Am i diabetic? Please help?

[abidan]

I really need some advice from people who are in the know as i am a little worried.
here goes:
I am 34 and 15 weeks pregnant, just in case this has a bearing i have been on prednislone steriod as i have thyroid antibodies, i am not hypothyroid and have a normal TSH level but they put me on levothyroxine as for pregnancy and conception they like to see the TSH level below 2 and mine was 2.7. ANYHOW, i know that prednislone raises blood gloucose and they told me to be aware of this. Now i wasnt feeling great around week 10 of pregnancy and have felt on and off shaky and weak since but kind of put it down to pregnancy. However i had some gloucose urine testing strips from a few years back when i thought i would test myself as part of health check and thought hmmm now is the time to get some use of them as i am pregnant and on prednislone.
Ok so the midwife has done the usual early morning urine test strips to check for protien and gloucose at 11 weeks and it came back clear, however, when i use my own tests at home with my first morning urine after noteating for between 8-12 hrs they do seem to come back as the negative colour. To my shock though when i had my breakfast the other day about 2 hrs after eating i did a test and it came back really brown! Like towards the top end of the scale for a paotive reading. I have not had that since and i would say after eating (2hrs later) on a scale of 1-5, 5 being the worst my readinfs come back level 2 on the colour chart suggesting at least 250+ in my urine.
When the reading came back brown near top end of the scale for breakfast 2 hrs before a small glass of prune juice, a small glass of fresh orange, (thinking i should be healthy as pregnant!) a bowl of cornflakes with a table spoon of sugar and a coffee with half a sugar. I have since stopped with the fruit juices and sugar just in case and have had brown wholemeal toast mainly.

Now when i test during the say after eating around 2 hrs later, the results are never as bad as a morning after breakfast. They always come back aroing level 2 on the scale if that. What does it suggest if my first morning urince is totally clear it seems, but i seem to have higher than normal levels 2-3 hrs after eating? Is it normal, should i never have any gloucose in my urine ever? Could it just be the prednisole? and if so does any one know how long it will be before my body returns to normal? I tried to speka to my midwife but she is off work this week (she always seem to be unavaliable) i spoke to my drs reception who suggeted as i am under endroconlologist for thyroid to speak to her, i got a message back from endo saying not to worry she is not concerned that it will just e the prednislone and she will see me as planned end of jan.... i am still worried though as thatsa long time away!!

Any adive pleasE, i think i will book to see nurse at drs as i am uncomfortable with being told glucose in urine is ok when pregnant????

 

[totsy]

hi,
i would see your midwife/nurse asap, your strips may be out of date if youve had them a few years hence giving you a false reading,
explain what youve told us all to the nurse and let us know how u get on

 

[abidan]

Yeah i tied to get appointment early this week but they were not interested, seem to be getting fobbed off to be honest, i just rang up and made appointment as i am worried sick and dont want to leave it till after xmas.... i am going to take too samples with me, one early morning urine and one 2 hra after breakfast to show them and also the test sticks

 

[sugarless sue]

The urine test strips will definitely be out of date, they do not have a long usage life.

You really need a blood glucose monitor to test your blood sugar levels properly as urine only shows sugar when the blood sugar is quite high.

The Prednisole will cause high readings which may settle down after you finish them but if you are on them long term you may find that your blood sugars remain raised.

 

[Snodger]

I agree with all that has been said before. Sounds to me as if your test strips may be giving you false positives.
I'd agree that getting a blood glucose meter is a good idea, especially if you are having to wait to speak to a health professional and you want to know for sure right now what is going on with your blood sugar. You can buy them from Boots without prescription, so just pop in to the chemist and pick one off the shelf. Make sure you get ones that include a free batch of test strips - most do - and you can then do a couple of days checking before and after meals and see what happens to your blood sugar during the day.
Once you've run out of the freebie batch of strips you WILL need a prescription unless you want to pay a lot of money for more strips. But the freebie batch should give you enough to at least put your mind at rest, or give you evidence to get health professionals to see you more quickly.
Also, even if your blood sugar IS a bit raised occasionally, it sounds as if it isn't permanently up in the sky, so please don't worry too much. Are you getting any of the other symptoms of diabetes - huge, all-encompassing thirst for example?

 

[abidan]

Thanks guys

Well its difficult to say about symptoms cos thirst and urinating lots etc etc are all pregancy symptoms too haha so i am struggling a little to use sysmtoms. Also i dotn feel great being preg and i have slight thyroid issues so again really difficult. Have appointment with nurse at drs for flu jab and going to take a urine sample for her to check too if she will. I am pretty much off prednislone now, just one more tonight then one 5mg again on sun and thats it, so hopefully it is just that as my endo said too. I have also ordered some more urine strips IN DATE this time as i got them cheap on internet jsut for my own peace of mind to keep an eye on it until i see endo in jan if nurse at drs does not say anything.

Thanks for adivice, i did think of buyin a blood tester but if i am not diabetic it does seem a waste and in my opinion drs should check my gloucose first and give me some idea surely... i mean we pay enough taxes dont we haha

Thanks again

 

[the_anticarb]

A lot of chemists will do a free blood test while you wait, i think Asda may do this but not 100% sure, if they test you and you are within normal range (below 5.9 before a meal, below 7.8 one hour after) then you prob don't have it, if you are above this range then arrange to see your midwife asap for a proper test

 

[totsy]

lloyds do them free to, thats where i went

 

[abidan]

Thanks guys, nurse did lood tet today, get results on monday so lets hope its not too bad, although i have a feeling it wont be great

 

[totsy]

let us know how u get on

 

[abidan]

Hi Guys

Just a quick update, i went to drs and nurse said i did right getting an appointment. She took blood and checked gloucose levels. It came back as 4.4, their scale is classed as normal between 3 and 6. So looks good. Now, my question is, i had only 2 slices of wholemeal toast for breakfast and cup of coffee with no sugar 2.5 hrs before and nothing before that for about 10 hrs. Is this reading good then? Not had chance to speak to nurse yet. Now could my bloods still be bad in any other way? Does this mean i am in the clear or could sugary foods still be causeing a spike. if sugary foods are causing a spike is this not as bad beciase my other reading of 4.4 is classed as ok so it might just be the prednislone that has caused minor problems.

Thaks for your help so far

 

[totsy]

im not an expert but eating two slices of bread and having those levels seems normal to me

 

[Snodger]

Yes, looks pretty normal to me too. To give you an idea - I *am* diabetic and if I ate 2 slices of toast without any medication (insulin), 2.5 hours later my blood glucose would be about 18, 19, or above. And I would be feeling it!

 

[NorthCountryMaid]

Yes, looks pretty normal to me too. To give you an idea - I *am* diabetic and if I ate 2 slices of toast without any medication (insulin), 2.5 hours later my blood glucose would be about 18, 19, or above. And I would be feeling it!

How? Genuine question since I'm new to all this and trying to sort out one set of symptoms from other sets.

 

[sugarless sue]

Early signs of hyperglycemia in diabetes include:

* Increased thirst
* Headaches
* Difficulty concentrating
* Blurred vision
* Frequent urination
* Fatigue (weak, tired feeling)
* Blood sugar higher than you normally are.


Hypoglycemia causes symptoms such as

* hunger
* shakiness
* nervousness
* sweating
* dizziness or light-headedness
* sleepiness
* confusion
* difficulty speaking
* anxiety
* weakness

It can be very difficult sometimes to tell which is which. The only sure way is to test your blood sugar levels when you do not feel well to see what your Bg level is. Many people also feel other symptoms personal to them so it really is something you learn through time by your own experience.

 

[NorthCountryMaid]

Early signs of hyperglycemia in diabetes include:

* Increased thirst
* Headaches
* Difficulty concentrating
* Blurred vision
* Frequent urination
* Fatigue (weak, tired feeling)
* Blood sugar higher than you normally are.

Thanks for list. Unfortunately only one of those (blurred vision) is much of a help (and even then it could be that I've forgotten to change my specs :shock: - smiley looks like wrong specs!).

All the others could easily be one of the other medical problems of longer standing - especially the M.E.

It can be very difficult sometimes to tell which is which. The only sure way is to test your blood sugar levels when you do not feel well to see what your Bg level is. Many people also feel other symptoms personal to them so it really is something you learn through time by your own experience.

Ah yes, testing the blood sugar levels. I spoke to my GP about that, and she was dismissive, I think she said that it would, "not be helpful at this stage."

I'm not sure what that means. It could translate as, "you will probably misunderstand the results and try to do your doctor's job. I will tell you what to worry about, when and what to do about it. Your job is to do as you are told." She knows I'm not good at that (all my teachers, mentors and medical-type advisers have found that out.)

It could translate as, "this practice's funds will have to cover your test kit if you need it, so we decide when you need it." In that case I might feel I have to get a test kit privately and use it for my own personal monitoring.

Or it could just mean that it really won't help at this point. It would be nice to believe that was the case, since it would mean that my natural (strong) desire to avoid the pain, inconvenience and fatigue of regular finger-jabbing will probably win out.

 

[totsy]

i also have m.e,
amongst other problems, i would test if i was a type 2 whether my nurse wanted me to or not

 

[CAT NM]

Hi last year I started to develop urine infections. I was out cold for a day last year and I had pins and needles in my hands and plus toes. I feel like if I eat certain types of food, ie a chocolate orange it makes me feel very tired.

The other day I brought a home testing kit. I just ate healthy, no cholocate. A bean lasagne. I had a reading of 11.8mmol/L. Thus should I be concerned? Last night I had tingling in my toes. I seem to need the toilet a lot just after eating. I am aware that there is impaired glucose tolerance and plus diabetes. After strenuous exercise at times I would see clear spots. I thought that a reading above ten migt not be good. Are there any tips for the glucose monitor? I am thinking maybe I should visit my doctor?

 

[CAT NM]

Plus I get tingling in my hands at times.

 

[CAT NM]

I have felt quite tired lately. I am aware that a relative had Type II diabetes? However 11.8mmol/L was a reading that I had. Thus is this on the way to being diabetic?