Am I diabetic?

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Flying change

Newbie
Messages
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I am a 49 year old active woman, not overweight but have other pre-existing conditions such as spinal cord compression, old disc injuries to cervical spine, a tarlov cyst at S2, 4cm fibroid in uterus and degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine which has been put down to age.

I started my symptoms four months ago firstly be finding blood in my urine which despite three positive tests carried out by dip sticks at my surgery were dismissed at lab by hospital as they considered them contaminated. No follow up took place.

I have been suffering from pins and needles in the hands for years and urinating as if I had two bladders for years and just put it down to drinking copious amounts of tea and coffee as I was always thirsty.

I have now developed pins and needles In the legs and a warm buzzing sensation which comes and goes. My gp ran bloods and it was flagged with raised blood sugars, ferritin of 5 and low folic serum. I take no medication other than 900mg of Gabaoentin daily. The gp requested a fasting Igt test but due to being anaemic and blood loss ongoing said that it would be dangerous to do a fasting test. On the recommendation of a diabetic type 1 I bought a testing machine and a count if 18.8 reading was taken before food. I ate a sensible dinner at took the reading again - 4.1. Today it has been gradually creeping up, if I eat regularly, say every two hours it stays below 9 but I am still confused that a long gap in between food can give me such a high reading. Any advice would be welcome and whether or not I should go back to my gp
 
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LittleWolf

Well-Known Member
Messages
677
Wow a random reading of over 11 is supposed to be diabetic but my GP doesn't think I am and I've been as high as 24.8. It's because I *also go low* like you. If it happened after dinner that sounds like a reactive hypo. I often feel dizzy around 4. Perhaps you are PREdiabetic or in the early stages of LADA as I suspect in myself..


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charon

Well-Known Member
Messages
201
Type of diabetes
Treatment type
Diet only
The liver and pancreas can get out of kilter with the liver dumping too much glucose into the bloodstream and the pancreas trying to compensate with insulin and ending up with positive feedback. Eventually pancreas damage.
Eating can cause the liver to stop as it expects glucose to come from the food whether or not it does.

Uneducated guess but there are things that could cause what you are seeing.

I would have thought it should be looked at. Problem is that an hba1c might come back negative due to a reasonable average, impaired glucose tolerance might also be negative. Then you would have the difficulty of finding a doctor that understands a reading that high before eating is something odd.

Why weren't your contaminated tests rerun? In tv shows a contaminated test often turns out to be correct just that they don't believe the results - Don't know if that ever really happens.


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F

Flying change

Newbie
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4
Thank you for the replies. So far as contaminated tests are concerned I am referring to urine and not bloods. The gp I saw said it is probably nothing to worry about anyway.
 
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LittleWolf

Well-Known Member
Messages
677
18.8??!

********, it's probably nothing to worry about.

I'm in the same boat as you. Started testing on recommendation of a friend with type 1. HbA1c came back normal, not sure about OGTT but of course the HbA1c levelled out because I had highs AND hypos in 2s and 3s

It WILL be hard to get someone to pay attention because you're not their straightforward diagnostic criteria. I'm 20 which makes my GP think I'm not diabetic. You're older, so don't worry about asserting yourself.

The earlier you find out exactly and can take steps to better preserve yourself... The better, really.

Best of luck x


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B

beetle

Member
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sitting inside on my bum
HI Flying change
OMH such a high reading!!! :shock:
I agree with Little wolf- often docs are just not willing to investigate. They pop u in the "too hard basket" since you are not 'behaving' like everyone else with diabetes e.g have the "right' test results according to the text book.
Like you and litttle wolf I am also on the journey, I have hypos and highs. Both get me into real trouble. The hypo ended in ED and the Hyper nearly in the cop-shop- drug- screen since even though I was not drunk, just high on sugar the cops didnt believe me that I havent taken anything!
As little wolf i look healthy and i breahte and walk-so doc just asume I am overreacting.
Well I dont think so-why should i faint on purpose???????
anyway I changed docs now. At least I found one who has listened and tests me for all sorts of stuff inclusive the GTT.
So thats a start. Now i looked up what to do before the GTT. Apparently u need to eat heaps of carbs 3 days before the test and drink no coffee or alc. I got the info from an endocrinologist ( peer reviewed article) and decided to do as told to ensure the test is valid!
But noone tells u stuff like that.
So flying change: have new urine tests done, or go back and challenge the " contaminated ones" how did they get contaminated? Have u had an IDC or an injury when they took the sample ? Sounds a bit odd. Yeah try to fluff your feathers and demand the tests.
Well look who is speaking :oops: i find that VERY hard too and some docs dont even listen even if you fluff up.
So go and see another doc. Something is wrong. You poor thing -someone needs to check u out.
Good luck. let us know whats happening
Beetle :)
 
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