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Perhaps I am in the wrong place or are the doctors wrong?

J

jimmy49

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5
I have been suffering for some months from waves of extreme tiredness - in the mornings especially. A recent fasting blood test showed my blood glucose to be 6.2 mmol/L. My GP's receptionist told me my results were "normal". Yet the internet says this is prediabetes. A cardiologist (his stand-in) I was seeing about palpitations also brushed this level away as normal when I suggested it may be behind the cause of my tiredness.
I have fibromyalgia so such brush-offs are a way of life for me. The cardiologist blamed the medication I was on for the tiredness - but I have been on it 14 years so this is nonsense. I am now seeing nobody about any of this. But the tiredness is sometimes overwhelming and I keep wondering about this sugar thing. I have no wish to challenge these medical experts. I have no weight problems, a healthy BMI, pretty good diet, don't drink or smoke. I do a little farming and take as much exercise as I can stand. So there is little I can change in my life to improve things. Am I missing something?
 
Hello Jimmy and welcome.
Can't help but I'm sure someone will be along soonish with some ideas to kick about.
On;y thing I can think of ... anaemia?
Thyroid?
 
Thanks for your replies. I believe thyroid was checked in the cardiology investigation. I was put on blood pressure medication which improved blood pressure/palpitations. But fatigue is just as bad. Blood results were generally normal. Are you saying this level of fasting blood glucose would be unlikely to cause symptoms like this? I guess that's what I really want to know.
 
Hi Jim

Firstly the GP Receptionist should not be giving you medical advice. That is a dismissible offence!

As you say, a fasting level 6.2 should not be giving you the level of tiredness you are experiencing. What test did you have, OGTT or HbA1c? Was it done at the GP surgery or in a pharmacy or at the hospital?

Can you think of any recent stress in your life that could be contributing to your condition?
 
I believe your fibromyalgia ...causes extreme tiredness....awful to feel so tired , think there are support groups for you , to join ....you could ask your GP....best wishes ...
 
Kat100 said:
I believe your fibromyalgia ...causes extreme tiredness....awful to feel so tired , think there are support groups for you , to join ....you could ask your GP....best wishes ...
Click to expand...
I have had a fibromyalgia diagnosis for 14 years and am familiar with the effects of sleep deprivation resulting from it. This seems different from (and in addition to) my usual symptoms. I feel I need to find an answer myself because I believe, from experience, that doctors will give me the answer you just did. I should add that I appreciate your answer which is well intended.
 
What does your GP say about your levels? Since when was a receptionist quailed medically - well you live and learn.
Low carb healthy fat diets are also useful for fibromyalgia as well as diabetics.
 
under 5.5 is normal, you're pre-diabetic
with those levels, all I would do is drop bread pasta pastries or any ground wheat product, that and a half hour walk a day should be enough to get back to normal range, not too much spuds and increase your good fats/oils to replaced the wheat calories
 
I would be wary of any decision based on a single fasting blood glucose test.

I am diabetic, and I frequently have fasting tests anywhere in the range of 5.8 right up to 8.5

Any doctor (or receptionist) who saw a test result below 7 would think I wasn't diabetic. And they would be wrong!

But then... there are many other reasons why people feel tired. including fibrmyalgia...
Do you have any other typical diabetic symptoms? Frequent widdling. Thirst. Frequent thrush outbreaks. Sweats...

If so, then in your position, I would go back to the doc and ask for a second test.
And while you are there, ask for a vit D3 test, and a Vit B12 test too. since deficiencies of these seem to be very widespread, and largely unrecognised by doctors.
Just in case.
 
Hi,

Your 6.2mmol/l fasting test is in the pre-diabetes range, but fasting tests are unreliable for a variety of reasons. I would also suggest you ask for a second test. I also agree that even at that level (which is lower than full blown diabetes) you should not be getting any diabetic symptoms such as the tiredness you describe. You need your medics to investigate further.
 
Yes well intended ..I know someone who gets really tired like yourself .with the same problems ...hope you find the answer ...best wishes ...
I must say ..I don't think,you are going to find the answer yourself ...you know needle in a haystack ...perhaps you could sit with a GP and explain further ....good luck ..I know it is not easy ...
 
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Was it medical advise or passing on information ...I read it as passing on information ....
 
Kat100 said:
Was it medical advise or passing on information ...I read it as passing on information ....
Click to expand...
Yes I suppose it was passing on information as they receive this information with a normal range to compare it to. My GP would have considered it the job of the cardiologist to clear up before discharging me. But the cardiologist also said this was normal and refused to discuss it beyond that..
In answer to your other suggestion I have no stress to complain of lately. Perhaps I am on the wrong track...
 

The doctors are wrong ..... it isn't a normal reading. Normal is under 5.5. You should have been told you are showing signs of being pre-diabetic and offered you another test to confirm it.
 
Why not make an appointment to see a different doctor, you are entitled to a second opinion
 
Hi,jimmy , I did not ask,about stress.... ...but yes you will get there ....
 
Just to clarify, to rule out diabetes you'd need to also run HbA1c and a glucose tolerance test. My fasting blood glucose was in the normal range when I was diagnosed. I had peripheral neuropathy, so they ran the HbA1c and it came back slightly in the diabetic range. When I got a blood glucose meter I found that my fasting levels were mostly normal, but my post meal numbers were sky high. Not to dump on medical professionals, but they shouldn't be ruling out diabetes based on one fasting blood glucose test, although this is commonly done. From what I've read around half of type 2 diabetics have normal fasting levels.
 
Thanks all for the great advice - you have given me a good deal to think about. Perhaps I need to do some home monitoring rather than just count on the one result. It would give me a bit more to go on
 
Hi, it may be worth asking to see the nurse at your practice, don't tell receptionist why. The reason for this is that many GP nurses run the diabetic clinic check ups, and refer onto doctor or hospital for further advice. As for the 6.6 being pre diabetic, it seems that maybe this depends on the NHS Trust or PCt you are under, here in Swansea they still seem to be going between the levels of 4-8 being 'normal', which was a relief, as I feel hypo from 4.2 downwards, so the changes stated on the internet are too low for me to have and maintain, but 4-8 is doable. But this is where you need to speak to a medical professional, they can answer all of your questions, if they will (I have been up against many a hospital doctor who has fobbed me off and I have come away knowing nothing more, luckily not the diabetic team)
 
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