How long was I diabetic before I was diagnosed?

Willoughby

Member
Messages
5
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
I have just been thinking about how long I had D1 before diagnosis and found this interesting thread! I was diagnosed in January 2014, aged 46 . After googling thrush, thirst, blurry vision and weight loss I got myself a urine test and knew I had diabetes before I went to the doctor. The thirst, weight loss and blurry vision were very recent. The initial diabetes 2 diagnosis was changed when, after a week on Metformin, my sugars were still around 19 and later tests confirmed Type 1. After an unsatisfactory few months on mixed insulin, I am now on basal/bolus and my diabetes is now 'under control' with all the usual ups and downs that we are familiar with! My diabetes care has been a bit hit and miss and this forum plus 'Think Like a Pancreas' have been lifesavers. I have recently been wondering how long I had it - and worrying about damage done. On reflection I know I had it for at least 6 months (persistent thrush!) but now I am wondering whether I had it for a lot longer. Symptoms that I now know are associated with diabetes (itchy skin, hard skin on fingers, fatigue) had been around for years and I was reflecting today that the itching has completely gone with good control.

No point worrying though! What does concern me is my very slow digestion and I am wondering whether this too is a diabetes complication. It makes injecting tricky as sugar spikes can occur long after I have eaten. Am going to ask the DN about this at my annual review.
 

Fido78

Well-Known Member
Messages
58
Type of diabetes
LADA
Treatment type
Insulin
Slow digestion could be gastroparesis which is relatively normal in diabetics according to dr Bernstein
 

LucySW

Well-Known Member
Messages
1,945
Type of diabetes
LADA
Treatment type
Insulin
It could be that - I think you can test - but the good news is, as Bernstein says, if it is gastroparesis, it will fix itself if you get BGs down to true normal and keep them there. Really, really motivating !
 

ickihun

Master
Messages
13,698
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Insulin
Dislikes
Bullies
I had symptoms at the age of 6. I was diagnosed when I changed drs at the age of 32. Hum... still not happy about the drs in 70s ignoring symptoms. Mother had me constantly at doctors but brushed off.
Well I've been on insulin for a year and its been a struggle.
At least I can say I'm part of a community which fight to stay healthy no matter how many bad vibes anti type 2s gives me.
 

young_man

Newbie
Messages
2
Hi guys i am really confused here. Whenever I get a cold or infection my blood sugar levels shoot up and then i go to the toilet like 5-6 times a day. I recently had a uti and was going to the bathroom a lot with smelly urine. My parents always tell me i don't drink enough water and always have dark pee, i have allergies as well which would explain my dry skin, but this has been a problem since I was a kid! I am 29 now. I go to the bathroom less now after the uti is getting better (still smelly pee if i don't drink much water). I generally don't ahve much tolerance to sugary things which decreases with age, but both my parents are like that and hardly eat any sugar. In their blood tests they both have high blood sugar but are not diabetic. Is it possible I simply do not have much tolerance to sugar naturally? Today I only drank around 2-3 glasses of water and went to the bathroom 3 times a day. Surely a diabetic person would go more than that? I have lost 2-3 kilos over the past month or so but now am gaining it back again, my weight has been stable for the past 8 years.
My mouth usually feels dry but i do not feel like i am dying of thirst that has been a symptom for years and i put it down to allergies, usually feel much better after antihistamines. I have blurry vision if i provoke it since 18, but i had many eye tests and all doctors say all is well, except of course my short-sightedness.

I find that if I look after myself I feel in the best of health. I was wondering if i am diabetic but really confused about it. What I do in my life is now I just avoid sugary things as much as possible and get on with it. I have no problem-consuming things like milk, its the added sugar things like soda that get me all weird!
I have had blood tests when I was a kid which showed everything to be normal (they did say my urine was very concentrated and to drink more water!)
It will be interesting if i am eventually diagnosed as diabetic, so this could be a case of the slowest LADA ever as I have had some of these symptoms for around 10 years now!
 

MikeTurin

Well-Known Member
Messages
564
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
I am a blood donor. Some exams like the fasting BG were borderline but cholesterol was out of spec. My GP sent me to a specialist visit for cholesterol, then I was put on statines with very generic dieting advices. Cholesterol gone down but fasting BG was around 5,5 5,6.
My GP wasn't concerned. Then I had a period where i gained weight rapidly because I was always hungry, got blurry vision, peeing a lot, and at a donation they sent me a letter with a fasting BG level of 15. Meanwhile I got a new GP, he looking at my older exams said I probably was prediabetic for years.

So I was prediabetic for at least five years before and with full uncontrolled diabetes for six month, at least.

I am lucky to being a blood donor.
 
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young_man

Newbie
Messages
2
I am a blood donor. Some exams like the fasting BG were borderline but cholesterol was out of spec. My GP sent me to a specialist visit for cholesterol, then I was put on statines with very generic dieting advices. Cholesterol gone down but fasting BG was around 5,5 5,6.
My GP wasn't concerned. Then I had a period where i gained weight rapidly because I was always hungry, got blurry vision, peeing a lot, and at a donation they sent me a letter with a fasting BG level of 15. Meanwhile I got a new GP, he looking at my older exams said I probably was prediabetic for years.

So I was prediabetic for at least five years before and with full uncontrolled diabetes for six month, at least.

I am lucky to being a blood donor.
I think genetically some people are more predisposed to being diabetic. Both my parents hardly eat any sugar, so I will just follow their example and see how i get along. Both parents also have high cholestrol and blood pressure, so I guess I just have to be careful with my health generally and avoid the diabetes in the first place (if i can). I think it is no coincience the diabetes rates are shooting up all over the world, and I think type 1.5 is having a prevalance due to bad diet while type 1 pure is purely autoimmune/genetic. I may even be diabetic without needing insulin, I guess I will find out over the coming years, but I feel controlling diet may slow its prevalence.
 

ickihun

Master
Messages
13,698
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Insulin
Dislikes
Bullies
I've just noticed this is in the type1 section so over to type1s for their imput.
 

Fruitella

Well-Known Member
Messages
304
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Insulin
Hi guys i am really confused here. Whenever I get a cold or infection my blood sugar levels shoot up and then i go to the toilet like 5-6 times a day. I recently had a uti and was going to the bathroom a lot with smelly urine. My parents always tell me i don't drink enough water and always have dark pee, i have allergies as well which would explain my dry skin, but this has been a problem since I was a kid! I am 29 now. I go to the bathroom less now after the uti is getting better (still smelly pee if i don't drink much water). I generally don't ahve much tolerance to sugary things which decreases with age, but both my parents are like that and hardly eat any sugar. In their blood tests they both have high blood sugar but are not diabetic. Is it possible I simply do not have much tolerance to sugar naturally? Today I only drank around 2-3 glasses of water and went to the bathroom 3 times a day. Surely a diabetic person would go more than that? I have lost 2-3 kilos over the past month or so but now am gaining it back again, my weight has been stable for the past 8 years.
My mouth usually feels dry but i do not feel like i am dying of thirst that has been a symptom for years and i put it down to allergies, usually feel much better after antihistamines. I have blurry vision if i provoke it since 18, but i had many eye tests and all doctors say all is well, except of course my short-sightedness.

I find that if I look after myself I feel in the best of health. I was wondering if i am diabetic but really confused about it. What I do in my life is now I just avoid sugary things as much as possible and get on with it. I have no problem-consuming things like milk, its the added sugar things like soda that get me all weird!
I have had blood tests when I was a kid which showed everything to be normal (they did say my urine was very concentrated and to drink more water!)
It will be interesting if i am eventually diagnosed as diabetic, so this could be a case of the slowest LADA ever as I have had some of these symptoms for around 10 years now!
See your doctor if you think you may be diabetic. Blood sugars for non diabetics do rise after eating or drinking lots of sugary stuff but this does not mean they are diabetic. And get into the habit of drinking more water.
 
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AlexMagd

Well-Known Member
Messages
184
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
I am a blood donor. Some exams like the fasting BG were borderline but cholesterol was out of spec. My GP sent me to a specialist visit for cholesterol, then I was put on statines with very generic dieting advices. Cholesterol gone down but fasting BG was around 5,5 5,6.
My GP wasn't concerned. Then I had a period where i gained weight rapidly because I was always hungry, got blurry vision, peeing a lot, and at a donation they sent me a letter with a fasting BG level of 15. Meanwhile I got a new GP, he looking at my older exams said I probably was prediabetic for years.

So I was prediabetic for at least five years before and with full uncontrolled diabetes for six month, at least.

I am lucky to being a blood donor.

Are you saying you got tested as a blood donor? I wasn't aware they did any tests like that - I give blood every 12 weeks and have definitely been diabetic during for over a year before my diagnosis in the summer.
 

TheBigNewt

Well-Known Member
Messages
1,167
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
Are you saying you got tested as a blood donor? I wasn't aware they did any tests like that - I give blood every 12 weeks and have definitely been diabetic during for over a year before my diagnosis in the summer.
I can't donate blood because of diabetes. But I don't think the blood donation place screens you for it, they probably ask you. Maybe Type 2's can donate blood?
 

Bluetit1802

Legend
Messages
25,216
Type of diabetes
Type 2 (in remission!)
Treatment type
Diet only
and I think type 1.5 is having a prevalance due to bad diet while type 1 pure is purely autoimmune/genetic. I may even be diabetic without needing insulin, I guess I will find out over the coming years, but I feel controlling diet may slow its prevalence.

Perhaps you are unaware that type 1.5 is in reality type 1. It is late onset type 1 and therefore is an auto immune disease, nothing to do with diet, and is slow to develop. Because of this, it is often the case that insulin injections may not be required for a period of time. It is not the same disease as type 2 although frequently misdiagnosed as T2.
 

MikeTurin

Well-Known Member
Messages
564
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Are you saying you got tested as a blood donor? I wasn't aware they did any tests like that - I give blood every 12 weeks and have definitely been diabetic during for over a year before my diagnosis in the summer.
From what I have understood they always test for some parameters and antibodies, and every six months or year (if all seems ok) they run more tests to verify you don't are developing other conditions and they send you a letter with the exams results.
 

Bluetit1802

Legend
Messages
25,216
Type of diabetes
Type 2 (in remission!)
Treatment type
Diet only
Are you saying you got tested as a blood donor? I wasn't aware they did any tests like that - I give blood every 12 weeks and have definitely been diabetic during for over a year before my diagnosis in the summer.

I don't believe he lives in the UK so probably different rules.
 

MikeTurin

Well-Known Member
Messages
564
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
I can't donate blood because of diabetes. But I don't think the blood donation place screens you for it, they probably ask you. Maybe Type 2's can donate blood?
You can donate blood if you aren't using insulin or other pills that could cause hypoglicemy AND you have a controlled diabetes with a low hba1c. So basically if you are a Type 2 you could donate if you are stubborn like me.
Noticed that now that I was reading the T1 section.