- Messages
- 37
- Type of diabetes
- Type 3
- Treatment type
- Insulin
I am sharing my tale in case it is of any comfort or use to someone in a similar position. I am 56 year old guy in fairly good shape weighing 12 stone with BMI in normal range for my age/height/weight. At 50 I took a well man clinic blood test at my GP and was told I could turn type 2 if I didn’t change my diet and lifestyle. At that point I was nearly two stone heavier and not doing as much exercise as I should (my job is largely desk based).
After three months of straight and narrow diet I gradually slipped back into my old ways and carried on for next few years over eating and drinking. My weight would rise to 14 stone at Christmas and I would knock it back by a stone each January through strict diet but it would slowly creep back up over the year.
Two years ago I started to do a lot more exercise in the form of cycling and get my over indulging under control. From this January (2016) I found it much easier to lose weight than previously and quickly got down from 13.5 stone to 12 stone. By luck and out of curiosity in June 2016 I dug out an old blood glucose test kit to see if I was normal (I hadn’t used it in intervening years) and got a big shock which sent me scurrying to the doctors and some blood tests.
These came back with the diagnosis that I was Type 2. I was put on Metformin and started to cut my carbs and do even more cycling in an effort to get my blood glucose down. Alas, the only way to get ’normal’ scores was to nearly starve myself and cycle for miles and miles each day. Something didn’t feel right with the diagnosis to me and my lovely diabetic nurse agreed.
I didn’t seem to have any of the symptoms she expected and started to talk about possibility of Type 1.5. A new set of blood tests were arranged and in August 2016 I was declared LADA Type 1.5.
I was taken off Metformin and inject 4 units of Levemir before I go to bed. I understand this is something called basal insulin and is designed to help out the cells in my pancreas that are gradually being picked off by my auto-immune system.
Interestingly, I have had very few symptoms that could have led me to suspect anything was awry over the last few months. Maybe I was occasionally peeing a bit more at night, a couple of times I gulped down 4-5 pints of beer because I was thirsty and that was it.
Luckily my desk job came to an end and I am able to spend a lot of time exercising. I don’t feel I have found the right diet for me yet but hopefully will get that sorted soon. I am positive, hugely grateful to our wonderful NHS and count myself lucky that this was spotted at all instead of sailing towards a calamity.
If anyone would get comfort from sharing their experience or picking my brains I am more than willing to help.
kind regards,
Chris
After three months of straight and narrow diet I gradually slipped back into my old ways and carried on for next few years over eating and drinking. My weight would rise to 14 stone at Christmas and I would knock it back by a stone each January through strict diet but it would slowly creep back up over the year.
Two years ago I started to do a lot more exercise in the form of cycling and get my over indulging under control. From this January (2016) I found it much easier to lose weight than previously and quickly got down from 13.5 stone to 12 stone. By luck and out of curiosity in June 2016 I dug out an old blood glucose test kit to see if I was normal (I hadn’t used it in intervening years) and got a big shock which sent me scurrying to the doctors and some blood tests.
These came back with the diagnosis that I was Type 2. I was put on Metformin and started to cut my carbs and do even more cycling in an effort to get my blood glucose down. Alas, the only way to get ’normal’ scores was to nearly starve myself and cycle for miles and miles each day. Something didn’t feel right with the diagnosis to me and my lovely diabetic nurse agreed.
I didn’t seem to have any of the symptoms she expected and started to talk about possibility of Type 1.5. A new set of blood tests were arranged and in August 2016 I was declared LADA Type 1.5.
I was taken off Metformin and inject 4 units of Levemir before I go to bed. I understand this is something called basal insulin and is designed to help out the cells in my pancreas that are gradually being picked off by my auto-immune system.
Interestingly, I have had very few symptoms that could have led me to suspect anything was awry over the last few months. Maybe I was occasionally peeing a bit more at night, a couple of times I gulped down 4-5 pints of beer because I was thirsty and that was it.
Luckily my desk job came to an end and I am able to spend a lot of time exercising. I don’t feel I have found the right diet for me yet but hopefully will get that sorted soon. I am positive, hugely grateful to our wonderful NHS and count myself lucky that this was spotted at all instead of sailing towards a calamity.
If anyone would get comfort from sharing their experience or picking my brains I am more than willing to help.
kind regards,
Chris
