pinkfossil
Newbie
I feel like a bit of a fraud now….
My father is diabetic, picked up 15 years ago during a medical exam for a job as a lollypop man with the local council. He maintains that he had no symptoms but within a short time of diagnosis he was having problems with his feet and the outcome is that within 5 years he had lost all his toes and was very close to further amputations due to bone infections following ulcers that were very difficult to heal. He is now 83 years old and, touch wood, appears to be well controlled with diet and drugs although I cannot convince him of the advantages of regular self testing.
Being aware that diabetes can be heredity I have tried to have annual blood tests at my doctors. As a lot of you will be aware, it is much more difficult to get an appointment to see your GP nowadays so I called in Lloyds chemist about a month ago for a free diabetes test. The test was a simple finger prick and it showed a reading of 7.7mmol so I was invited to have a fasting test which came in at 7.2, again with a finger prick. I was advised to see my GP for a proper fasting blood test. I couldn’t get an appointment with my own doctor so saw a locum doctor who referred me to the practice nurse for a fasting blood test. This took a further 3 weeks but no problem, it wasn’t urgent.
During this extended time I have been scouring the internet for information about diabetes and of all the sites I have visited, this one is by far the best & most informative.
The reason I feel a fraud is that my results have come back as ‘normal’ i.e. 5.8mmol which although at the higher end of normal is below pre diabetic so should I even be here on this site. I will answer that myself, YES. I have learned so much about diabetes from this site in the last month that I feel as though I may be able to make the necessary lifestyle changes to keep diabetes at bay for many years if not forever.
I have managed to loose 22 lbs over the last 3 months and intend to continue at a steady 1 ½ lbs a week for the next 12 months. I am treating this scare as a much needed wake up call and intend to continue using this site as a much needed reference in the best way to look after myself.
PS my username, pinkfossil, was bestowed on me many years ago by my lovely daughter who knew that my favourite rock band is Pink Floyd and the fact that she thought I was a bit of a fossil. Funny thing is that many years later she also likes a bit of Pink Floyd and she no longer thinks of me a fossil.
I go on a bit don't I ?
My father is diabetic, picked up 15 years ago during a medical exam for a job as a lollypop man with the local council. He maintains that he had no symptoms but within a short time of diagnosis he was having problems with his feet and the outcome is that within 5 years he had lost all his toes and was very close to further amputations due to bone infections following ulcers that were very difficult to heal. He is now 83 years old and, touch wood, appears to be well controlled with diet and drugs although I cannot convince him of the advantages of regular self testing.
Being aware that diabetes can be heredity I have tried to have annual blood tests at my doctors. As a lot of you will be aware, it is much more difficult to get an appointment to see your GP nowadays so I called in Lloyds chemist about a month ago for a free diabetes test. The test was a simple finger prick and it showed a reading of 7.7mmol so I was invited to have a fasting test which came in at 7.2, again with a finger prick. I was advised to see my GP for a proper fasting blood test. I couldn’t get an appointment with my own doctor so saw a locum doctor who referred me to the practice nurse for a fasting blood test. This took a further 3 weeks but no problem, it wasn’t urgent.
During this extended time I have been scouring the internet for information about diabetes and of all the sites I have visited, this one is by far the best & most informative.
The reason I feel a fraud is that my results have come back as ‘normal’ i.e. 5.8mmol which although at the higher end of normal is below pre diabetic so should I even be here on this site. I will answer that myself, YES. I have learned so much about diabetes from this site in the last month that I feel as though I may be able to make the necessary lifestyle changes to keep diabetes at bay for many years if not forever.
I have managed to loose 22 lbs over the last 3 months and intend to continue at a steady 1 ½ lbs a week for the next 12 months. I am treating this scare as a much needed wake up call and intend to continue using this site as a much needed reference in the best way to look after myself.
PS my username, pinkfossil, was bestowed on me many years ago by my lovely daughter who knew that my favourite rock band is Pink Floyd and the fact that she thought I was a bit of a fossil. Funny thing is that many years later she also likes a bit of Pink Floyd and she no longer thinks of me a fossil.
I go on a bit don't I ?
