Just after Type2 diagnosis, I was sent to a "specialist Diabetes" clinic on nutrition, in London where I now live. They had a table full of food. But it was all made of rubber. She pointed to a huge plate of rubber chips and said "How often do you eat a large portion of chips like this?". I explained I stuck to low-carb foods, and never eat chips.
Noticing my slightly Northern accent, she said "But you must do, your from the North"!
I was diagnosed T1 in 1961 and my parents were told there would soon be a cure--I think that it is just said to give you hope--it is human nature after all....................Nurse at the retinopathy clinic after I'd just received the first letter ever saying I had background retinopathy in one eye looking through machine at my eyes.
Nurse: I can see your diabetes has been very bad
Me: My control is good (hba1c turned out to be 6.2 but I didn't know this at the time). Are you going to give me more details about the letter I've received about background retinopathy?
Nurse: You will receive another letter.
(I go to sob in the toilets)
Finally see consultant 6 months later.
Consultant looks at eyes then looks at me and notices I'm wearing glasses.
Consultant: What's your prescription
Me: -8 and -6
Him: and do you have astigmatism?
Me: Yes
Him: That's what came up on the scan you don't have any retinopathy.
I assume she was that rude because I am about 40 years younger than most who attend that clinic because I have type 1 and have had diabetes for considerably longer than most of them too.
Next misdiagnosis. Thoroughly cheerful scanner "yes you've definitely got retinopathy, I'll send these off and if they disagree they'll have an aribtration (I'm a lawyer and my mind starts going through the usual arbitration routes I use and thinking they don't apply) but I'll be right. Then hands me a booklet from RNIB which I interpret to mean I'll be blind by the time I'm 35 (30 at the time) will lose the right to drive (having only passed a year before and started to really enjoy driving). Get very depressed.
Get seen by a doctor in eye hospital about 6 months later. She looks at my eyes and says:
It's just a strong retinal reflex. Sometimes they come up funny on the pictures. There's no retinopathy.
Since those 2 experience I now don't believe a word any scanner or nurse says about my eyes.
My parents were told the 10 year cure thing when I was diagnosed in 1983..... When my friend's brother was diagnosed in 1997 she said to me "it's ok they've said there'll be a cure in 10 years". I didn't have the heart to point out they were already 4 years over on that estimate with me. Whenever I see chuggers at stations trying to raise money for cures for diabetes usually with claims of 10 years I get very very angry and have to give them a wide berth to prevent launching into a diatribe that this is a big lie. IMHO I'm not sure there ever will be a cure because diabetes medication has become such big business it's not in the drug companies' interest to have one. That's my cynical view after 32 years of type 1.
I am told that at every visit........................!!!!Oh. My. God.
Whilst seeing a GP about a diabetes related issue 3 months after diagnosis of type 1:
Me: Can I also get a prescription for more testing strips
GP: How often are you testing?
Me: About 4-6 times a day
GP: That's too much, you've been diagnosed for 3 months now, why are you so pre-occupied with checking?
Me: Maybe I'll test less in the future but I've been asked to check it at every meal and I'm having 2-3 hypos a day still
GP: Well after 3 months you should know what's happening without testing. I'll give you a prescription now, but just because you get free prescriptions doesn't mean these don't cost money. You need to start taking this seriously, if you'd done so you wouldn't need to test by now.
I was so upset I drove all the way home with me handbrake on. Thankfully the next GP I saw wrote an angry email to this one telling her she was wrong and not to say this to anyone else.
I've been mistaken for T2 several times, twice by a consultant. It doesn't inspire confidence when they can't even be bothered to read your notes...I bet she thought you were T2 (having not bothered to read your notes properly)
T2s get this all the time.
haha -- prescriptions for jelly babies , will ask at the GP next appointmentI was on the train to work and a lady sat down next to me in a healthcare assistant uniform. I tested my sugars and notice I am low so have a couple of jelly babies.
women: Aw that's a shame you've got diabetes so young
Me: Its okay I manage it well
Women: On the plus side, atleast you get your jelly babies free on the NHS
There are no words for some people.
I was on the train to work and a lady sat down next to me in a healthcare assistant uniform. I tested my sugars and notice I am low so have a couple of jelly babies.
women: Aw that's a shame you've got diabetes so young
Me: Its okay I manage it well
Women: On the plus side, atleast you get your jelly babies free on the NHS
There are no words for some people.
Absolutely!
That sounds downright illegal!My lab consultant tore it up in front of me telling me I didn't know the details.
Absolutely!
I've heard some uh, amazing things from doctors over the years, but one of the 'best' comments I ever heard was from a receptionist at my GP's surgery, who, as I was saying goodbye, said to me, 'I wish I was diabetic!' Me: you do? Her: yes. Then I'd understand about food and carbs and maybe I wouldn't be so overweight! Me: I didn't gain my knowledge of food and carbs with my diabetes diagnosis, I had to learn about it BECAUSE of my diagnosis, and frankly, I wouldn't wish diabetes on anyone. Her: oh!
That sounds downright illegal!
Cannot believe you would be questioned for testing TOO MUCH! When I was a T1 diabetic (had a kidney/pancreas transplant 9 years ago) I originally had to carry out urine tests only, which were no use whatsoever. Then I moved to blood tests and found that on my regime of twice daily set doses of animal insulin were pretty good and I never needed to test continously. After human insulin was brought in, together with a new regime of a long acting night dose, topped up with fast acting at mealtimes in order to provide me with flexibility and better control, I found I had to test all the time. My bloods would yo yo from high to very low and I suddenly started having more and more hypos with little warning. Looking back, I definitely fared better on animal insulin (I got much more hypo warning) and the more restrictive old regime. My dad who was also a Type 1 also felt the same.I'm Type 1 and have been for about 6 months. I got called into my docs to see the diabetic nurse as the doctor thought I was using too many testing strips. So I go in and sit down:
Nurse: "So how many times do you test a day"
Me: "Depends on what i'm doing that day, what i'm eating, if I'm exercising, if I'm driving etc. But normally 6 - 7 times a day"
Nurse: "Really! so you prick your finger that many times a day."
Me: "Yes"
Nurse: "Doesn't it hurt"
Me: "No, you get used to it, it's just like tying your shoe laces before you go out really."
Nurse: "Are all the tests you do actually necessary? I know a lot of diabetics who test and don't do anything with result"
Me: "Yes it's necessary if I don't want to collapse or die earlier than I want to"
Nurse "I'm just thinking of your fingers really as they must really hurt"
Me: "I'm thinking about not going blind and having my feet amputated but thanks for your concern"
I ended up getting more test strips with each prescription. I honestly think he was an idiot.
Elforado, an almost identical scenario happened to me. I too bad been T1 for approx 20 years but was told I was not permitted to administer my own insulin whilst in hospital for surgery. They then put me on a syringe driver and despite my constant appeals for the nursing staff to check things with my diabetic consultant, they forged ahead and completely screwed up my control. No fast acting insulin had been incorporated into their syring driver. I only realised this when my blood sugars came back very high despite my poor appetite. When my own diabetic guy came to see me he was furious with the mess and told them that in future to listen to the diabetic patient as they are udually experts of their own condition.Some of these comments have given me such a laugh. Well, you have to laugh really, don't you. Unbelievable.
I've been lucky. I haven't heard any similar howlers from doctors, but I did have a bit of a nightmare experience in my local hospital about ten years ago.
I was in for a hysterectomy and it had already been postponed once. On arrival on the ward the staff nurse announced that I couldn't be trusted to control my BG and she demanded my kit, which was taken and locked away. I'd only been diabetic for around 20 years, but never mind. I suppose that when you're a patient you are the responsibility of the hospital. I wouldn't have minded too much if the nursing staff hadn't made such a mess of things. My BG was all over the place.
Just before surgery a nurse appeared and asked me to put on the weird stockings. I was feeling a bit odd and said 'You'll have to do this. I think my BG is too low. What shall I do? Will the surgery have to be postponed?' Obviously it's not ideal to eat just before surgery.
She said something like ' Don't worry. You'll be alright'. And went off somewhere. Never to be seen again. I must have drunk some fruit juice because the surgery went ahead. But they let me go home two days later. I told the doctor what had happened and I think they were worried I'd kick up a fuss so they let me go.
My husband has a friend who is an anaesthesiologist. He told me that diabetics routinely present for surgery with a BG of either 2 or 20. I hope things have improved, but somehow I doubt it.
Some years ago after getting cytomegalovirus I started to experience poor control of my feet and legs. My brain told my legs to move, but they disobeyed! Very quickly, these symptoms became very painful, graduated further and worsened and as I was unable to walk more than a few steps my GP came out to see me. After a quick exam and some tests on my muscles and knee reflex (which was absent), she confirmed I had Guillain Barre Syndrome, an autoimmune condition brought on by my recent virus. Instead of my antibodies attacking the virus, they attacked the myelin sheath around my nerve cells, which stopped messages from my brain getting to my muscles. In other words, my body was becoming paralysed.I once had a very nasty test technician/doctor tell me the reason I had pain in my hands along with swelling was because of my diabetes. I told him I knew LOTS of diabetics and they didn't have this problem - because they didn't type on the !@#$ computer all day with a poor ergonomic set up. He said all my problems were because of my diabetes - including my anger.
Doesn't surprise me. I remember the first ward I worked on as a qualified nurse - one of the consultants used to do his ward round smoking a pipe. He once brought his teenage son with him. The son promptly walked up to a patient and said 'are you one of daddy's minions?' !Almost certainly, but I needed the job and realistically he could have sacked me if I made a fuss. The woman's husband played golf with the consultant hence no admitting paperwork. A nurse told me this later. HR told me I would need a lot more to make anything stick.