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In shock diagnosed yesterday.

V

vicki76

Newbie
Messages
2
Type of diabetes
Other
Treatment type
Insulin
Hi, I was diagnosed yesterday and I'm in total shock. Not sure what type yet until further test have been done.

Would like to tell my story as it may help me start to come to terms with it all....

I'm a nurse so know a bit about diabetes and have alway known with long term health condition the patient normally understand their condition the best. So I know I don't know everything far from it. I have an 11 month old and was diagnosed with gestational diabetes late in pregnancy which shocked me as I have no predisposing factors. After delivery my cbg levels whet back to normal and I had no follow up appointment as you should.

Fast forward 10 month and 3 weeks after having back surgery. I'm feeling rubbish blurred vision, dizzy, tired, thirsty etc. Thinking I have to be wrong tested my blood sugars 24.5 dipped my urine glucose and ketones. So got sent to hospital bloods done lab bloods 22.5 and Hba1c 86!!!!!. I've only been symptomatic since my surgery and have lost a fare amount of weight over the last week ( which I didn't really need to loose). The specialist nurse said only time will tell what type and with another blood test but the main aim is to stabilise my blood sugars.

It feels crazy that I'm now on insulin, I just can't process it.

Anyway just wanted to introduce myself as I'm hoping this is going to be a great place for support.
 
Hi @vicki76 welcome to the forum. There's a lot of support on here from diabetics of all types! I'm Type 2 diet controlled so have no experience of what you've been or are going through but hopefully one of the insulin users such as @Robinredbreast, @Daibell or @noblehead will be along soon. @daisy1 will also be along to provide the normal advice for new forum members.
 
Hi. As a nurse you may be aware that if you were not overweight at diagnosis and have lost weight unexpectedly then the likely diagnosis is T1 and not T2 due to a lack of insulin to make use of the glucose in the blood. Not guaranteed of course, but I suspect you may well need to stay on insulin. You will not be alone!
 
Thanks for the welcome @Daphne917. Exactly @Daibell that's what I thought but the consultant had a quick chat and was leaning more towards type 2 although he didn't rule out type 1. It's not an area I know in depth. It's early days so hopefully i will have the answers soon. Thanks for your messages.
 
@vicki76, just want to say Hi, and I am certain you will find all the help and support you need here.
It can't be easy with that dear little person to care for, so I am sending you some warm hugs, to let you know that you are among friends.<<<<<<<<hugs>>>>>>>>
 
Hello @vicki76,

Another T1 but diagnosed in my 60s. Like you, vision changes, weight loss, feeling very unwell, very thirsty, high blood sugar and ketones. I think that the ketones were the initial deciding factor for being T1 which was confirmed later by the blood test results. After the initial treatment for DKA, Insulin was prescribed.

There are some very helpful T1s on here, so ask as many questions as you need to.
 
Hello @vicki76 and welcome to the forum :) To help you, here is the information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful. Ask as many questions as you want and someone will be able to help.


BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEWLY DIAGNOSED DIABETICS

Diabetes is the general term to describe people who have blood that is sweeter than normal. A number of different types of diabetes exist.

A diagnosis of diabetes tends to be a big shock for most of us. It’s far from the end of the world though and on this forum you’ll find over 150,000 people who are demonstrating this.

On the forum we have found that with the number of new people being diagnosed with diabetes each day, sometimes the NHS is not being able to give all the advice it would perhaps like to deliver - particularly with regards to people with type 2 diabetes.

The role of carbohydrate

Carbohydrates are a factor in diabetes because they ultimately break down into sugar (glucose) within our blood. We then need enough insulin to either convert the blood sugar into energy for our body, or to store the blood sugar as body fat.

If the amount of carbohydrate we take in is more than our body’s own (or injected) insulin can cope with, then our blood sugar will rise.

The bad news

Research indicates that raised blood sugar levels over a period of years can lead to organ damage, commonly referred to as diabetic complications.

The good news

People on the forum here have shown that there is plenty of opportunity to keep blood sugar levels from going too high. It’s a daily task but it’s within our reach and it’s well worth the effort.

Controlling your carbs

The info below is primarily aimed at people with type 2 diabetes, however, it may also be of benefit for other types of diabetes as well.
There are two approaches to controlling your carbs:

  • Reduce your carbohydrate intake
  • Choose ‘better’ carbohydrates

Reduce your carbohydrates

A large number of people on this forum have chosen to reduce the amount of carbohydrates they eat as they have found this to be an effective way of improving (lowering) their blood sugar levels.

The carbohydrates which tend to have the most pronounced effect on blood sugar levels tend to be starchy carbohydrates such as rice, pasta, bread, potatoes and similar root vegetables, flour based products (pastry, cakes, biscuits, battered food etc) and certain fruits.

Choosing better carbohydrates

Another option is to replace ‘white carbohydrates’ (such as white bread, white rice, white flour etc) with whole grain varieties. The idea behind having whole grain varieties is that the carbohydrates get broken down slower than the white varieties –and these are said to have a lower glycaemic index.
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/food/diabetes-and-whole-grains.html

The low glycaemic index diet is often favoured by healthcare professionals but some people with diabetes find that low GI does not help their blood sugar enough and may wish to cut out these foods altogether.

Read more on carbohydrates and diabetes

Eating what works for you

Different people respond differently to different types of food. What works for one person may not work so well for another. The best way to see which foods are working for you is to test your blood sugar with a glucose meter.

To be able to see what effect a particular type of food or meal has on your blood sugar is to do a test before the meal and then test after the meal. A test 2 hours after the meal gives a good idea of how your body has reacted to the meal.

The blood sugar ranges recommended by NICE are as follows:

Blood glucose ranges for type 2 diabetes
  • Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
  • 2 hours after meals: under 8.5 mmol/l
Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (adults)
  • Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
  • 2 hours after meals: under 9 mmol/l
Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (children)
  • Before meals: 4 to 8 mmol/l
  • 2 hours after meals: under 10 mmol/l
However, those that are able to, may wish to keep blood sugar levels below the NICE after meal targets.

Access to blood glucose test strips

The NICE guidelines suggest that people newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes should be offered:

  • structured education to every person and/or their carer at and around the time of diagnosis, with annual reinforcement and review
  • self-monitoring of plasma glucose to a person newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes only as an integral part of his or her self-management education

Therefore both structured education and self-monitoring of blood glucose should be offered to people with type 2 diabetes. Read more on getting access to bloodglucose testing supplies.

You may also be interested to read questions to ask at a diabetic clinic

Note: This post has been edited from Sue/Ken's post to include up to date information.
 
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