after remission question.

My GP (the new one who isnt an idiot)

Has said if I manage to lower enough to be classed as in remission they would test me evey 3 months for 5 years at which point as it stands they would class it as resolved, but she would still have me tested every 3 months to make sure untill the end of days.

No change with my GP after being in control of my T2, I still get subsidised strips, eye tests, podiatrist visits, three month blood tests.

aard said:

For those who have managed to get your diabetes in remission

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Depends on the definition of "remission". If a C-peptide test is normal and insulin resistance is normal (I believe the numerical value of this test has to be one) then that would indeed be "in remission".

Presently my pancreas seems to be producing normal amounts of insulin but my insulin resistance seems to go up and down. I've had very good HbA1c results for some time now because of a low carb diet, but that's not the same as being in remission.

My GO continued to do a once a year HbA1c but that stopped a couple of years ago. I never free testing strips so still buy my own, I still test to ensure my levels remain stable. Even though the GP has declared my diabetes in remission I prefer to consider it as controlled.

I got three tests in the first 6 months, but now I have to ask for Hba1c to be done when I have my annual thyroid check. I am on the list for eye checks, but need to jog the memory at the surgery when I request my annual check.

Depending on the availability of the diabetic nurse my practice likes me to have a blood test and review every 6 months.

When I got my blood sugar levels down to normal and a normal HbA1c my GP said to me at this moment you may not be a diabetic but as far as I am concerned you will always have diabetes, so there was no great change still have eye screening and diabetes reviews on a regular basis.

I have since come to realise he was right but for the wrong reason. as my diabetes was prednisolone induced and I am still taking them I can never truly consider my self in full remission.

JohnEGreen said:

as my diabetes was prednisolone induced and I am still taking them I can never truly consider my self in full remission.

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Although my T2 was not medication induced I consider myself the following which I have posted before in various threads.

According to my GP and a CDE I spoke to at Diabetes Queensland, that there is no such thing a remission or reversed with T2 diabetes in Queensland.

This why I am saying I have my T2 under very good control, now if I start eating rubbish food again I will revert back to where I was nearly three years ago and not under control.

I am a T2 in recovery mode if you like, the same as a alcoholic that has not had a drink for a year or more.

The last lot of blood tests I have had, have slightly higher hba1c readings as it now over six months since I have been off metformin

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Hi @aard

Like many others here, I too reversed my diabetes with diet/exercise about a month after diagnosis but it seems I am still not completely free from the Dr and DN. Though classed as resolved I still have to have blood, eye checks etc. done annually and I suspect that will probably always be the case.

Its odd this whole remission/reversal issue, in a way it actually gave me more trouble than the diabetes diagnosis did. When I was first diagnosed I was shocked, I thought I can't have diabetes, that sort of thing can't happen to me, but surprisingly I wasn’t frightened or troubled by it except for the fact I didn’t believe it could have happened to me. Denial I suppose. The Dr was all very positive saying I had every chance of reversing it, since from a previous blood test he said I could only have had it for one year max, and the best thing was to tackle it as aggressively as possible with diet and exercise.

So that's what I did. I thought I have to get rid of this as quickly as possible, I don’t want anything to do with diabetes and I wanted to distant myself from any connection with it whatsoever as soon possible. More denial! So when I visited my Dr and received the news I had reversed it I was elated, I thought thank God that's that over and done with. So it came as real shock to be told that actually no its not over and done with completely. Having been given a diabetes diagnosis once there is always a high risk of it returning he informed me and would have to be monitored for this and potential complications, probably for life!

It was only then that it really hit me, I can't slice the word diabetes completely out of my life. It will always be there to a more or lesser degree depending on how I live my life. That’s when I became very depressed and felt overwhelmed by it, despite the reversal. I think if this had all been explained to me from the beginning it would have saved me a lot of upset but my Dr was so positive with his talk about reversal I somehow thought I could shrug it off like some temporary ailment. Looking back now I can see I was in total denial!

Anyway, that was then and this is now. I have finally come to terms with the fact that I am a diabetic in remission, but not free from the Dr unfortunately. I have always hated going to the Dr!

aard said:

For those who have managed to get your diabetes in remission, does this mean the NHS stops treating you as diabetic and hence stop monitoring, or do they continue even if your blood levels remain ok for a few years?

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I have been in remission for about 4 years. Remission is not a reversal in my mind as I only have to eat bread and my sugars will go out of sync. I test every morning and I get free strips from the Doc. I have a diabetic MOT every year around my birthday and have a review with the nurse. In my view measurement is what helps me stay on track especially during holiday periods like Christmas when eating habits get upset. Unless you have rock solid glucose readings then a once a year visit to the Drs is probably a necessity.

aard said:

For those who have managed to get your diabetes in remission, does this mean the NHS stops treating you as diabetic and hence stop monitoring, or do they continue even if your blood levels remain ok for a few years?

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I've been in remission for about 4 years. My surgery now just call me in once a year for HbA1c, foot check etc. Having said that, they will help if I need them.