Hi,
I am a relatively newly diagnosed diabetic – 14th September 2019, been over 6 months but it is new for me, although I suspect it has been present for a while. The diagnosis arrived at the end of a summer to forget. Apologies for the long post.
It all started on the 15th of July (2019) when I was at work and experienced excruciating pain in the lower left-hand side of my back, a paracetamol had no effect. An hour later the pain had wrapped itself around the whole of the left hand side of the body. Went to the GP, who took one look at me and said “you look very ill”, pulse 110, BP 152/90, sweating profusely. Diagnosis: diverticulitis. Antibiotics for a week. After a further week of being signed off (first time in over 30 years of working), and a couple of days Annual leave I went back to work on the 31st July.
Fast forward to the 5th of August, went to go home @ 5.30 pm, felt extremely lightheaded as if there was nothing there, hard to explain, sweating profusely and very short of breath. Collapsed three times’, before taken to hospital by ambulance. Collapsed again, came to on a trolley in Resus.
Medical staff rushing, fitting electrodes, cannulas being inserted, hooked up to a blood pressure, heart rate and oxygen monitor “Are you a diabetic”, my answer “not been diagnosed, why”. “Your BS is 32.6”. In the next few hours, I have Saline by IV, Potassium, Electrolytes and various others, blood pressure cuff inflates what feels like every 30 minutes, impossible to sleep, constant finger prick testing and BS comes down to 7 at which point medical staff appear happy on that front. However, BP and pulse rate are still up, temperature is 38 something and yet I am shivering, and the sound of oxygen being pumped in via my nostrils, medics aren’t happy, there is something still going on. At 3am I was taken for a CT scan of my chest and abdomen, the A&E Consultant said, “we have found something on your lungs, but try not to worry”. At 4.45 am, “you have a Pulmonary Embolism – a blood clot on your lung, and it is big”. I was given a choice, don’t treat it, prognosis, heart attack, stroke and/or death, or blood thinners – side effect – bleeding everywhere, every orifice and inside. Plumped for the treatment. Discharged after 11 nights in hospital, Resus, High Dependency and Critical Care. I went back to work on the 9th of September.
On the 13th of September, I went to the hospital for a pre-procedure assessment and had some bloods taken. Later that evening, I had a phone-call from the on-call duty doctor, “can you come and see me I wish to discuss the outcome of your blood test”. The bloods show my blood sugar was 27, he did a finger prick test and his machine said HI. I was admitted to hospital and on the 14th of September I was diagnosed with Diabetes, BS 25.
Some of you are probably thinking, why wasn’t he diagnosed when he was in hospital with the blood clot. Once the BS had been reduced, someone made the decision not to test any future bloods taken, yet bloods were taken every other day. Apparently my HbA1c was at time of the blood clot 153, and when I had the diabetes diagnosis 103. I was going to be discharged on the 14th complete with pamphlets, booklets, medicines, BS testing machine, lancets and testing strips. I felt frightened, anxious and thought what the hell do I do now. No further discussions on what to do, what to eat, how to use the machine and BS still in the high 20s. I refused to go. Went home on the 15th.
Now on Apixaban morning and night and beta blocker in the morning, Metformin 2000mg, 1000 in the morning and 1000 in the evening, Gliclazide 1 tablet – 80mg. Pulse rate low 70s, blood pressure 115/70, oxygen 98. 29th November 2019 HbA1c 67, 27th February 2020 HbA1c 42.
I am a relatively newly diagnosed diabetic – 14th September 2019, been over 6 months but it is new for me, although I suspect it has been present for a while. The diagnosis arrived at the end of a summer to forget. Apologies for the long post.
It all started on the 15th of July (2019) when I was at work and experienced excruciating pain in the lower left-hand side of my back, a paracetamol had no effect. An hour later the pain had wrapped itself around the whole of the left hand side of the body. Went to the GP, who took one look at me and said “you look very ill”, pulse 110, BP 152/90, sweating profusely. Diagnosis: diverticulitis. Antibiotics for a week. After a further week of being signed off (first time in over 30 years of working), and a couple of days Annual leave I went back to work on the 31st July.
Fast forward to the 5th of August, went to go home @ 5.30 pm, felt extremely lightheaded as if there was nothing there, hard to explain, sweating profusely and very short of breath. Collapsed three times’, before taken to hospital by ambulance. Collapsed again, came to on a trolley in Resus.
Medical staff rushing, fitting electrodes, cannulas being inserted, hooked up to a blood pressure, heart rate and oxygen monitor “Are you a diabetic”, my answer “not been diagnosed, why”. “Your BS is 32.6”. In the next few hours, I have Saline by IV, Potassium, Electrolytes and various others, blood pressure cuff inflates what feels like every 30 minutes, impossible to sleep, constant finger prick testing and BS comes down to 7 at which point medical staff appear happy on that front. However, BP and pulse rate are still up, temperature is 38 something and yet I am shivering, and the sound of oxygen being pumped in via my nostrils, medics aren’t happy, there is something still going on. At 3am I was taken for a CT scan of my chest and abdomen, the A&E Consultant said, “we have found something on your lungs, but try not to worry”. At 4.45 am, “you have a Pulmonary Embolism – a blood clot on your lung, and it is big”. I was given a choice, don’t treat it, prognosis, heart attack, stroke and/or death, or blood thinners – side effect – bleeding everywhere, every orifice and inside. Plumped for the treatment. Discharged after 11 nights in hospital, Resus, High Dependency and Critical Care. I went back to work on the 9th of September.
On the 13th of September, I went to the hospital for a pre-procedure assessment and had some bloods taken. Later that evening, I had a phone-call from the on-call duty doctor, “can you come and see me I wish to discuss the outcome of your blood test”. The bloods show my blood sugar was 27, he did a finger prick test and his machine said HI. I was admitted to hospital and on the 14th of September I was diagnosed with Diabetes, BS 25.
Some of you are probably thinking, why wasn’t he diagnosed when he was in hospital with the blood clot. Once the BS had been reduced, someone made the decision not to test any future bloods taken, yet bloods were taken every other day. Apparently my HbA1c was at time of the blood clot 153, and when I had the diabetes diagnosis 103. I was going to be discharged on the 14th complete with pamphlets, booklets, medicines, BS testing machine, lancets and testing strips. I felt frightened, anxious and thought what the hell do I do now. No further discussions on what to do, what to eat, how to use the machine and BS still in the high 20s. I refused to go. Went home on the 15th.
Now on Apixaban morning and night and beta blocker in the morning, Metformin 2000mg, 1000 in the morning and 1000 in the evening, Gliclazide 1 tablet – 80mg. Pulse rate low 70s, blood pressure 115/70, oxygen 98. 29th November 2019 HbA1c 67, 27th February 2020 HbA1c 42.
