i drink plenty of fluid and i have requested the bloods you said to be done !! i really don't know what is wrong with me all i know is that its miserable i have this cramping every time my blood goes a tiny bit high but then again i have it all the time my muscles are constantly stiff and sore and never get better a 25 year old shouldn't feel like this i even changed my insulin's thinking it was a reaction to that would a coeliac show up on a ANA screening ? i am very worried as i don't want to develop foot drop or worse be paralysed as my mucles are becoming very weak
Hi Ryan,
I agree I would be concerned too- what you are experiencing isn't pleasant or normal for anyone to live with.
Question: you said you requested the labs, but did they do them? If yes, were the results within normal limits? If not done, they simply must be done to rule of obvious causes (well not necessarily the whole cause, but findings that would lead to correction or treatment of what is causing it). The type of cramping you describe is not really characteristic of neuropathic pain or damage, as you say it is occurring in muscle groups that are central (not peripherally located) and get plenty of blood supply, even in compromised blood micro-circulation. So again, the weak muscles you feel is definitely a sign that the muscle is not contracting normally and the places you feel the cramping suggest a more systemic imbalance (meaning not likely cardiovascular in origin).
To answer your question about a positive ANA and celiac- I don't want to bore you with medical info, but an ANA test is a pretty non-specific marker (just like a sed rate or C-reactive protein) for any autoimmune disease, and the fact that you already have one diagnosed (T1 DM), they would need to run more specific antibody tests to try to isolate another disease (celiac, lupus whatever). So a positive test for you isn't all that helpful. There is sometimes little or inconsistent correlation with lab results of this kind, so docs use them to screen or rule out things and diagnosis is often made using clinical symptoms, as well as other tests and history of the patient's complaints combined. Your muscle cramping issue needs to be looked at closely because you are not a 85 y.o. dude ! I do want to say though that having T1 DM puts you at an increased for having
celiac (which can cause mineral or electrolyte problems) or any other autoimmune disorder, as research has shown and bears considering, as Indy51 mentioned. I know I live in a different country, with a totally different payment system, but it can be sooooooo hard for docs to listen to you and take you seriously (particularly if you are young as I have seen with my son and his gf). I have had to go to MD's with them and other friends and challenge politely their lack of responsiveness. And usually, they do find something- sometimes they don't, but that doesn't mean they shouldn't look. You kind of have to word it like "
something is wrong here, and we don't know why, and I am requesting that this be done as it is reasonable and YOU NOW KNOW ABOUT IT", therefore it makes them more legally responsible for NOT following through.
Best of luck, I have actually been worried about you after reading your original post and so hope you can get some follow through and ... relief!
iv been the docs but they have never heard of full body cramping from diabetes just in the legs but this is related to periphual neuropathy which i don't think i have as i have full sensation and can feel temperatures
