Type2 Diabetes symptoms

[Type2T3]

First posting, so I hope I'm not asking too many daft questions...

Back in August I went to my GP as I was feeling run down, tired, had aches everywhere and was generally not myself.
I was struggling to concentrate and had weird feelings in my lips and wrists, ringing in my ears...
He did quite a few tests. Blood pressure, heart rate, prodded, poked, results all pretty normal except BS was high, did a fasting test. Also high.
Sent me for HbA1C which suggested I was almost Type 2 Diabetic.
He advised some changes to Diet and Exercise, lose some weight, and asked me to make an appointment in a few months to see how things were then.

So, since then ive changed my diet from basically eating whatever I liked when I liked to avoiding Sugar and Carb heavy stuff, lost over 2 stone, and tried to move around more.

What i'm struggling with is that despite all this and as I come up to the point where I need to make the return appointment I don't actually feel much better in myself most of the time. I still have an ache in my chest, almost like heartburn, still have tingling lips and ringing in my ears almost constantly. Shoulders ache, back aches... I've just spent a miserable Christmas Day trying to avoid anything that may be remotely "bad" and it struck me that this is what I've been doing for 3 months and yet I don't feel any better.

Sometimes I go through a period of a few days when I feel great. I have energy and I don't ache and have the weird feeling in my lips. I start to think "maybe it is helping after all" and that spurs me on a little. Then the next week I'm back to feeling run down and aching again.

I'm not sure if there is something else I should be doing. I realise that this is probably the result of a lifetime of not really concerning myself with what I was eating and drinking and that i'm not going to "fix" anything in a few months.
But i'd say on the whole I actually feel worse now than when I first went to my GP...

So, I guess my question is, what should I be seeing from the changes I've made? Anything?
Are these symptoms normal for Type2 Diabetes?
The aches in my chest concern me a little, although GP didn't think it was anything to worry about.
The weird tightness in my wrists has mostly gone though, which is the only symptom I can say I don't feel now.
GP seems to think I was borderline with my initial results suggesting Type 2 Diabetes but with my HbA1C being under.

 

[Guzzler]

So sorry you seem to have had a miserable Christmas.

We are not doctors so we cannot diagnose you but we will try to help. May I ask you some questions? You do not have to answer any of them but it could help members to give advice. You say say you have changed your diet and have been avoiding the starchy carbs so it would help if you could give us an example of a typical day's meals and snacks. Some of the symptoms you are having are unfamiliar to me but to be honest,I had none on diagnosis but they may ring a bell with other members.

It would help us if you know the result of your HbA1c blood test or the results of other tests if you have them and are comfortable with sharing them.

I do hope that you feel better in the morning and that you can enjoy at least some of the festive season. Best wishes.

 

[L1ncslass]

Sorry your not feeling great! I'm not a Dr but have been on a LCHF diet for about 14 years, tho more strict since my diagnoses in October.

You say you've cut down on sugar/starch are you following a Low Carb High Fat [LCHF] diet?

What does a typical days menu look like

What is your daily intake of carbs?

If you are, have you upped your fat content, this is the fuel the body needs in place of the glucose?

 

[Speedbird]

Please get your B12 and Vit D checked too. It helped me with my aches and pains and easy enough to do at your surgery. X

 

[Type2T3]

Thanks for the replies.

Yes pretty much low carb high fat.
Im heating a lot more eggs and meat than i used to and trying to avoid too much beigeness ☺

Not sure what my HbA1C was as at the time honestly I didnt have a clue what it was or what it meant. GP did tell me but i dont remember it.
I do have a meter and generally when i test a couple of hour after eating sensibly im in the 7-8 range. Although, and this is something that I dont think im really getting about blood sugar levels, i usually feel okay a couple of hours after eating.
Lowest reading ive had in the last 2 months is 5.4 which was a couple of weeks ago when i felt really run down and just wanted to sleep. I actually hoped it would either be really high or really low as it least it would seem to make sense to me!

Thanks for the comments and especially on the vitamins as thats something I have been thinking about recently. Im not sure if i was tested for those last time i went but ill speak to the doc in the new year.

 

[L1ncslass]

What are you eating to increase your fat intake, what is a typical meal, are you counting your carb intake?

 

[Daibell]

Hi. Overall the symptoms you describe are not, to me, related strongly to diabetes and could be many things. The thing about pre-T2 diabetes is that there will normally be very few symptoms. You need to see the GP to find out more about your symptoms.

 

[first14808]

Some of your symptoms sound a bit like mine. So GP ordered a bunch of blood tests for 'TATT', or 'Tired All The Time'. Cause could have been any number of things, which is why docs do a range of tests to try and identify or eliminate causes. Other things could have caused my symptoms, eg anaemia, thyroid problems etc. Additional symptoms I experienced were going to the loo a lot, and sweating a lot at night. Since being diagnosed & changing my diet to low carb, that was a noticeable quick fix.

And thanks to this forum, I also learned I was doing the wrong things. So feeling run down, need an energy boost, eat something sweet.. Which is pretty much the opposite of what I needed to do.

 

[Kentoldlady1]

Hello, sorry to hear you are poorly. I think you really need to insist that your gp takes you seriously and get some proper tests done. Iron, vit b, d etc. Your symptoms could be a number of things, and having one problem.does not mean that there is something else as well.

Dont want to be pessimistic, thats not what I mean! But I am t2d and hypothyroid, 2 things which often go together. Now having a better idea about both I feel much better. But do go back.to your gp. Get the blood results for everything and come back. Good luck with it all.x