New here and to T2 diabetes

[Tommo77]

Hi all. New to the forum and new to T2 diabetes. I was diagnosed in March with a HBA1C of 117 down to 59 atm with the help of meds/diet. Still a way to go. Learning to deal with the diabetes but I have developed neuropathy in my feet which is proving to be a whole new ball game!

 

[Vonny]

Hi @Tommo77 and welcome to the forum 🙂 Great work getting your Hba1c down so much, you must be pleased with that. I think @Flower suffers from neuropathy so may be able to help, or at least, empathise.

Any questions, just fire away, there will always be someone here to help you. Good to have you on the forum 🙂

 

[Ditto]

Hello and welcome @Tommo77 🙂

Useful links for people new to diabetes

These links provide useful information, particularly to those newly-diagnosed. You can also browse the Recommended Books and Links sections for further information :) Contents: Type 1 Section Insulin Pumps Section Type 2 Section General Help and Information Section Complications and screening...

forum.diabetes.org.uk

 

[Ralph-YK]

Welcome to the forum Tommo, from a fellow T2.

 

[Tommo77]

Thank you!

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Welcome to the forum @Tommo77

Well done on the great HbA1c reduction!

Sorry to hear about the neuropathy - have they said whether it might be linked to the rapid drop in HbA1c? There is a transient form of neuropathy which can come on after a rapid improvement in BG levels I think?

Hope your improved BG management slows the progression of any nerve damage that has occurred, and limits the pain and discomfort.

 

[Tommo77]

Thank you. Unfortunately I’ve had no support with my neuropathy aside from medication. A friend of the family is a diabetic nurse and did mention that it might be linked to the drop in BC. This is something I should approach my GP about but he’s not very good at listening.

 

[Flower]

Hi @Tommo77 and welcome, glad you've joined us.

Sorry to hear about the pain you're having from neuropathy . As @everydayupsanddowns has said it could be transient peripheral neuropathy especially as you're recently diagnosed and have achieved an amazing reduction in HbA1c. Rapid glucose control improvements can sometimes exacerbate problems but the best ongoing treatment is stable blood glucose and hopefully as your body settles back into equilibrium the pins and needles, tingling and burning pain will start to diminish. Vitamin B12 deficiency can cause neuropathy so worth getting yours checked if things don't start to settle.

Neuropathic pain is a tough thing to deal with, standard painkillers such as paracetamol don't touch it but if after things are more settled for you and the level of pain hasn't reduced there are a number of drugs that can be tried - duloxetine, gabapentin, pregabalin, amitriptyline but give things time to settle whilst your body is readjusting to more normal glucose levels and hopefully you will notice it gradually improving . Best wishes.

 

[Tommo77]

Hi @Tommo77 and welcome, glad you've joined us.

Sorry to hear about the pain you're having from neuropathy . As @everydayupsanddowns has said it could be transient peripheral neuropathy especially as you're recently diagnosed and have achieved an amazing reduction in HbA1c. Rapid glucose control improvements can sometimes exacerbate problems but the best ongoing treatment is stable blood glucose and hopefully as your body settles back into equilibrium the pins and needles, tingling and burning pain will start to diminish. Vitamin B12 deficiency can cause neuropathy so worth getting yours checked if things don't start to settle.

Neuropathic pain is a tough thing to deal with, standard painkillers such as paracetamol don't touch it but if after things are more settled for you and the level of pain hasn't reduced there are a number of drugs that can be tried - duloxetine, gabapentin, pregabalin, amitriptyline but give things time to settle whilst your body is readjusting to more normal glucose levels and hopefully you will notice it gradually improving . Best wishes.

Hi, thank you. The pain has been quite debilitating and a bit of a shock to the system. From someone who, until February this year, never had a reason to go to the doctors, the last 8-9 months has been quite the learning curve. I’m taking Pregabalin atm and I’ve got everything crossed that it gives me some relief. I’m confident that once my BG levels are where they should be, I’ll begin to feel better.

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Hi, thank you. The pain has been quite debilitating and a bit of a shock to the system. From someone who, until February this year, never had a reason to go to the doctors, the last 8-9 months has been quite the learning curve. I’m taking Pregabalin atm and I’ve got everything crossed that it gives me some relief. I’m confident that once my BG levels are where they should be, I’ll begin to feel better.

Sorry to hear how difficult the pain has been for you. Hope the painkillers are giving you some sort of relief.

This clinical study might give you some questions to ask your GP about the sort of neuropathy you are experiencing and how likely it is to change or resolve over time

Treatment-induced neuropathy of diabetes: an acute, iatrogenic complication of diabetes - PMC

Treatment induced neuropathy of diabetes is an iatrogenic neuropathy that develops in the setting of a rapid improvement in glycaemic control. Through retrospective review of case records, Gibbons and Freeman reveal that symptom severity and the ...

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

 

[Tommo77]

Sorry to hear how difficult the pain has been for you. Hope the painkillers are giving you some sort of relief.

This clinical study might give you some questions to ask your GP about the sort of neuropathy you are experiencing and how likely it is to change or resolve over time

Treatment-induced neuropathy of diabetes: an acute, iatrogenic complication of diabetes - PMC

Treatment induced neuropathy of diabetes is an iatrogenic neuropathy that develops in the setting of a rapid improvement in glycaemic control. Through retrospective review of case records, Gibbons and Freeman reveal that symptom severity and the ...

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Thank you. I moved surgeries about two months ago and although the GP I’ve been seeing is very nice, he’s doesn’t appear to be interested in my neuropathy issues, just upping my medication and trying to treat the symptoms without really understanding the reason for them. I’m not very good at asserting myself but this is very helpful and I will certainly ask the questions.