Overwhelmed and anxious :-(

[overwhelmed87]

Hi all,

Thank you for taking the time to read this. I've been hovering on the boards for some time and have finally decided to sign up and post...

I love how supportive this community seems to be and am now at the stage where I feel my anxiety is getting the better of me, and I don't know where to turn or what to do exactly.

A bit of back story about me... I'm 35, almost 36. Lifelong vegetarian. Never been overweight, my BMI is currently around 22-23. I'm 5'1, so pretty petite, size 8. I've always enjoyed exercise and generally have always either been taking classes at a gym, exercising from home or running/swimming/cycling.

I never considered until recent times that T2 diabetes would be something I'd be thinking about, especially at this age.

When I was pregnant with my son in 2021, I was diagnosed with gestational diabetes at 35-36 weeks. Despite having glucose show up in my urine much earlier, I wasn't considered high risk enough to test for GD because I wasn't overweight and during covid times they weren't testing as readily as pre-covid for GD. Eventually a late blood test confirmed that I had GD and a late scan revealed that my baby was suddenly growing at a much faster speed than was predicted at my 20 week scan.

As a result, I completely freaked out because the diagnosis was so late, and ended up opting for an elective c section. This went well and my recovery was good, baby was born weighing 8lb 9 at 38 + 5 weeks and had no complications.

I then had my hba1c checked the following April, so 11 months after my baby was born, and the result was 5.7% or 39 mmol.

I was so shocked and upset, but the doctor reassured me on the phone that I didn't need to worry and that this was a healthy result. Having done my own research online, as I always do , I'm aware that it's basically early prediabetes.

The doctor advised me to try to eat my evening meal earlier, as I was eating late (mainly due to getting used to being a new mum and just eating when was most convenient) and to incorporate more fruit, veg and whole grains into my diet.

Since then, April 2022, I've strived to eat a better diet and to regularly exercise. I've been testing my urine using strips ordered from amazon somewhat obsessively lately and am now freaking myself out.

I'm at a healthy weight and now ensure that I fast for 12 hours at least between evening meal and following breakfast. I've cut back on a lot of things I used to eat often - cakes, donuts, chocolate bars etc and have switched to eating wholegrain bread, pasta and rice.

However, occasionally, the urine tests show that there is glucose in my urine. In recent weeks, these occasions have been following when I ate a jam donut on an empty stomach 'as a treat', when I ate sticky rice with tofu in a teriyaki sauce for dinner and today after eating a naan bread with paneer and some kind of sweet sauce at a festival.

From what I understand, glucose will only show up in urine if blood sugar goes particularly high. So I'm guessing my body still very much has a problem with carbs/sugar... And probably always will.

I'm due to go for another hba1c test and have been putting it off, telling myself I'll go when I'm truly happy with my diet and exercise routine... Through fear of what the results will say.

I'm absolutely terrified of being told I'm officially prediabetic or even diabetic. The knowledge that there's glucose in my urine occasionally now terrifies me. It's to the point where my sex life is affected - I've lost all self confidence in that way and just feel like there's something wrong with me. Even though my BMI and weight are well within the healthy range, I tend to bloat horribly no matter what I eat. I always look so different by the end of the day compared to when I wake up.

I've gone from feeling like a healthy and self confident woman pre pregnancy to feeling like an anxious, stressed and withdrawn person who can no longer enjoy the food I used to enjoy without feeling like I'm making myself more ill by doing so.

I'm worried I will develop an eating disorder or become even more obsessed with food... I've already downloaded an app to track macronutrients and am always aiming to ensure that no more than 45% of my daily calories come from carbs.

This is affecting all areas of my life - my relationship, my friendships, my self confidence and my ability to think and behave normally. I'm terrified that I'm ultimately going to develop diabetes and die young or have serious health complications as a result.

Has anyone been in a similar place and can anyone offer any advice? I'm happy to talk to anyone on WhatsApp also regarding this - I feel so alone and struggle to talk to my fiance about this as he thinks I'm worrying for no reason and it makes me feel daft...

Sorry this is so long and thank you for reading...

 

[ert]

In the UK, if your HbA1c level is between 42mmol/mol (6%) – 47mmol/mol (6.4%) this means it is higher than normal and you are at risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Your HbA1c level is below this level. However, if you are still worried, instead of a urine sugar test (it can be normal to have a small amount of sugar in your urine) an occasional morning fasting finger prick test would be more accurate in helping you see if your blood sugars are elevated and out of the normal range. A finger prick test would also help you see what meals/foods/combinations of foods/exercise elevates your blood sugar if you finger prick before a meal and two hours afterwards. Hopefully having this blood data may be more reassuring than a urine test. A lot of my colleagues are using the Zoe Health Study test for similar data where they wear a glucose sensor (similar to a Libre sensor) for two weeks.

My sister had gestational diabetes during her pregnancies and was worried that as I had type 1 diabetes it would mean that she would be more likely to develop diabetes. She remains diabetes free, and although no longer worried, but she does sign up for a HbA1c every few years.

 

[overwhelmed87]

In the UK, if your HbA1c level is between 42mmol/mol (6%) – 47mmol/mol (6.4%) this means it is higher than normal and you are at risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Your HbA1c level is below this level. However, if you are still worried, instead of a urine sugar test (it can be normal to have a small amount of sugar in your urine) an occasional morning fasting finger prick test would be more accurate in helping you see if your blood sugars are elevated and out of the normal range. A finger prick test would also help you see what meals/foods/combinations of foods/exercise elevates your blood sugar if you would prick before a meal and two hours afterwards. Hopefully having this blood data may be more reassuring than a urine test. A lot of my colleagues are using the Zoe Health Study test for similar data where they wear a glucose sensor (similar to a Libre) for two weeks.

My sister had gestational diabetes during her pregnancies and was worried that as I had type 1 diabetes it would mean that she would be more likely to develop diabetes. She remains diabetes free, and although no longer worried, but she does sign up for a HbA1c every few years.

Thank you for the advice! This sounds daft, but what exactly would be a good set to buy for this? I've looked on amazon and see so much... When I had GD all this was given to me by the diabetic nurse at hospital, but they took it all away after my c section and told me I no longer needed to check or log etc.

My fasting levels were always OK even during GD, but would sometimes shoot up after eating what I thought were healthy meals... We were using Hello Fresh at the time, and after looking at the macro nutrient breakdowns of the meals, I realise a lot of them were well over 80g carbs per meal, even though the ingredients were things I thought were pretty healthy.

I think I need to book in for that hba1c test - am just so anxious that the results will lead to me having some kind of crisis but knowledge is power, right?...

 

[ert]

Thank you for the advice! This sounds daft, but what exactly would be a good set to buy for this? I've looked on amazon and see so much... When I had GD all this was given to me by the diabetic nurse at hospital, but they took it all away after my c section and told me I no longer needed to check or log etc.

My fasting levels were always OK even during GD, but would sometimes shoot up after eating what I thought were healthy meals... We were using Hello Fresh at the time, and after looking at the macro nutrient breakdowns of the meals, I realise a lot of them were well over 80g carbs per meal, even though the ingredients were things I thought were pretty healthy.

I think I need to book in for that hba1c test - am just so anxious that the results will lead to me having some kind of crisis but knowledge is power, right?...

For your Hba1c to be elevated, then your fasting blood sugars should also be elevated so book your test with confidence. I use Freestyle Lite meter and testing strips, but there are many different more easily available brands. (I like that it is small and easy to hide in my bag.) The cost of the testing strips should be a key consideration.

One of the benefits of technology is that clever things can come in surprisingly small packages - meaning blood glucose meters are getting smaller.

One of the benefits of technology is that clever things can come in surprisingly small packages - meaning blood glucose meters are getting smaller.

www.diabetes.co.uk

 

[KennyA]

Hi and welcome to the forums. You say

"the result was 5.7% or 39 mmol."

This is, as your doctor said, a normal result.

The "normal" HbA1c range for the UK - which is where almost everyone who is not diabetic is found - is 38-42mmol/mol. The attached graph shows this. Other countries have similar or slightly different values. However I understand that recently the USA has basically redefined what were previously "normal" blood values as now being "pre-diabetes" - which is what you may have read about elsewhere.

I don't know why they have done this - although I have my suspicions about some of the financial aspects - but nothing has changed in the UK.

If you want to test your blood glucose, there are a range of meter options. Tagging @Rachox who has an up to date list.

Everyone's blood glucose varies all the time in response to various stimuli, including food. That's normal and necessary. Testing is not intended to find out whether a meal raises your blood glucose. If it has carbs in it, there will almost certainly be a measurable rise.

Testing shows you how well your system works to deal with the glucose. The issue for T2 diabetics, like me, is that our systems do not reduce the glucose quickly or efficiently, and therefore we can have higher blood glucose levels for longer, which can cause its own problems, and the tendency to acquire bodyfat.


I don't think it's wrong to be careful about your health - but your HbA1c is indeed normal.

 

[Rachox]

Thanks for the tag @KennyA , and hi @overwhelmed87 , here’s some info on UK meters, and to be clear I have no commercial connections with any of the companies mentioned.



HOME HEALTH have the Gluco Navii, which is a fairly new model and seems to be getting good reviews.

https://homehealth-uk.com/all-produ...ose-meter-test-strips-choose-mmol-l-or-mg-dl/



Links to the strips for future orders:

https://homehealth-uk.com/all-products/glucose-navii-blood-glucose-test-strips-50-strip-pack/



Then they sell the older SD Code Free, details to be found here!

https://homehealth-uk.com/all-products/codefree-blood-glucose-monitoring-system-mmoll-or-mgdl/





SPIRIT HEALTHCARE have a meter called the Tee2 + which is quite popular:

https://shop.spirit-health.co.uk/co...e2-blood-glucose-meter?variant=19264017268793



The strips are to be found here:

https://shop.spirit-health.co.uk/co...py-of-tee2-test-strips?variant=19264017367097



If there is a choice of units of measurement then ‘mmol/L’ are the standard units in the UK, ‘mg/dl’ in the US, other countries may vary.



Don’t forget to check the box if you have pre diabetes or diabetes so you can buy VAT free. (for all meters and strips)

 

[MrsA2]

Hi @overwhelmed87
I'm normally one of the first to recommend bg testing, but in your case I'm concerned it may heighten your anxiety too much, so please do a few tests which should from what you say, confirm you are "normal" then stop, relax and enjoy your baby, and your food!

You might well be at higher risk of T2 in the future, but nothing you have done has put you into that category. It just happens, we don't know for sure if it's genes, environment, processed foods or what our mothers ate while pregnant with us, or whatever (or combinations of any of the above!) and its predicted nearly half of people already are at higher risk, so you are very like millions of others, none of whom have done anything wrong, so stop the guilt NOW.

Weight gain is a symptom of t2, NOT a cause of it.

Meanwhile it's becoming more common for even normal bg people to see benefits from eating lower carb generally, so look at reducing the whole grains, pasta and rice and replacing them (there no need to be hungry!) With eggs, cheese, nuts, beans and pulses and vegetarian protein. Olive oil, avocados, olives and loads of veg, but fewer fruit (except berries).
Just a bit of cutting down on the wheat and rice shouldn't hurt and may have long term benefits and mean, if you are preprogrammed to t2, that it is staved off for as long as possible.
Even if it does develop its not a life sentence, or a guilty verdict, or your fault. It just happens and there will be support here IF you need it

 

[overwhelmed87]

Thank you all so much for the information and support - you've all made a huge difference to how I was feeling. I didn't realise that the majority of non diabetic people had levels of 38 - 42 mmol and was wondering if the majority had levels more like 25! It's so reassuring to know that absolutely isn't the case.

Thank you as well for the links to testing options and just the kind words. I've always been overly anxious with anything health related and have a tendency to always fear the worst

I'm going to get myself booked in for the hba1c test this week and go from there.

Also didn't even consider that the reason America have lowered their measuring criteria for prediabetes could be financial - is quite obvious when you think about it...! I've been thinking I am actually prediabetic already, going by their standards.

Thank you again for the info, reassurance and advice

 

[CatsFive]

Welcome! I'm wondering what you were reading that said and HbA1c of 39 was pre-diabetes!

 

[SimonP78]

Interesting what you say about glucose showing in the urine, iirc (and it has been a very long time since I did a "wee on a stick" test, but I did do them for a very long time too) you'd get a result if your blood glucose was above ~10mmol/l (which isn't very high). Perhaps someone has some more recent data?

 

[ajbod]

I always know when my levels reach 11, as that's when the thirst and peeing start for me.

 

[overwhelmed87]

Welcome! I'm wondering what you were reading that said and HbA1c of 39 was pre-diabetes!

Thank you, it's American sources that.

It seems they deem any level from 39 up to be prediabetic! I assumed (wrongly I guess/hope!) That their measures are correct and the NHS were just being slow or reluctant to diagnose for some reason.