New to this

[Cat166]

Hello everybody

I was just diagnosed with diabetes last week. They don’t know if it’s type 1, 2 or 1.5 which I have never heard of.
It’s all very scary to me and my blood sugar level doesn’t appear to be getting any better. I was last week put on gliclazide twice daily and now up to four tablets per day.
I just wondered if anybody else has been through the same as me
My eyes feel a bit blurry today too

thanks in advance xx

 

[JoKalsbeek]

The blurry vision's normal. Your blood sugars are coming down, and that means there's less glucose in your eyeballs and tears. Your brain's been compensating for the distorting of your vision, and it has to realise it doesn't have to do that any more. When your blood sugars stabilise, your vision'll return to normal too. So don't run to the Specsavers just yet, maybe get some cheap reading specs to tie you over if it's really getting in the way of things, as you won't need them long.

As for your diagnosis, I'm guessing you're being treated as a T2, though those usually start with metformin. Gliclazide is a drug that forces your pancreas to make more insulin, and in the long run it can wear it out entirely, so if you see a way of weaning yourself off it in due time, that'd be good. (For 1,5 and 1, and a bunch of other variants, you would likely be on insulin now.).

https://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/blog-entry/the-nutritional-thingy.2330/ might help you get started with the diet side of things, should you want to get rid of medication or cut back on same. Just be really careful, because gliclazide can cause hypo's when combined with a low carb way of eating. So don't try a low carb/high fat diet if you don't have a meter and plenty of test strips.

You be good to yourself eh,
Jo

 

[Cat166]

hi Jo

thank you for replying. I don’t know why they’ve put me on gliclazide maybe as I’ve lost so much weight (2 stone in five months)

that’s good news about my eyes. Yes they do seem to be treating me as a 2. My readings on my meter are wavering about the teens. Last week I was up at 18 and this morning have come to 12.9 but just before lunch was 15,,

I feel like my life now is ruled by what my blood count is but I guess everybody on here is the same and I appreciate that this has only just started with me

thanks so much for ur support xx

 

[EllieM]

They don’t know if it’s type 1, 2 or 1.5 which I have never heard of.

Are they doing any blood test to determine the type? Do you have any idea what your hba1c was/is? Are you underweight now?

I wouldn't make any assumptions about diabetes type until you've had the tests, to be honest, as the very fact that they mentioned the other types to you means that they think they are a possibility.

Basically, if you are T2 your insulin doesn't work properly for you, you are insulin resistant. Your body produces more and more insulin in an eventually vain attempt to control your sugar levels. T2 is often (but not always) accompanied by weight gain because high levels of insulin plus high levels of sugar in the blood tend to lead to fat gain. If you are T2 then carbohydrates are your enemy and reducing them can often reduce your blood sugar levels and reduce or even eliminate your need for medication.

If you are T1 then an autoimmune condition kills off your insulin producing cells, generally fast for children and young people, potentially slower for older folk (also called LADA or T1.5 then). T1 is often accompanied by weight loss (though that can happen for T2s as well), so that may be why they are considering it in your case. If you are T1 then you will eventually need insulin, though many people can delay that need for a long time by reducing their carb intake, as if you eat less carbs you need less insulin.

But as @JoKalsbeek said, if you decide to reduce the carbs in your diet (which should help whether T1 or T2) you need to watch out for those hypos.

Good luck. A diabetic diagnosis is initially very frightening, but even if (worst case) it is T1/T1.5/LADA it doesn't have to stop you enjoying your life. But it may take you a while to get used to it.

 

[JoKalsbeek]

hi Jo

thank you for replying. I don’t know why they’ve put me on gliclazide maybe as I’ve lost so much weight (2 stone in five months)

that’s good news about my eyes. Yes they do seem to be treating me as a 2. My readings on my meter are wavering about the teens. Last week I was up at 18 and this morning have come to 12.9 but just before lunch was 15,,

I feel like my life now is ruled by what my blood count is but I guess everybody on here is the same and I appreciate that this has only just started with me

thanks so much for ur support xx

Hi again @Cat166 ,

...You lost two stone in five months? That would explain why they're not sure whether you're a T2, but have started treatment as if you are. I'm with @EllieM here... You want to get those tests done, if they haven't been ordered yet. (That would be GAD and C-peptide). I lost a lot of weight out of the blue and that's more often an indicator for T1, but for me it was just "ordinary" T2 after all. But those tests aren't the standard, they only do those when they feel something's a little off. Too pricey for the NHS otherwise. So if they aren't being done yet, you might want to give a call and see what turns up. If you aren't a T2, then glic can wring out what remains of the pancreas' insulin production capability relatively fast, so... You need to know what's what. Be a dog with a bone on that one.

And yeah, everything seems to revolve around blood sugars right at the start. Like life's been reduced to nothing but numbers. But it does get better and after a while it's not worth even thinking about, it's just part of your routine. It gets better.
Hugs,
Jo