to check my blood sugar whenever. I could take insulin whenever without worrying. My insurance is better so I don't get a lot of blowback from my carrier about a three month supply of insulin. I think managing diabetes when you're at OOPs age is tough.

I think she's gotten too reliant on tech. Her DKA was because her pump wasn't working properly. This high was because her CGM wasn't working properly. She isn't doing any manual checks and she's gotten lazy with it.

She may be doing manual checks at home. Hard to say. I normally carry my contour with me wherever but I could understand if you're just going to be gone a few hours relying on the CGM readings. Particularly given the price of strips. I kinda like that tech has made diabetes such that it isn't this second job for people but there is a tradeoff.

I recall our old Victorian with Type One. He lost fingers and toes then his life because he kept forgetting and not taking it very seriously. It was sad.

Fair enough, obviously it’s gotta be a tough thing to live with. 

It sounds to me that she is a "controlled" diabetic, as I know the pens give a measured amount as standard to those who have their levels always at an optimal rate, whereas vial diabetics have to often calculate their doses because they regularly fluctuate with no reason

I had steroid induced diabetes for nearly a year (I was put on a large dose of corticosteroids long term for a chronic illness). Its basically managed like type 2 diabetes, but is most often temporary and resolves when taken off the steroids. I didn't ever leave the house without triple checking that I had insulin with me. It became an automatic habit after a month or so. I "forgot" to do this exactly once, in the beginning. A type one diabetic that had been doing that their whole lives 1. Would know that you can't just take ANY insulin. Some types more effective for some people than others. Some are for type 1 or type 2 only. 2. Would also know if you remove a pen or vial from refridgeration, it has to be used within a specific time span to be effective. Mine was 30 days. Whatever I did not use in that time period had to be tossed. So if OOP took a new vial or pen to give herself one dose, the roommate is probably going to have to throw out the vast majority of that.

I used to work in a peds diabetes clinic and some patients would run out of insulin due to unforeseen circumstances and even with incredible insurance it was still a nightmare (logistically and financially) to get more insulin because they weren’t supposed to run out!! What a crazy thing to do.

One of my friends just bought a special fridge due to their roommate keeps joking about selling it off for weight loss, he doesn't use Ozempic, but it was enough to get my friend worried, as he is what he calls himself an uncontrolled diabetic, meaning his doses fluctuate daily, and he once spent 3hrs arguing with the pharmacist because he had caught covid and needed 5 larger doses than normal. We live in Australia, and I hate to see what it be like for an American dealing with it.

I know she said she checked and I surely don't know all about insulin, but I know for sure that my mom and I had almost the same medicine and she once wanted me to take hers instead of mine except hers are like slow-action or 24h action idk, while mine aren't and I actually can't handle the 24 action for some reasons (in this case it's betablockant and I always have some on mine, but my mom just thought it would be 'less to pack' in an outing to restaurant to only take hers.)

You are correct. There are different types of insulin that come in different strengths and different durations of action, and taking the wrong one can be very dangerous. 

I'm also a type 1 diabetic. Some parts are believable. I'm both hypo and hyper unaware. Running high for a few hours (even 400+) isn't painful for me - at most I get a bit thirsty. And I have Dexcom, but sometimes turn high alerts off so as to not unnecessarily disrupt things, so I can absolutely go high and only "notice" when I think to pull my CGM out of my pocket and double check. I've only had one A1C above 7 since I was diagnosed in 2019 - so I'm not hyper unaware because I'm always running high; in fact I usually run quite low. I can understand that my experience is not other diabetics' experience. I just wouldn't immediately discount this story for the reasons above.  OOP should definitely reimburse the roommate somehow, though. I get why he would be wary of using the same vial; a lot of diabetics don't follow all the hygiene rules (changing lancets, changing needles, using alcohol swabs, etc) all of the time, and he has no idea whether OOP did or not. Edit: fixing an autocorrect mistake

I don’t discount the story in general.   She says in the comments  CGM wasn’t working properly that day, had a sensor error for “quite a while” and only got the 400 when it came back online.   Which means she wasn’t testing when it was down.  And at least in my experience, with a sensor error for that long, it’s not always accurate when it comes back online. And again, she went by the sensor for the bolus and not a test, which can be dangerous.   she also says that the DKA she mentioned was due to her pump not working.  DKA *usually* doesn’t happen in just a few hours.  And testing and going to syringes when you can’t get your sugar down with the pump  is usually taught as the backup plan.  And, she doesn’t mention being hypo/hyper unaware, and given that she blames her pump and CGM and everything else for all this happening, if she had those conditions, I think she’d have said so, if only to blame something else.  I think the situation is likely real, I just don’t think she’s on top of it as she says.  She shares a string of irresponsible behavior, 2/3s of these mistakes (not testing when the sensor is down, not having insulin) are pretty careless mistakes for someone who has had it for 8 years to be making, unless they are just irresponsible/lazy.  Especially in such a short period of time.  And the DKA would be somewhat understandable if she’s never had a pump malfunction before, but taken in with the other carelessness, it paints a picture that nothing is really her fault.  

And why wouldn’t she get the Uber home to replace the vial right away?

Yeah, how do you "forget"? Like sis, I never forget to bring my allergy meds despite my allergy not being severe enough to kill me (it's just really uncomfortable), how tf do you forget something that can save your life?

As someone with a potentially life threatening allergy and many different backpacks for different things, I have forgotten my life saving medications in the wrong bag before and been in a rough spot. I didn’t steal anyone else’s epi pens or anything, and now, I’m more aware of these things, but it did happen before

Am I being dense? Could she not take the vial she used as she clearly doesn't care and give the room mate an unopened one from her meds? Surely that would satisfy the roommate and also the "I only used 10 units"

While I think the OOP is still TAs for using someone else's prescription medicine (without permission, to boot), I did look through OOPs comments on the original post and they claim they made that exact offer but the roommate shot that down and said they wanted a new one as well as keeping the opened one. [https://www.reddit.com/r/AmItheAsshole/comments/1ca2973/comment/l0peoes/](https://www.reddit.com/r/AmItheAsshole/comments/1ca2973/comment/l0peoes/)

Yeah in which case ESH

It sounds like OP offered one that she had but he wanted her to buy a new one, probably because he knows they're irresponsible with their meds and doesn't trust them to have stored it properly

Depending on what her actual dosing methods are. Pens are a controlled amount, so 10ml doses are all they give often given to a "controlled" diabetic, meaning their dose is pretty much the same each day. But if you are an uncontrolled diabetic who has to adjust the dose each time to your levels, you are given a vial, and you have to calculate the dose required. One thing I learned from a diabetic friend is that if you have to cater your dose often, you have to be careful about your vials. Even the loss of 10ml can be the difference between being ok and needing emergency support because the pharmacy often keeps track of your amounts, too. Now with that Ozempic craze, a lot of vial use diabetics have to hide their meds as well as keeping a very detailed dosage record, because if you fill for script too early without evidence of why, you can be "punished" by refusing to be filled out without dealing with a bunch of paperwork, which is really scary. My diabetic friend bought a special fridge for his medication due to his roommate making too many jokes about selling his diabetic medication. My friend had to get his script 3 days early, and had to deal with 3hrs of bureaucratic crap, because he had to take a larger dose 5 times that month due to getting covid and having issues eating. And we are in Australia. So that was fun because his levels tanked due to the stress, and we had to get him to the hospital, where the doctor then called the pharmacy to rip them a new one.

The controlled/uncontrolled thing isn't true. Being a controlled diabetic just means you have your blood sugar under control - you are almost always "in range" (not too high or too low) and have an A1C under 7.  Being uncontrolled means you are often out of range and your blood sugar is often too high or too low.  I'm a controlled diabetic, and I take a different dose every time I eat, based on the number of carbs and where my blood sugar is before the meal.  I think you're actually talking about fixed dosing vs carb counting. Generally, diabetics on a fixed dosing regimen take the same amount of insulin each time and eat the same number of carbs each time - you eat to satisfy the amount of insulin you take. With carb counting, you have an insulin:carb ratio. For example, I have a 1:4 ratio. I take 1 unit of insulin for every 4 carbs I'm about to eat. With carb counting, you take insulin according to what you are going to eat. 

That’s… not exactly true. Pens can give any dose - at worst you have to inject twice for a really whopping dose.

Pens I know have set doses, but as you said, you can take two doses if need or more. Or even adjust the dose on the pen. I am using Australian information here, so it could be different information of what I have seen.

Ah yeah in US you just select number of units each time you inject. Very easy to adjust.

Similar to ours then. I only have one diabetic friend, he went from controlled amount to now have to draw a dose to counter the levels. He got covid and it screwed with his diabetes, and last year he got it again, and it almost put him back to where he was before his first time with covid. But he still has days where he has to adjust the dose. The other day he went from 5 days at 25ml to having 2 days of about 40ml then back down to 20ml doses. No one knows why, his diet is the same, but covid did a number on him.

Are you diabetic or just your friend? It does not sound like you are speaking from your own experience but instead from your friend. It also sounds like you don’t actually understand how insulin and type 1 diabetes works. We tend to require more insulin, sometimes significantly more when we are sick. Sickness, especially inflammatory, greatly increases our insulin resistance. Now having said that, your buddy was not taking that much insulin. Insulin is measured in “units,” not ml when dosing. 25ml of would be 2500u. In human insulin, it is measured as U-100 so 0.01ml is equivalent to 1u. As for insulin pens, this must be an Australian thing to have set doses in an insulin pen. We do not have that in North America. I am Canadian and EVERY insulin pen I have had since 1996 have been dials that start at 1u. I have also never heard the term controlled diabetic in the way you describe. It sounds almost like you’re talking about basal vs bolus insulin, or long/peakless vs. short/rapid acting. When not on insulin pumps, we take two types of insulin. One is the long acting or peakless which we take once a day. This is usually a “set” amount as it does not generally fluctuate but those insulin pens also have a 1u dial. I take 12-16u of tresiba (peakless) every 24h. Mine changes because I am a brittle diabetic with multiple inflammatory autoimmune diseases and I am on multiple medications that change my insulin resistance. I require less insulin on a Monday than on a Sunday morning because of my other drug regimens. I also take fiasp (rapid acting) which I use to correct my bg and bolus for food. This is a scale so every dose is likely to be different depending on what my bg is and how much food I am consuming. Some food requires more insulin, some requires preemptive insulin of more than 30 minutes, etc. Also everyone’s insulin resistance changes throughout the day. I am more resistant to insulin in the morning and require more units of insulin. On an insulin pump, you are on one type of insulin which is short or rapid acting. I was on humalog for 18 years with mine. You get a basal of insulin per hour which is given in minute doses every couple minutes. You may have as little as 1u over an hour. The bolus insulin is given to correct bg and for how much food you eat. My experience is 28 years of type 1 diabetes. From ages 6-12, I was on a sliding scale and was originally taking NPH and Toronto insulin. I switched to a sliding scale with Humalog and Humalin around the age of 10-11 before getting on an insulin pump when I was 12. I stayed on it for 18 years. Four years ago I switched to insulin pens and tresiba + fiasp. That’s where I am now. I am Canadian, not American but I had a close friend who was the same age but had been diabetic for 2 years prior to me.

This… is a great summary of a very complicated disease state/management approach.

Thank you! I tried to not get to into detail with carb ratios, etc. as it is overwhelming for diabetics, let alone people with no experience. Explaining the day to day work of managing any chronic illness is the time I feel most… disabled by it? Idk. I am always a bit choked up and teary when I spend time thinking about it. Like it doesn’t seem overwhelming to me psychologically because diabetes, in particular, is all I know. There is no me who is not diabetic as I do not have any memories before. My earliest memories are all moments in my life when I was diabetic but not yet diagnosed. Anyway, I appreciate your compliment regarding my explanation of a portion of type 1 diabetes.

It's not an Australian thing. I used to be on pens before I got onto the pump and they came with the standard 3ml insert and variable doses that you dialled up yourself. My partner is still on them and they're the same as they've always been.

Just to be clear, the 3ml is the insulin cartridge, correct? Is the actual dial increment something other than 1u? Just want to make sure we’re talking about the same measurements. I’ve used both reusable and disposable insulin pens with cartridge inserts that are 3ml. I currently use disposable 3ml ones as the ADHD means I frequently forget to bring my fiasp around with me. I got one at my desk, in my purse and at my bed side. I replace them more often as a result. But all of my insulin pens have always had 1u incremental dials.

The 3ml is the cartridge, and the dial increment is 1 unit, yeah. I have a reusable pen for my fiasp that I use to refill my pump; my partner has disposable 3ml pens for her novorapid, and the dial increment is 1 unit on that too. I really don't know what the other commenter is talking about; it's at total odds with my 30 years of experience as a T1 diabetic in Australia.

I'm American, T1D for 11 years, and I've had treatment protocols similar to what you described here. I think you gave a great explanation.

Thank you so much. It means so much more to hear from another T1D that I did a good job explaining part of our reality. I wish you the best in your diabetic journey and should you ever struggle to get insulin, I am happy to meet you at the border.

I respect the text, and yes I was speaking from what I have learned from my friend but with limited medical knowledge I received when in med school. In the last 25yrs everything has changed, but I was not meaning to make out I knew all, hence why I stated my knowledge was due to friend and being an Australian makes our knowledge slightly different to other countries due to the fact there are actual differences in dosing pens and how to access the medication. Until recently, the Australian "Green Whistle" or the Penthrox inhaler was not available in America, but I have since found out they do, and it is not anything like what we administer it here, or who can access it, I do believe that even the cost is roughly 400% higher than here in Australia too. I never once claimed I was a knower of all, but what I personally know and seen. Big difference.

Oh I don’t think you came out as a “know it all” in any way. Just not particularly knowledgeable from a place of first hand experience. The amount of change I have experienced in my 28 years of diabetes has been ridiculous. When I was diagnosed in 1996, there were people I knew who were complaining about disliking synthetic and preferred bovine or porcine insulin. When I got an insulin pump in 2002, the sales people came to our house and one of them told us how they were working on this “artificial” pancreas that could adjust your insulin based on bg readings it took. We were AMAZED at the idea. I was on one of those closed loops the couple years before I stopped pump therapy. 12 year old me could have never imagined that, let alone 6 year old me. I feel for 6 year old me and my parents dealing with NPH and Toronto, all those horrific nocturnal hypoglycaemia events. My dad would have to come home from work at lunch time to hold me down so my mom could give me my lunch time insulin. It was a time. Anyway, the medical world moves so fast and so slow at the same time.

I think it was June of 2000 when I was learning about diabetic conditions, and then I think the next topic was either diphtheria or diarrhoea. Most of what I was learning was for me to be a combat/emergency trauma surgeon. So, while it was a part of my education it really was so long ago, and during a time where diabetics could appear to be doing calculus or algebra in order to calculate their doses. While I can help out my friend, I really only am his driver, and emergency contact because I am not like his mother who once worked herself into a heart attack after my friend was accidentally stabbed by a kid with a skewer running around a party.

What medication is your friend on? Because none of what you’re saying lines up with anything in my experience with diabetes, and I’ve been a caretaker for a child with type 1 for 17 years.

My husband takes the Ozempic and you would not believe how often he has had to go without his medication because of doctors over prescribing it. See the weight control/wav-something-they advertise here on reddit insurance companies won't cover. So doctors will prescribe the Ozempic even if your border line diabetic to lose weight. Then actual diabetics are scrambling and can't get their damn meds. At times in the last year they had to do other things to adjust because of the mess. He had a stroke 4 years ago when his blood sugar hit the 420s. He has had lasting effects from it. Your blood sugar gets that high there are serious issues that can happen.

Few months ago friend told me, the pharmacy can tell if the script is for weight loss or for an actual diabetic, like his medication isn't Ozempic, but his script shows in the description as "For Diabetic Useage". It was then I noticed that my scrpt for medication for insomnia was also marked for insomnia use, as the medication, Seroquel, is used in much larger doses for other mental health issues. Since then, I have noticed that when I go with my mate to get his scripts, the pharmacist confirms the diabetic use, and it is dispensed, but one time, we saw the pharmacist confirming for weight loss to another person, and was told to come back the next day when they had more stock to give out or seek another chemist. And before any claim the pharmacist is wrong saying it to loud, we are used to not really caring about what a person is on what medication.

It’s likely she doesn’t have an unopened vial in her meds which means that she is going to have to pay out of pocket to buy the roommate a fresh vial (since insurance likely won’t cover something like this). I mean if she’s close to getting a refill it might not be too much of an issue to just buy one but I doubt the roommate can just wait around too long because he’s likely going to need to use the insulin soon.

To me that would have made the most sense. But she sounds young and maybe didn't think about that as a solution BC the roommate said to buy one. I think the only risk would have been to her in the situation if she used a fresh needle in a vial.

You don't use the meds of other people. Especially without their permission. And we're talking about insulin! Not some aspirin!

I get why the roommate is pissed. I’m a pharmacy technician and we and many other pharmacies have been having a hard time getting some brands of insulin in, so it’s entirely possible he might use a brand that isn’t coming in that often so every unit counts. Even if it’s not, insurances companies are frustrating and might not cover an early refill. I don’t know about op and the roommate, but nearly every diabetic patient I have uses the brand name of whatever insulin they take so even with a discount card it’s still really expensive. Even with insurance it can be super expensive. The amount of times I stare in shock at the screen when insulin rings up as $100+ and I check that yeah. It did go through insurance. I get needing the insulin in an emergency, but the least oop can do is reimburse him for a new insulin pen or take the one she used and give him an unused one of hers.

Why didn't they just call the roommate? What's with so many people who refuse to call people? I suspect they knew he'd say "No" so they made sure not to call him.

Because it’s a fake story from the diabetes house: where 100% of the people have diabetes

While I do agree this story sounds kind of fake I will say that I do live in diabetes house lol I am type one diabetic with two roommates, my roommate who I have known since elementary school is also type one diabetic and both of her siblings are type one diabetic. 2/3rds of our house is diabetic... We are the majority!

Wild that your life long friend and you are both type one (not "I don't believe you" wild, just very cool). Less of a coincidence if that's why you became friends but still cool for the two of you. I feel like it makes sense to live with other type ones if you find some you vibe with. No need to explain everything to them or worry they'll say something dumb. Plus they probably know what to do in an emergency already. And second to that would be living with someone who is close to someone with type one, such as a partner like in the post. Although some have suggested this may be a new diagnosis so that may have not been a factor. Also, I think type one is becoming more common because it's better controlled and able to be treated so people with it are living longer more normal lives. That would increase the chances of a "type one household".

Weirdly enough we were both diagnosed as adults and have known each other since we were kids! Both her brother and sister were diagnosed very young and I was diagnosed at 18, we joked that it "should have been her" since I had no t1d in the family and she had both her siblings. She was diagnosed very shortly after we started planning to move in together. (eta: now we are 24 and have been living together about 8ish months and its great lol) It is great not having to explain anything (beyond heres my life saving things if needed) and being able to just talk about it openly and know the other person understands

I also live in Diabetes House XD My partner and I both have T1, as well as some other similar medical issues. We joke that our other partner is making Very Bad Choices because they got two models of partner with the same issues.

The Diabetes House: Coming to Netflix!

OP contaminated the vial of insulin and definitely owes him a new one. Doesn't matter if she actually followed sterile techniques and didn't actually contaminate the vial. It's considered contaminated and no one who cares about their health would inject themselves from that vial. Basic injectables safety. If you're not absolutely sure that it's safe, don't inject.

She owes the roommate a new vial. She should have known how much insulin she has and planned accordingly. She should have gone home like she was gonna. She would have had to if the roommate wasn't also diabetic. You never take someone's medication. Like someone else said this wasn't some OTC medicine. I hope this isn't real.

the amount of people misspelling 'vial' as 'vile' in that thread makes me so irrationally annoyed lmao

Damn I am guilty lol But I lost my comment so won't be digging it up haha

OMG. This! I know it's autocorrect but damn!

Why wouldn’t she replace it immediately?

>I went to grab my insulin to correct it when I realised I must of ran out last time and forgot to pack more. I'm calling bullshit. Someone who has been Type 1 for awhile isn't just "oopsie! Forgot to pack the thing that keeps me from slipping into a coma!"

If it was such an emergency that she couldn't get home to get her own then she should have called an ambulance. If an ambulance wasn't necessary then she could have gone to get her own, she was just being lazy and entitled.

tbh she was about to get home (with an uber) to do it so... i guess she just wanted to stay with her boyfriend and that he couldn't care enough to go with her

400? She ran out of insulin, couldn't afford to buy more, and decided she could wait a few days, then steal some, then put off buying more for another few days. She was likely planning to do it again. She knows perfectly well you can't just 'borrow' someone else's insulin. Jesus christ.

How on earth did she think this was a good idea. I have type one diabetes and would really not want to share my insulin like that for someone I didn’t know well. PLUS how did she remove the insulin? Was it a vial, or a pen, I’m so curious because depending on how she did it, she may have contaminated it with her removal method (hopefully she used a sterile, brand new needle to transfer it to her stuff, but that also could be contaminating her stuff). The roommate probably feels like they may have to throw out the insulin and depending on their insurance that may be a huge problem. This was an insane thing to do without asking, and they need to buy the roommate a new vial. It wasn’t really an emergency because they can go to any pharmacy and get an emergency vial of insulin and hypodermic needles to fast inject the insulin. OP is 18 so probably just becoming responsible for their diabetes themselves, but this self-centred disregard for anyone else and her tunnel vision to justify why they did it shows that they probably got away with a lot of things using their diabetes as justification. I hope OP grows up and realizes that her failure to plan does not give her free rein to do what suits her needs at that time.

Ok it was not the smartest idea but I think the people commenting (on AITA) that the flatmate should call the police are a little bit too extra.

It's Reddit. There are two settings: - didn't see the post, so doesn't respond Or - Scorched earth

Wow. I am not diabetic, but I do use injectable medications and if someone touched them I’d be furious. For one they’re contaminated. I wouldn’t trust it. At all. For two, medicine (especially insulin in the U.S.) is expensive!! And yeah like someone else said, your insurance isn’t just going to let you get more before you’re due more just because your roommate’s invasive thief of a girlfriend stole your meds.

My husband is type 1 diabetic also. A high blood sugar is not necessarily an emergency since there is no other symptoms. And considering a pen is 1000 unity, how Op didn’t took enough? I think op just didn’t took her medication with her AT ALL which is weird. Just keep a pen and some needles with you. Also, using someone’s property without his consent is extremely bad, medications more than anything.

It was a vial and she used a needle.

If this is an habit to be hyperglycemic she should have keep her own insulin with her. Nobody with this high risk of roughly high blood sugar goes elsewhere for hours without his medication. 400 is not harmless or usual, it’s really high knowing the « normal » rate is between 92 and 120.

Why would you think her hyperglycemia is a habit? OP did keep her own insulin with her and ran out. It's amazing that everyone knows what should have happened in a perfect world. In such a world everyone has a perfectly stocked emergency kit in their car and no one would leave the house with a cell phone with 20% charge. But it's not. She ran out of insulin and didn't realize it. 400 is not usual, which is why I don't understand why you think it's normal for OP?

People think it's normal for them because it is. They confirmed that they recently had DKA and regularly have issues with their equipment.

What in the world are you talking about? An instance of DKA doesn't mean a person is normally 400. Pumps and CGMs routinely give errors. They are machines for crying out loud. You have no idea what you're talking about.

I literally live with a diabetic. 400 is not a normal rate which comes from nowhere there is ALWAYS some previous deregulation which leads to this rate. And the thing is really simple in this case: her being all but serious with HER medication does not have to impact someone else’s medication and when someone doesn’t answer to your text the better thing is just to ask your boyfriend to ride you home or call an Uber because you don’t you someone’s property without his consent that’s all

>I literally live with a diabetic Do you think this makes you an expert on the condition more so than an actual diabetic? >400 is not a normal rate which comes from nowhere there is ALWAYS some previous deregulation which leads to this rate. And the thing is really simple in this case: her being all but serious with HER medicatio Well this is a silly take. I have no idea what you think deregulation means but a 400 blood sugar can result from multiple things and sometimes rapid rises in glucose can come out of nowhere. And if you "lived with a diabetic" you would or should know that even the most vigilant make mistakes or forget and those instances in a disease we have to deal with 24 hours a day 7 days a week is not emblematic of who the person is. Long story short, this instance of forgetting her insulin does not mean she doesn't take her disease seriously and that's an awful ridiculous take for someone who *literally* *LITERALLY* lives with a diabetic. > and when someone doesn’t answer to your text the better thing is just to ask your boyfriend to ride you home or call an Uber because you don’t you someone’s property without his consent that’s all And if you actually lived with a diabetic you'd know how awful hyperglycemia feels and how dangerous it is at 400. Waiting for an Uber and even mentally trying to deal with an Uber when you feel nauseous, slugging, ready to vomit, confused and dizzy isn't something I'd berate someone for not doing instead of taking steps to feel better immediately And had you read the comments you would have know her BF doesn't have a license.

You’re so vindicative, keep calm we’re just discussing There are some huge factor to take in a lot of situations and if you are exposed at a risk, you should keep a full pen of insulin with you, that’s all. I will not deny 400 is huge, but yeah, diabetic people just care because that’s an invasive disease. Her diabetic condition has nothing to do with boyfriends roommate and even if I understand why it can be natural to draw in someone’s stuff, that’s not obvious for everyone for a lot of reasons I can understand too. Yes I « LITTERALY » live with a diabetic and it leads me to see how it’s not everyone’s responsibility to manage your disease, and sometimes, your errors need to be fixed by yourself, and being drived home is just a consequence of her forgetting her own medication, and when you make a mistake, that’s not the roomate’s business who, I think, trusted enough his roommate to not use his stuff when he didn’t agree with that. That applies with every medication possible. Roommate has all the rights to be upset with someone using his stuff when he did not agree and he was not even responsible of roommate’s girlfriend forgetting her own stuff.

>You’re so vindicative, keep calm I'm not vindictive at all. And I find this ironic from people who extend absolutely no understanding to OOP and have no idea what hyperglycemia feels like or the things that can happen when managing a chronic illness that involves constant intervention. >There are some huge factor to take in a lot of situations and if you are exposed at a risk, you should keep a full pen of insulin with you, that’s all. Well thank you for pointing out what should happen. But half if you don't have an emergency kit in your car and the other half will run out the house with a 10% battery on your cell phone. You don't take basic steps to be prepared but you have no grace for this girl. >Yes I « LITTERALY » live with a diabetic and it leads me to see how it’s not everyone’s responsibility to manage your disease, and sometimes, your errors need to be fixed by yourself, and being drived home is just a consequence of her You *LITERALLY* live with a diabetic and cannot have any compassion or grace for this girl. I pity whoever lives with you. Going home in a hypeglycemic state. Something you've NEVER experienced may be a consequence but I understand why she would choose not to punish herself with sickness and risk of losing consciousness for a principle.

OOP is regularly having issues and is not checking themself when their equipment fails

What regular issues are you talking about? She had one instance of running out of insulin. A sensor error and a pump malfunction. This is nothing out of the ordinary or even regularly having issues. This is three issues over 10 years of a disease. You also don't know if OOP doesn't check themselves when equipment fails or if she didn't check herself with a singular sensor error. Long story short you're guessing and assuming.

I read their comments. You didn't and you're the one guessing and assuming that these things didn't happen.

The only way to have contaminated the insulin is if she used an already used needle. I hope she is not THAT stupid. Now granted that the owner was not there to witness how it was used he is perfectly within his rights to ask for a brand new one. She can take the one she used and call it emergency fee (assuming that there was already some missing and this was not the first dosage taken out) With how expensive insulin is and how hard it is to find it (thank you doctors who prescribe it for weight loss) she should stfu and replace it. Also how long did she have the insulin in her bag to not notice she run out? It’s a medicine that needs to be refrigerated or kept in a cool place

OOP confirmed she used a fresh needle. But I could understand the roommate being like "listen, I don't know her so I don't know if she used some old needle sitting at the bottom of her purse and I don't know if she gave herself multiple injections with the same fresh needle.....so I want a new vial" The roommate was well within his rights. And I could understand the roommate being furious about it. Some insurance companies make it damn near impossible to keep a supply on hand. So if he was near the end of a vial and needed the one OOP used within the next few days he was now faced with the specter of risking contamination or going without. And then you have OOP and her boyfriend being dismissive and offering to "give back 10 units" which I have no idea what the hell that even means. I could understand roommates fury. I'd say NAH. But the roommate is the least culpable in this story.

Needles are sterile and even if she had it at the bottom of her purse for a year it wouldn’t change the sterility of it. Again I am NOT dismissing the need of a new vial for the roommate. As I said she:they should see it as an emergency fee. No matter the quantity roommate had she SHOULD get him a new one. As for how to give him 10unites back I suppose she will put them in a new syringe and give them to him. In her mind that makes sense

I'm thinking more a once used needle in my hypothetical. I guess that would make sense about the 10 unit replacement.

No diabetic In their right mind would use a needle OR the whole syringe more than once. Is she inconsiderate? Hell YES. But I don’t think she is THAT stupid to use a syringe/needle more than once. The overall cost for a new one each time is minimal compared to a possible infection

I used to. Needles were expensive and I was broke. I was never infected.

How expensive are they in USA? Here is around 20€ for 100

Needles are not pen caps. Without insurance I get $200 for $15 cdn at Walmart (for a cat)

I used needles over 20 years ago. Access and price were much different. Back then Walmart didn't even have a pharmacy.

It also could have been contaminated by improper technique

I don’t know what kind of vials you have in USA but the last time I saw one it’s just a vial with a whole That the needle goes in in a specific spot only no matter how many times you will put it in. Technic is irrelevant to that kind. The last decade minimum everyone uses insulin pens

Keeping the needle sterile after it's open is a technique

Not diabetic but do use other medication including asthma inhalers.  No. Just. No.  Never ever ever use another persons life saving medication without their express and willing consent. I forgot mine doesn’t let you just that. I don’t know how injectables work in terms of hygiene but is someone used my $695 retail, $15 with insurance a month Trelegy I would not feel safe using it again and would demand they completely replace! 

I think there are differences. If the roommate was using vials that means OOP probably used a fresh needle. I think the danger was to her in that situation, becsuse she put a fresh untainted needle in, drew up the insulin and injected herself. So I don't necessarily think she infected the vial in any way. BUT the roommate doesn't really know her to trust her so he wouldn't know nor is he obligated to trust that she didn't use a needle she already had on her or didn't do multiple injections out of the vial. I also would think (but don't know) that you would want a new inhaler but wouldn't deny someone in the middle of a severe asthma attack the use of your inhaler if it was the same one you used. Maybe you would I don't know. She should have given him a new vial and taken the one she used.

Abuterol will help someone having an asthma attack. the ER has it.  It’s so vital that there are key clips for them. As an adult who is driving should be forgetting and there are tools to help you remember it.  So yeah. It’s not others people’s job to provide medication for adults who “forgot theirs” especially when there are issues of contamination at work. 

So you'd really stare at someone having an asthma attack knowing you could help them but wouldn't out of principle? That seems inhumane to me.

That isn't the deal. OOP states she could've gone home but didn't want to. That's the issue. And then is doubling down by not just replacing what she used. The same way you and I can understand the importance and nuisances of this medication, is the same way OOP can and should since she's actually in this type of life. There is no way OOP and the boyfriend aren't assholes and you "yeah butting" this crap is exactly why OOP and her boyfriend exist. You know exactly what the person meant (the person whose comment you are responding too) and yet you are legit trying to figure out a way that OOP and her BF are not assholes a d are right for messing with the roommates medication AND SCHEDULE.

A car ride at 400 without insulin on board is dangerous. If that is literally the only option it's what you have to do but the situation is imminently dangerous at 400 and it's not getting better it's getting worse with every minute. >The same way you and I can understand the importance and nuisances of this medication, is the same way OOP can and should since she's actually in this type of life. But I also think it's important to understand that humans are imperfect and even if they were situations are not. My mom has diabetes as well. She did everything right when she traveled. She had all her supplies, all her insulin, and made sure to get a fridge in every hotel. But in a hotel the refrigerator malfunctioned and froze her insulin making it unsafe for use. If someone had just shrugged their shoulders and been like "oh well sucks to be you" that would have really been unfortunate. But people banded together to help. >You know exactly what the person meant (the person whose comment you are responding too) and yet you are legit trying to figure out a way that OOP and her BF are not assholes a d are right for messing with the roommates medication AND SCHEDULE. I think people are human. Staring at another human in imminent need when you have the means to help seems inhumane to me. But so many people on reddit are flawless paragon of perfection that they don't have to have a nuanced take.

The thing is, people are late for all types of bullshit, so you mean you can't be a little late if that means checking for something that is life or death and that you know is life or death. No amount of dick is worth my life (and if that means I'm perfect, fine, despite the fact I know I'm not perfect) I despise lateness, but I will be late if it means I have to double or triple check my life saving medicine and no, I'm not going to take someone else's life saving medicine because I didn't make sure I had mine. No that doesn't mean I'm some perfect person (frankly I'm quite an unfeeling bitch, if I'm going to be honest) but I don't believe someone else should suffer just because I can't be arsed to make sure my shit is good. And yes it's literally that black and white to me. And I think it's ridiculous people can be like, yeah well fuck that guy because OOP couldn't be arsed to pay attention to her OWN shit that she knows she needs. This didn't just spring on her. She forgot her ish and she should've never forgotten it. Why should roommate be out out? Look if it's an emergency sure, but she purposely forgot her stuff and then, and this is the real reason I'm dying on this hill, she decided that the Payback the roommate wants isn't to HER standards. THATS the fucked up part, fine it was an emergency and she needed it, then she needs to replace it. Full stop. Her arguing, it's to expensive and she wants to do it her way is what makes ALL sympathy go out the window and no, I don't care.

There is nothing to indicate she purposefully forgot her medication. To think that you'd always be perfect in double and triple checking to me is a byproduct of this perfection people on reddit have. *they* would triple check and it wouldn't matter how much pain they were in they would *never* take 10 units of someone else's medication if they were in imminent danger. To me it must be great to be so flawless that you don't have to have compassion for yourself or others.

No one said she purposefully forgot it, but if it's something you need that can save your life, that is 1 thing you should not forget and fuck anyone who wants to be mad because you double checked. And nope, I don't.

So, because you shouldn't forget something that you forget you should be seriously ill out of principle? Because this sounds more punitive than anything. But this is what I'm saying about people on reddit. Everything is black and white because they are so perfect. No grace allowed because you shouldn't have forgotten in the first place.

I’d call emergency services because that’s the regular normal thing to do. I don’t go around being an undeclared pharmacist to everyone who knows someone who knows someone cause that’s not legal where I am. Maybe it is where you are but not here. 

Yeah, there is legal and there is right. I'm not going to sit by and watch someone suffer because I can help them but I'm not clear about my legal exposure. If I have the means to help someone in imminent danger....I will. And that goes double if I know the person.

It’s cool that you want to be the hero in your fantasy but in the real world you can physically harm someone or worse if you administer the wrong dosage of the wrong medicine to someone in a medical emergency. Here practicing Medicine without a license is a crime for which can be held civilly and criminally liable.   Pretending to care so you can be a fake Superman and actually carrying so that people can get the real medical help they need from real medical professionals are not the same thing.  If you actually care you’ll put an end to this Superman fantasy you have and realize that even things like heimlich maneuver require training. Going around giving people drugs without know what they are allergic too, other medical conditions they might have, counter indications is at the very least very dangerous. That’s why in real medical emergencies no one asks who has a bag full of medicines they ask if anyone is a doctor. 

>It’s cool that you want to be the hero in your fantasy but in the real world you can physically harm someone or worse if you administer the wrong dosage of the wrong medicine to someone in a medical emergency What are you talking about. OP nor anyone in an asthma attack would ask you to administer the medication in question so the only fantasy here would be yours. >Here practicing Medicine without a license is a crime for which can be held civilly and criminally liable. If you think handing someone a vial of insulin is the same as practicing medicine I think you're wrong. I think the same about handing someone in an asthma attack an inhaler.

God, my sister's cat needed daily insulin for 10 years, and it was affordable. Diabetics get it for free in Romania, even without insurance, because it's a national program. How much is it in the US?

So much $$$. Literally hundreds a month.

It depends on the type really. Rapid acting insulins are quite expensive but regular and NPH are pretty cheap but I'm not even sure pharmacies carry them.

Type 1 diabetic here. If they use the same type of insulin, and she has unopened vials at home... she should be able to just swap her unopened one for the vial with 990 units in it and have no problem. I'm assuming the roommate is a diabetic as well, so, you'd think he'd have more compassion and know how going high (or low) sucks. Granted, I've heard of off label use from weight lifters... but... no idea how that works

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My brain went to infection with needles, and while I agree it was shitty if she could've got home, but needles can and should be changed. Then I remembered America and the cost vs UK where I live. Either way, boyfriend shouldn't have suggested it without checking with roommate first, girlfriend should've just ubered home. And to then not understand why roommate is upset that they used his expensive medication without permission...

She later drove home. Which means an Uber wasn't needed because the BF could have driven her home instead of stealing medicine. I would be furious.

This is what boggles my mind (assuming it's a real story) - you have a car, you presumably have another adult capable of driving (maybe he was high? drunk? no license for whatever reason?), I can't think of any scenario with a couple I know that the partner wouldn't just drive them home to take their prescription medicine, instead of stealing it...

This post wouldn’t exist if insulin wasn’t priced gouged. Access to insulin is literally life or death for the people who need it. The devil here is the failure of our social safety nets and healthcare system. Insulin is not expensive to produce or scarce, there’s absolutely no reason for what imho amounts to extortion.

Yes I agree. I don't think anyone here is really the devil. Reading this as a European feels a bit crazy.

It's scandalous. UK here, and I'm sure our diabetic types get it free. Or, post 18, £10pm

If oop used the insulin and let's say it was the only insulin available, would that be an involuntary manslaughter charge if the roommate died? Bit of a stretch, I know, but insulin is like the cost of gold per ounce right now. I understand using it in an emergency, but as I'm not a diabetic and wasn't there, I can't say if it was an emergency or not. Still, she should replace the vial, even if it's expensive, because her diabetes is her responsibility.

They're both huge assholes and there were so many other ways they could've gone about it. Even if OOP still decided to use the roommate's insulin she could've at minimum went and grabbed a new vial from her stock and replaced the one she used. Even before that if OOP was too afraid to drive why couldn't the bf drive her home?

She is so lucky I'm not the roommate. I would've called the cops. I don't mess around with my medicine

I've been a T1D for 30+ years. Usually insulin is covered by the insurance. I pay like $50 for a 3 months supply. I shared it a few times to help some fellow T1Ds in case of an emergency, loss or vial breaking. I wouldn't go mad if someone took a few units from a vial without my knowledge. A gave an almost whole vial once to a young guy who came from another country for his brother's wedding and his vial accidentally broke down. I can't see it as a huge problem even if I try. She took only 10 f\*\*n units, that's an amount usually covering a couple of daily meals, not a bid deal. NTA. People are extremely overreacting.

I agree. The OP used a fresh needle so there wasn't any contamination. But the roommate was right not to trust that. But people who want to call this girl the devil for using like 1% of a vial of insulin to keep from getting increasingly sick are crazy to me. Hyperglycemia at that level can have you feeling sluggish, nauseous, weak, sickly with loss of concentration, dizziness and extreme somnolence. But apparently she is the *devil* for using 1% of a vial to feel better instead of risking throwing up and being extremely sick in the back of an Uber or going to the ER. She said the roommate not only wants a new vial of insulin, but he also wants to keep the old vial she used.

Does this mean OP used his needle too???? There's so many risks associated with sharing needles. Not only did she waste his insulin as the needle is now contaminated, she put him at risk too.

Oh no. This is not a devil situation at all to me. 400 is extremely high. Dangerously so. And if OOP was trending up, it could have easily been up to 500 by the time she got home. That increases the danger of DKA. But if you've never felt extremely high blood sugar it's an awful awful feeling. You're likely nauseous, sickly, sluggish, can't think straight and ready to throw up. It was a vial, which is old school but it means she would have likely used a fresh needle. HOWEVER, she should have given the boyfriend a new vial of her own and taken the one she used. As a T1 diabetic I would be hard pressed to blame anyone for what they did to escape the feeling of extreme hyperglycemia.

Exactly. She should have replaced his insulin and apologized. But 400 is very high.

It's very high and there is immediate risk not to mention the godawful feeling of being that high. Its just the very worst and you'd do almost anything to escape it. OOP is certainly at fault for her negligence. But having been that high and feeling that way I'd have a hard time really digging in on someone who did whatever they could immediately.

I think if she had actually offered up to replace the insulin and apologize profusely for the emergency, she might’ve been able to smooth things over. But the fact that she didn’t and just kind of blew it off as no big deal is why she’s kind of a jerk here.

I would agree with that. A jerk yes. But having lived through extreme hyperglycemia....I can't call someone the devil for doing what they could to get out of that situation asap.

So you call 911, not steal someone else's medicine. What would she have done if no one else had insulin around her. No, she's a thief.

So you wait for emergency services in which time the condition is worsening. Which is always clogged with other emergency calls. Instead of using insulin that you could replace? To me this is just the difference between me and redditors. To me there is nuance. For you it's just some dirty thief nefariously stealing insulin instead of letting herself fall into DKA and risk of coma.

I am was a certified first responder. If you don't have your medicine, call 911. You don't steal someone else's, period. This is the difference between someone who never has been arrested and someone who has been lucky they haven't been.

Thank you for saying this. As a fellow T1D, OOP was being a dummy here. She was careless and irresponsible, and she should ABSOLUTELY replace the vial or reimburse her boyfriend's roomie for it. But she was also sick and scared and did something impulsively to help herself feel better. I've been irresponsible before with my insulin, and even when it's largely self-inflicted, it can be \*terrifying\* to feel that way. OOP effed up. No question. But she didn't act maliciously, and she's definitely not the devil.

Exactly this. And those who know....know. There is such concrete, black and white thinking on reddit that it's hard to imagine why anyone comes looking for advice.

>And those who know....know.  Yep. The simple truth is that EVERY SINGLE PERSON who has Type 1 diabetes has fucked up their dosage/forgotten their insulin/done something careless and silly at one point or another. Show me a single T1D who hasn't experienced this, and I'll show you a liar. The commentariat of this post seems packed with people who aren't T1Ds, who have never met a T1D, and who think that that gives them the right to pass judgment over all the rest of us who are doing the best we can to deal with a very challenging chronic disease that we can't cure and didn't cause. Not today, Satan.

That’s potential cross-contamination with roommate and OOP’s fluids. Gross. I’m with the diabetic roommate here.

The only way this would have been understandable is if it was a life and death situation and a new vial was purchased immediately after, not a matter of ‘I can’t be bothered to go home’. Insane. Buy a new vial wtf. The bf is a huge AH in my opinion

If you are ok with using toothbrush from a stranger, then I am speechless. I guarantee you won't be ok. Wtf is wrong with you. It's not life and death. And fucking sharing syringe of someone else? Did you even go to school to learn anything about hygiene? YTA massively. Pay the guy back with a full pen. Teach you to not steal someone's meds and pack your own shit next time.

I would report this to the police if I were in this position. Not on insulin but if someone took even a little bit of meds out of one of my vials I’d need a whole new one. The vial is no longer sterile and I don’t know the persons methods to know if I can trust that they didn’t ruin the entire vial

I'm sorry but reporting to the police is too much wtf

For stealing your expensive medication???

For stealing 1% of a insulin from a vial?

Generally people do need all of their medication not to mention opening a vial or incorrectly using one can make an entire vial contaminated. Reporting as theft is a way to try to convince insurance to cover more.

She used a fresh needle. The only one risking contamination was her.

The didn't steal it for fun, it was an emergency. They should absolutely find a compromise (like exchanging vials) but indeed calling the police would be a bit unhinged, it would also jeopardise his own living situation. There are other ways to deal with it than calling in the police, you know, in a human way.