Neebie from France needing advise.

Thanks phoenix, it is really helpful to get the French inside info. I don't use the phone in French if I help it either, much prefer internet, feel less of a twit ! I am certainly not a stranger to French hospitals, my hospital french is pretty good face to face.
the doctor yesterday who speaks good English and has lived in the US was very helpful with the endless coeliac paperwork when we arrived in '06 with our daughter and needed health forms for GF school lunch , bread etc. I changed because I often can't drive far. We do have a good Mutuel
I'm making a list of questions to ask her next week so will add this info to it, Merci beacoup

Brunneria said:

8 is just a nice round number that I quote along the lines of

'normal people are usually under 6.6 two hours after eating. look! The fact that Im over 8 means that things are definitely not right. and that High I got, the time we ate the cream tea? well that was 14.7!' dramatic pause 'So that proves I can't eat that again, doesn't it?'

you can always offer to stab their finger and test them too - always remembering to use a clean lancet, of course.
Mr B is usually in the 5s, after stuffing his face with carbs. Me? 8+ with a teasp of rice or mash.

not an expert on hba1cs. but there is something that affects the results. I think it may be anaemia. have a google for things that affect it...

the other thing to bear in mind is that the hba1c is an AVERAGE figure. so if someone is having highs and lows, with massive swings and generally feeling cr*ppy, then they may end up with an a1c in the middle - giving the impression that things are not as bad as they are.

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I was staying with my sister and did try the monitor on her, she was 5, as I wanted a 'control'. I suppose I am confused as I suddenly have so many symptoms so suddenly all day and night when most were intermittant and could easily be put down to other things before.

I just found something very interesting on http://diabetesupdate.blogspot.co.uk/2007/09/beware-cortisone.html . I have Dr Bernstein's book on order and also read some interesting things on his website.

The fasting BG I had last tuesday was taken about 15 mins after I had a steroid injection into my suprasp tendon in my r shoulder. As my dry/sore throat suddenly turned into a raging thirst /increased urination with blood sugar readings over 11mmol/l post perandial. I am on day 3 of LCHF and apart from having gone down with a cold not feeling anywhere near as terrible as a few days ago.

I also found old FG tests that went back to my first Fibro dx.
Date Test Result mmol/l g/l ref range
25/05/2004 Fasting Glucose uk 5.5 unknown
22/12/2005 Fasting Glucose uk 4.6 unknown
27/06/2006 Fasting Glycemie 4.39 (3.90 - 6.10)
27/08/2007 Fasting Glycemie 5.7 (3.9 - 6.1)
28/10/2014 Fasting Glycemie 6.61 (4.11 - 5.89)


I have also developed opacity in my lenses, initially diagnosed as early cateracts but according to Prof of Opthalmology in the Hospital NOT cateracts but an 'opacity' to be expected with my eyes... (high myopia -11.5) I have previous optical referals mentioning retinophy although I spefically asked my optition on Friday to check and he said my retinas looked ok, no sign of diabetis.

Edit: pressed enter by mistate! am I barking up the wrong tree to think that my extensive collection of the exact same tendon injuries, plantar facilitis, tendonitis supraspiniou, and also carpal tunnel and also tennis elbow could be linked to sub-clinical pre-diabetes tipped over the edge by the shot?
I know I have blood sugar issues, I was a real sugar junkie as a child weaned myself off as and adult (mostly) and I never feel well eating high carb, even low GL homegrown veg are and issue and I am gluten free anyway.

I started gaining weight after giving up work due to the afosaid injuries which I had about 5 or 6 steroid injections EDIT which did not result in these severe side effects if that is what did happen . in 2006 moved to France I had gained about 1 1/2 stone extra at that point then an additional 1 stone all central and boobs. I only had a jab last week becuase I absolutly had to go to England and could not cancel.
the Hbac1 on tuesday was 5.7 mmol/l. my fasting BG this morning was 4.9 mmol/l and highest 6.7 after starting metaform 3 days ago and doiing the diet. I have faint keytons so know I have used up my liver reserves now.

what do you think?

Brunneria said:

I think [US)E=12578]@phoenix[/USER] would be able to comment much more knowledgeably than me.

But you certainly wouldn't be the first person who has posted on this forum with diabetic symptoms that develop following steroid treatment.

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Well I went to see the Doctor yesterday and she said that the Hbac1 of 5.7% wasn't Diabetic. She said that my levels were 'at the top of the normal range' told me to take more magnesium (i am alwasy deficient) exercise, watch my diet and gave me a prescription for metaform 500mg 1 at breakfast for 1 month, then one every other day, then get another Hbac1 done, see her in just under 3 months. So I'm somwhat confused! I have been keeping my BG down and have almost finished the Diane Kress 'The Diabetes Miracle' book which is different to the Metabolic M I downloaded on kindle.. I am having problems finding anything gluten free for the 5x5 carbs so am probably not having enough. There are no low-carb gluten free products that in the supermarche (or I could not find them) so have been having 1/2 slice trukey ham with Philadelphia , sugar free jelly & single cream. I am unable to shake off the end of the cold /cough and I feel TERRIBLE, dull headace and odd feeling in my neck like swolen glands. I am guessing ??? that as my fat stores get used up all the years of toxins etc are getting into my system in a mega detox reaction? I have ordered the codfree monitor for myself as I am almost out of the accucheck strips (also got one for Mr D as his FG was awful and his triglicerides way over the range , so he is joining me on the low carb/alcohol free 8 weeks) I am trying to drink plenty of water and de-caff tea. IF I am not yet diabetic and was only in the diabetic random one off range (over 11.1) on my own meter and not checked in a lab, due to the steroid jab I am glad but perhaps I would have prefered to have the GGT which the Doctor did not think was necessary as my levels are now under control (on a virtually no carb diet). I do not feel that I can insist, she did say she was keeping me on the metaform to aid weight loss and I do need to keep her on my side. At least she is not trying to say it is all down to the pre-existing Fibromyalgia, which I am actually starting to think was actually Metabloic B getting more and more out of control as the Kress book could have been written just for me, I felt really spooky reading it as it seems to explain so much about my last 6 years or so.

I would welcome any advice. ( @phoenix too. )

Brunneria said:

Goodness, we are so similar.

My hba1c was borderline - so I didn't get a diagnosis. But my after meal readings (after carbs) are WAY into the diabetic range. It is because I low carb, and so my average bg is much lower than if I ate a normal diet.

If you want to settle your own mind, you could always do a home glucose tolerance test. all you need is some lucozade, a bg meter, and read up.
But you would need to eact at least 130g carbs every day for several (I'd give it a week) before the test.

But the doc wouldn't accept your test readings...

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As you say the Doc would not accept it and as I am over a week into the diet I don;t really want to start all over again. I'll probably wait until after stage 3. Dispite feeling like I had visited the Chiropractor (post malipulation Rubbish out of muscels feels just like this) I dusted off an old 80s pop CD , evicted the spiders from the treadmill and did 25 mins of gentle walking before lunch. Thanks for the support, it means a lot

Edit the Bernstein book just arrived, good thing I am such a bookworm!