Hello again folks
As some of you already know, I've a relative newbie (T2 diagnosed Feb 2010) and I'm still trying to get my head around this whole diabetes thing.
The good news is I'm feeling better since I last posted and I believe that's down to following a low carb diet as advised by the good people on this forum, rather than the meds and advice prescribed by my GP. Having said that I don't feel 100% but some days are better than others. Although my mind is no longer as fuzzy as it was and I don't suffer from extreme fatigue anymore, I do feel like I'm often "running on empty".
The headaches are virtually gone now, although it's taken 3 trips to the optician to sort it. I wear contacts and it seems metformin can have an affect on your vision and each time I've upped my metformin dose (gradually increased from 1 x 500mg to 3 tabs) it's actually been improving the sight in my right eye. However, I do find vision can seem a little blurred at times and then other times it's fine.
I went to see the Diabetes Nurse last Friday as I'd had a blood test the week before to see how I was getting on the Simvastatin that she'd put me on a few weeks earlier. While I was there I thought I'd ask her about the problems I was still experiencing since I went on the meds, acne and constipation and she just said dismissed it without going into it. I also asked her about getting a B/S testing meter but she I didn't need one.
Then we moved onto the blood test results. Here i got a little confused and the nurse wasn't much help. When she first put me on Simvastatin, she mentioned that it can affect the liver, hence the reason for the blood test, which measures creatine levels. Now she told me, 150 was about normal but mine were 400, which I found alarming. However instead of taking me off the Simvastatin she told me to carry on with it saying the levels are high but it's nothing to worry about. I said surely if she classes something to be HIGH, then that's something to be concerned about it, High = Higher than normal = Not Good!!
Her reply was that 400 is high but it won't do any damage to my liver. I can have another blood test in a few weeks time and if it's still high she'll give me an alternative to Simvastatin. She also mentioned that Simvastatin is cheaper than the alternatives which is why they prefer people to be on Simvastatin!!
She then said the good news was that my Cholesterol had come down to 2.1 so it showed the Simvastatin was working. The last time I was tested it was 5.6. So in a space of 4 weeks, it's come down to 2.1, does that sound right?? Isn't that unusually low? She didn't really answer me but agreed that I could have another blood test.
Next time I go to see her I want to know exactly what I should be asking for. So can anyone tell me what kind of things need to be monitored on a regular basis? I know there's HBA1C, Cholesterol and now these Creatine levels. I don't know if kidney function has been tested,it's not been mentioned. Is there anything else? I want to be able to get a copy of the results each time I have blood tests, so I can view my progress at home in the future.
Thanks
Josh
As some of you already know, I've a relative newbie (T2 diagnosed Feb 2010) and I'm still trying to get my head around this whole diabetes thing.
The good news is I'm feeling better since I last posted and I believe that's down to following a low carb diet as advised by the good people on this forum, rather than the meds and advice prescribed by my GP. Having said that I don't feel 100% but some days are better than others. Although my mind is no longer as fuzzy as it was and I don't suffer from extreme fatigue anymore, I do feel like I'm often "running on empty".
The headaches are virtually gone now, although it's taken 3 trips to the optician to sort it. I wear contacts and it seems metformin can have an affect on your vision and each time I've upped my metformin dose (gradually increased from 1 x 500mg to 3 tabs) it's actually been improving the sight in my right eye. However, I do find vision can seem a little blurred at times and then other times it's fine.
I went to see the Diabetes Nurse last Friday as I'd had a blood test the week before to see how I was getting on the Simvastatin that she'd put me on a few weeks earlier. While I was there I thought I'd ask her about the problems I was still experiencing since I went on the meds, acne and constipation and she just said dismissed it without going into it. I also asked her about getting a B/S testing meter but she I didn't need one.
Then we moved onto the blood test results. Here i got a little confused and the nurse wasn't much help. When she first put me on Simvastatin, she mentioned that it can affect the liver, hence the reason for the blood test, which measures creatine levels. Now she told me, 150 was about normal but mine were 400, which I found alarming. However instead of taking me off the Simvastatin she told me to carry on with it saying the levels are high but it's nothing to worry about. I said surely if she classes something to be HIGH, then that's something to be concerned about it, High = Higher than normal = Not Good!!
Her reply was that 400 is high but it won't do any damage to my liver. I can have another blood test in a few weeks time and if it's still high she'll give me an alternative to Simvastatin. She also mentioned that Simvastatin is cheaper than the alternatives which is why they prefer people to be on Simvastatin!!
She then said the good news was that my Cholesterol had come down to 2.1 so it showed the Simvastatin was working. The last time I was tested it was 5.6. So in a space of 4 weeks, it's come down to 2.1, does that sound right?? Isn't that unusually low? She didn't really answer me but agreed that I could have another blood test.
Next time I go to see her I want to know exactly what I should be asking for. So can anyone tell me what kind of things need to be monitored on a regular basis? I know there's HBA1C, Cholesterol and now these Creatine levels. I don't know if kidney function has been tested,it's not been mentioned. Is there anything else? I want to be able to get a copy of the results each time I have blood tests, so I can view my progress at home in the future.
Thanks
Josh
