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Blood test for diabetes tomorrow

S

sickofbeingsick

Member
Messages
16
Hello,

I've got to have a blood test tomorrow morning at the local hospital to test for diabetes, I was wondering how accurate this test is? especially since Im meant to fast for 12 hours before giving blood. I would have thought I should be eating sugar before the test to see if Ive got raised blood sugar. Ive had diabetes blood tests before and they have come back negative.To be honest I dont have much confidence in doctors at all.Ive been pushed from pillar to post, and more often than not Ive walked away from the GP surgery frustrated about my treatment. Ive had this problem for 15 years. Ive been in and out of the doctors surgery and Its obvious to anyone just by looking at my face that theres a problem, here are my symptoms, Im convinced this is a blood sugar issue, I just dont know exactly:

1. frequent urination, and only small amounts.
2. dehydration.
3. muscle weakness, especially in the legs and eyes (but all muscles). Vision is terrible in particular, I have to force my eyes to look straight ahead or to focus.
4. My right foot is starting to go numb.
5. Im skinny, however much I eat.
6.I get nightmares just before I wake in the morning.
7 Ive got candida on my gums, sometimes my gums are bright red. Theres a sweet taste in my mouth.
8. I get unnaturally tired after meals, I have to lie down, and Im alseep instantly, then 2 hours later I wake up again.

Im absolutely convinced this is a sugar problem of some sort. I was going to buy a blood sugar monitor today, but Ive been looking around and the strips are daylight robbery, so Im hoping to get them on the NHS (as I say, I dont hold out much hope though. BTW, should I go against the doctor and eat some sugar before the test anyway?)

I have bought the diabetes for dummies book, and intend on reading it over the next few weeks, but Ive got this blood test tomorrow and I just wondered what the more experienced people think about it?

Thanks.
 
Under no circumstances go against the advice given about your fasting test. Unless you want to be whipped off to a hospital bed and be given treatment you might not need.
Stick to the instructions. They are there for a reason.

Ken.
 
as ken says dont eat while fasting as it will obstruct the readings,it does sound like diabetes but there are many other things it could be, how long have u felt this way? let us know how u get on
 
cugila said:
Under no circumstances go against the advice given about your fasting test. Unless you want to be whipped off to a hospital bed and be given treatment you might not need.
Stick to the instructions. They are there for a reason.

Ken.
Click to expand...

I wont then, thanks Ken and Totsy.

Totsy, Ive been like this at least since my teens, my mother has got the same (undiagnosed) problem, and we look similar. I can see this problem when I look at her face, which looks the same as mine. pale, with occasional hives.

Its just a crazy situation to be in. Im not in the reality everyone else enjoys, and Im convinced this is blood sugar. About 5 years ago, I stopped eating all foods except potato, it was a subconcious decision. I would go through hell for 4 days, then on the 5th day I would feel fantastic, eyesight perfect. muscles perfect. I did this a few times and it was always the same great result. The problem was, I was reducing carbs way to quickly and then crash, then binge eat and do it all again a few weeks later, and it was taking its toll on me physically and mentally. But I thought the problem was candida, so Ive been looking at that for years, but then I tried eating only potatos for my carbs last week, I ate a few potatos at 2 hour intervals all day, then the next day I was shaky as hell, I recognise the feeling from 5 years ago. I wonder if its something to do with excess insulin, and my body not liking it. I just dont know at this point.
 
you definately need to be checked,
if this test comes back ok i would ask for a glucose tolerance test and this may then show it up
 
endocrinoligists are specialised in diabetes on the nhs, also u should get a diabetic nurse and access to a podiatry service all on the nhs
 
totsy said:
you definately need to be checked,
if this test comes back ok i would ask for a glucose tolerance test and this may then show it up
Click to expand...

Agreed!

Some (most) forms of diabetes show up in postprandial numbers long before the fasting goes south.

I'd insist on a GTT if the fasting test comes back "normal" and also ask about "prediabetes" or "glucose intolerance" which IMNSHO is diabetes in all but name.

If all else fails you can achieve a mini-GTT by eating or drinking 75g carbs and going to your chemist an hour later for a spot reading (you may not enjoy this very much!)
 
Hello,

I got my hospital blood test back this morning, and 'fasting blood glucose' was at 5 (range 3-6).

The doctor said its fine and that I am ok. Only, no, I am not feeling ok.

I asked him if he could refer me to a specialist at the local hospital, for a Glucose Tolerance Test, and he said no. He said he couldnt refer me because my result was within range, and they would not see me. I said to him isnt the result on the high end of the range and worth investigating and he simply kept stating that there was nothing wrong with me. I kept trying to explain that there is definately some sort of sugar problem, but he kept insisting that I was fine.

Eventually he called the nurse in, and I asked her wether or not I could be referred, and I got the same answer, no, the result is within range.

We did a blood sugar finger prick test. it was 5.6, this is 2 hours after having my breakfast (tea and toast). I told her I felt wired and hyper like Id drunk 10 cups of coffee, but she said its in range and normal.

Can anyone comment on this?
 
Hi sickofbs

The figures you quote are perfectly normal. I would be more than happy to have those results ?

If you think you still have something wrong then I suggest you get a second opinion from another GP at the practice. There may be another problem which might need further investigations.

Ken.
 
i totally agree with ken,
if u was undiagnosed id expect your bloods to be higher, although there is definately something going on, i myself would give it a week or so and go back and say just how ill im feeling and would they plz do some routine bloods etc, keep pushing as only you know your own body let us know how u get on
 
Thanks Ken and Totsy.

I feel so much better when I stop eating bread, fruit, and chocolate, and go onto an all complex carb diet. So something must be going wrong somewhere along the line.

I've been thinking about it all this morning, my hunch is that when I eat simple sugars I dont process that quick burst of sugar quickly or efficently enough (for some reason), and as a result I havent got enough energy. Im also starting to think that alot of my symptoms may be because my adrenal gland is having to push out adrenalin to compensate for the lack of sugar-produced energy.

I had an 'adrenal stress index' test done about 3 months ago and my cortisol levels were flatlined, showing 'adrenal fatigue' (excessive stimulation/secrection over long periods of time).

Thankfully I dont need to know the scientific reason why eating complex carbs makes me feel better, they just do when I eat that way, so I suppose that will have to do for now.

Thanks again
 
I had all sorts of tests last summer all of which were negative for anything and I think I was labelled as a hypochondriac who spent too much time on the net searching for illnesses that fitted my made up symptoms. The symptom that precipitated all of this was being unable to stay awake late in the afternoon. I mean fighting sleep was pointless, I even used to stick pins in myself to try to wake myself up.
The difference for me came when I experimented with lunchtime food. No food and I was fine. Meat and salad I was fine. Any form of starch carb like bread, potato, pasta and bump. Out for the count a couple of hours later. When I told my doctor this she shrugged and said there was no scientific basis but if it works for you...
Two months ago I had a GTT and was said to be not quite a diabetic but heading there. I am now following a low carb diet and alrerady feeling better after just one week. I did try the diet the nurse said but I was just asleep all the time...

Just my experiences, they may or not help you.

Jean
 
Jean,

I think our experience shows that everyone is different.

What annoys me is the fact that the doctors look at blood test results and say "from my screen theres nothing wrong with you Mr/Mrs Smith, goodbye". They work on the basis of tests and not symptoms. Which funnily, I did have a short 'discussion' with the doctor about (although I really didnt want to start an argument with him, because I knew where it would lead!) erm, but I told him even if the results are within range and everything seems fine from the tests, I am still not ok, but he just kept saying, "Your fine, your fine". When obviously I am not fine. He actually started talking about how my thyroid result was slightly out of range, and how we should look at that, so I told him id already considered thyroid and I'd been to see a Dr , who is the foremost authority on the subject in the country (and respected worldwide), and the doctor said, "well where are the results? they are not on my computer.", and I told him " he doesnt practice as a GP anymore, as his experience with the BMC (british medical council) left him unable to actually help his patients. The BMC questioned Dr , because he refuses to treat patients on the basis of blood tests alone, he looks at symptoms too, and treats accordingly.

Normal GP's seem to think blood tests are the final authority on a persons health, even when patients are telling them that they still feel unwell, the doctor is ignoring them "there is nothing wrong with you Mr/Mrs smith". Its just incredible. Surely those people warrent further investigation. But no, because on their screen everything is fine and you feel fine. My doctor even told me it may be pyschological. Ive been told this alot, how insulting. Some of these doctors are being paid £80,000 a year to tell me its all in my mind.
 
Just a thought here, but have you researched something called "Candida"?

If you have symptoms after carbs and thrush in your mouth I would hazard a guess you have it in your bowel as well.

This is a condition where your body produces too much yeast and the more you 'feed' it with starch etc, the worse it gets. Symptoms include

Try googling it...worth a though...! :?

ma5on
 
ma5on,

I do have candida yeast in my mouth (on the tongue and gums), but I think the candida is a result of a more fundamental sugar problem.

I dont know for certain whats going on, but it seems to me that if I eat simple sugars, they go into my blood stream and go straight through the tissues without being absorbed/used properly by the cells, because I always seem to have a sweet taste in my mouth (this is hours after eating simple sugars, so its not the sweet residue you get immediately after eating bread etc).

The sugar that is sustaining the candida in my mouth seems to be coming from the bloodstream.

Do diabetics ever taste sugar like this even when theyve not eaten?
 
I'd suggest getting your own meter and doing this

http://loraldiabetes.blogspot.com/2009/ ... -test.html

try doing especially the 1 hour postprandial tests after eating different types of meal, zero carbs, low carbs, low GI, high carb, see if you can elicit some sort of pattern.

My money is actually on the adrenal problem, and if your thyroid is low but not considered treatably low that may also be a factor, there sounds to be some form of endocrine system disruption going on which hasn't *yet* showed up in the tests they've given you. You're caught in the loop where an Endo could probably test and diagnose something but your GP won't let you see one.
 
Thanks for the link Trinkwasser, yes I think I will buy a meter and do some testing.

In my discussion with the doctor, he mentioned that I could go to a local private hospital, as a private patient and get the GTT done there. I'll look into that also.

Thanks again
 
One word of advice, others from this site may recognise the following issues my son experienced (across two continents, here and in Canada), and it is because two of my children have thyroid problems and I was feeling so tired, that I went to GP for blood test to check my thyroid, back came the T2 diagnosis! If you are not satified with how you feel physically despite all the tests, you really need to keep pushing ahead with it, not the same thing I know, but my son was ill over a number of years in his late teens and early twenties, he got really sick and could hardly find the energy to move, he had all kinds of tests (even thyroid, which I know can be hard to diagnose without in depth testing), and no one could find anything wrong him, he said that he had the feeling of having too much sleep and his head was muzzy all the time, he even dropped out of uni as he just could not cope. He fluctuated from being quite chucky to really skinny and now I look back of photos of him, he looked really ill - big dark rings under his eyes. My ex even wondered if he was into druga, but I felt sure he could not be, just did not seem the type of thing he would do! I think some people, and perhaps - even I had unconsciously had the thought hovering in the back of my mind - shamefully now - that he was either a hypochondriac or pulling a fast one for attention. I started to explore the possibility of ME, not knowing how to advise of help him. Eventually he had more tests and was diagnosed as being hypothyroid, in fact now in his early thirties he has almost no thyroid at all. During the process of getting his medication right he became so ill that he became paranoid and delusional (apparently mental ill health can accompany untreated thyroid issues). He is fine now, most of the time - although he gets really tired even exerts himself too much or is under pressure (no more mental illness thank goodness). Although these are not your symptoms and may seem completely irrelevant, both are auto immune diseases with really nasty side effects and my point is - how vital it is to keep pushing for results if you are still feeling ill and those tests received are not showing any problems. It worked for my son in the end, I do not even want to think of any other outcome.

Glad the carbs diet is helping you, hope you continue to progress!
 
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