I've joined this forum to look for advice/reassurance as I'm currently suffering from extreme anxiety - I know members can't diagnose etc!
There is no history of diabetes in my family but one parent is now prediabetic. I've never been diagnosed with diabetes or prediabetes. I'm in my 30s, female, with gastrointestinal conditions, vitamin deficiencies (severely low vitamin D, chronically low B12 (although last bloods were in normal range which I found weird)) and undergoing a lot of psychological stress. I eat a fair amount of sugar but also normal foods. However, I currently have disordered eating and the other day, after having fasted for maybe 14 hours (I'd been awake about 4.5 hours at this point; it was not morning as I work evenings so my 'morning' is actually the afternoon) I felt very cold, a bit dizzy, ears ringing etc and out of curiosity I checked my BG with a finger prick, assuming it would be low - it was 6.4mmol/l (initially it read at 7.5 but I rechecked it twice immediately using a finger prick and thigh prick and it read at 6.2 and 6.4; I was using a dog glucometer though!). After eating a small snack it was still 6.4. I then had a small meal and checked it with a finger prick two hours post-prandially and it was 8.1. After eating the snack the symptoms I was experiencing lessened, and after the meal I definitely felt better/normal, and I knew food would help - surely if I was actually hyperglycaemic food/sugar would make me worse...
A couple of months ago I checked my BG and it was high, but I was getting over a flu-type bug at the time; I rechecked it a week later and it was within normal limits.
I've had my HbA1c checked over the years:
2017 - 31 mmol/mol
2022 - 35 mmol/mol
2023 - 36 mmol/mol
2024 - 34 mmol/mol
2025 - 33 mmol/mol
I don't have signs of diabetes - I mean I have various symptoms that I've had for years but likely attributable to my gastro conditions and vitamin deficiencies, and none of these symptoms have come on recently bar worsening skin quality and taking longer to heal wounds (but I have the vitamin deficiencies and my skin has never been great anyway). I'm struggling with thermoregulation at the moment but I'm pretty sure that's due to the disordered eating (I'm cold all the time; if I eat normally I'm not so cold). I do find I get tired after eating, but I've been that way for many years; I am generally fatigued and I need the loo a lot, but again that's long-standing and I have the other conditions (including a condition affecting my bladder). I wouldn't say I'm abnormally thirsty. I get dizzy fairly often, typically on standing, but this is probably postural hypotension. My resting heart rate is normal but does increase a lot during exertion, my blood pressure has always been normal, I am a normal weight and BMI (my waist is a bad size but I have chronic severe bloating). I maybe struggle to lose weight (I restrict on some days but am not dropping weight at all, but I eat normally some days too). All of these symptoms are long-standing, none are recent. I did have a psychologically stressful day that day and like I said I'm currently undergoing a lot of anxiety (my mental health is the worst its been for a long time) so I'm hoping it's down to stress, recent gastro flare up/inflammation (I think my entire stomach area gets generally inflamed, particularly during a flare up which I had just had), overlong fasting and some kind of rebound hyperglycaemia etc?
Some gentle advice or reassurance would be most welcome as I'm not really mentally able to cope with this. I'm going to recheck my BG in a few days and see what readings I get.
There is no history of diabetes in my family but one parent is now prediabetic. I've never been diagnosed with diabetes or prediabetes. I'm in my 30s, female, with gastrointestinal conditions, vitamin deficiencies (severely low vitamin D, chronically low B12 (although last bloods were in normal range which I found weird)) and undergoing a lot of psychological stress. I eat a fair amount of sugar but also normal foods. However, I currently have disordered eating and the other day, after having fasted for maybe 14 hours (I'd been awake about 4.5 hours at this point; it was not morning as I work evenings so my 'morning' is actually the afternoon) I felt very cold, a bit dizzy, ears ringing etc and out of curiosity I checked my BG with a finger prick, assuming it would be low - it was 6.4mmol/l (initially it read at 7.5 but I rechecked it twice immediately using a finger prick and thigh prick and it read at 6.2 and 6.4; I was using a dog glucometer though!). After eating a small snack it was still 6.4. I then had a small meal and checked it with a finger prick two hours post-prandially and it was 8.1. After eating the snack the symptoms I was experiencing lessened, and after the meal I definitely felt better/normal, and I knew food would help - surely if I was actually hyperglycaemic food/sugar would make me worse...
A couple of months ago I checked my BG and it was high, but I was getting over a flu-type bug at the time; I rechecked it a week later and it was within normal limits.
I've had my HbA1c checked over the years:
2017 - 31 mmol/mol
2022 - 35 mmol/mol
2023 - 36 mmol/mol
2024 - 34 mmol/mol
2025 - 33 mmol/mol
I don't have signs of diabetes - I mean I have various symptoms that I've had for years but likely attributable to my gastro conditions and vitamin deficiencies, and none of these symptoms have come on recently bar worsening skin quality and taking longer to heal wounds (but I have the vitamin deficiencies and my skin has never been great anyway). I'm struggling with thermoregulation at the moment but I'm pretty sure that's due to the disordered eating (I'm cold all the time; if I eat normally I'm not so cold). I do find I get tired after eating, but I've been that way for many years; I am generally fatigued and I need the loo a lot, but again that's long-standing and I have the other conditions (including a condition affecting my bladder). I wouldn't say I'm abnormally thirsty. I get dizzy fairly often, typically on standing, but this is probably postural hypotension. My resting heart rate is normal but does increase a lot during exertion, my blood pressure has always been normal, I am a normal weight and BMI (my waist is a bad size but I have chronic severe bloating). I maybe struggle to lose weight (I restrict on some days but am not dropping weight at all, but I eat normally some days too). All of these symptoms are long-standing, none are recent. I did have a psychologically stressful day that day and like I said I'm currently undergoing a lot of anxiety (my mental health is the worst its been for a long time) so I'm hoping it's down to stress, recent gastro flare up/inflammation (I think my entire stomach area gets generally inflamed, particularly during a flare up which I had just had), overlong fasting and some kind of rebound hyperglycaemia etc?
Some gentle advice or reassurance would be most welcome as I'm not really mentally able to cope with this. I'm going to recheck my BG in a few days and see what readings I get.