A proper intro - too shocked at first

[Jenny105]

Hi Im giving a better intro than the first one. I'm 70 and live far South. I'm severely deaf , with a sound support dog - Hearing Dogs. He needs to be exercised off lead for an hour each day. I also swim @ local UNI. On July 12th I weighed 9stone 7 (down from 11stone 3, 5 yrs ago. Up from 8stone 8 24yrs ago. ) We went away for a few days
On return I was still 9.7. Odd... On Aug 8th my weight was 8st 12. That week end I had terrible thirst, urination night and day. But on the Monday it stopped. My doc was contacted & quarterly blood tests had diabetes added in. Result Ab1c2 96 18.6. (Also B12 1400. later rose to 2000) I and she were very surprised @both
DB Nurse gave me little info. The sudden onslaught suggested 1.5 (LADA) . I was given a Glaucomen metre - test. 18.6 told to test once a day and report back. Metformin 500 x 2 given . It had to be swopped to slow release. I was told to contact My Desmond , I couldnt . I'd already found Diabetes UK tho. Thanks for your help and support and answering interminable queries. I now have a new nurse who is more forthcoming.
On Metformin S R and lowish carbs finger test results 5.4 - 10.4 in past week. Weight 8stone 2, but hoping it will rise with more food and more good fats. Thanks again.
PS 10yrs ago. I now can think of symptoms that appeared around that time, bladder & fatigue

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Lovely to hear a bit more of your story @Jenny105

Sounds like you are getting on really well, and glad you have found a more forthcoming nurse. Hope the SR Met is treating you well.

 

[Adehem]

Hi @Jenny105 , Similar story to me. I was 60 and lost nearly 2 stone ( went from 11.5 to 9 stone). had a blood test told I was type 2. Went through metfromin, glitazides then insulin. Stated with a mixed insulin. Eventually the nurse got me onto a quick acting and long acting insulin. Had a blood test to see if I was type 1 and it sowed I was. I am 63 now have a Freestyle Libre 2 machine so no more finger pricks.

 

[SB2015]

Thanks for the detail around your diagnosis @Jenny105

It sounds like you have got your head round things and managing effectively. As @Adeham found LADA is often misdiagnosed as T2 and people manage for a while with T2 meds.

Do you know if they did a GAD antibody test, or c-peptide test, along with the HbA1c? Those are more expensive tests so sometimes left out if they are confident of their diagnosis. Just keep a watch on levels and weight.

 

[Jenny105]

Thanks for the detail around your diagnosis @Jenny105

It sounds like you have got your head round things and managing effectively. As @Adeham found LADA is often misdiagnosed as T2 and people manage for a while with T2 meds.

Do you know if they did a GAD antibody test, or c-peptide test, along with the HbA1c? Those are more expensive tests so sometimes left out if they are confident of their diagnosis. Just keep a watch on levels and weight.

@SB2015 My new nurse seems more clued up. Ive asked her to ring me as Im confused re those tests mentioned. I took a urine sample in but the blood test nurse seemed shocked by this. There seems to be no result listed on my Patient Access list for this. I'm due for more quarterly tests in early Nov plus HbA1c test. I'll ask Doc about both tests at the end of October. Is it possible to appear doing well on Metformin but still be LADA (type 1.5). I believe a member intimated this a few weeks back.

 

[Jenny105]

Hi @Jenny105 , Similar story to me. I was 60 and lost nearly 2 stone ( went from 11.5 to 9 stone). had a blood test told I was type 2. Went through metfromin, glitazides then insulin. Stated with a mixed insulin. Eventually the nurse got me onto a quick acting and long acting insulin. Had a blood test to see if I was type 1 and it sowed I was. I am 63 now have a Freestyle Libre 2 machine so no more finger pricks.

😉

Lovely to hear a bit more of your story @Jenny105

Sounds like you are getting on really well, and glad you have found a more forthcoming nurse. Hope the SR Met is treating you well.

@everydayupsanddowns Thanks SR Met is ok. Ordinary was not 😳

 

[trophywench]

LADA may respond to Type 2 treatment to begin with so fools everyone into thinking it's T2 - and then stops responding - at which point nothing except insulin works at all.

 

[trophywench]

Oh PS - I much prefer your avatar pic now - your hair suits your face better !

 

[Jenny105]

Thanks for reposting I'll ask the nurse about this when she phones. When it stops responding do the readings go back up ??

 

[Jenny105]

LADA may respond to Type 2 treatment to begin with so fools everyone into thinking it's T2 - and then stops responding - at which point nothing except insulin works at all.

Is their a general point in time when this happens - weeks , months , years or varies ?

 

[trophywench]

Sadly for you - no.

 

[SB2015]

With LADA the destruction of the beta cells is usually a lot slower than for youngsters.
(Everything seems to slow down a bit as I get older!). So the metformin can help for a while as your body makes better use of the insulin that there is. With this your BG is likely to start to creep up gradually or you manage by reducing the carbs so less insulin is needed, but eventually there are so few beta cells left they go on strike. This is often triggered by some other illness, such as a cold, which overloads the beta cells asking for more insulin. people often then develop more extreme symptoms. As others have said a GP/ Practice nurse will often assume that you must be T2 if you are over 40!! (I was diagnosed LADA/T1 at the age of 53, but by then I had Lost 1 1/2 st in a week and was thirsty, tired and going to the toilet VERY regularly.)

The c-peptide test will tell them how much insulin your body is producing.
The GAD antibody test detects if there are any of these antibodies which are the pests that are triggered to destroy your beta cells.

let us know how you get on.

 

[Jenny105]

With LADA the destruction of the beta cells is usually a lot slower than for youngsters.
(Everything seems to slow down a bit as I get older!). So the metformin can help for a while as your body makes better use of the insulin that there is. With this your BG is likely to start to creep up gradually or you manage by reducing the carbs so less insulin is needed, but eventually there are so few beta cells left they go on strike. This is often triggered by some other illness, such as a cold, which overloads the beta cells asking for more insulin. people often then develop more extreme symptoms. As others have said a GP/ Practice nurse will often assume that you must be T2 if you are over 40!! (I was diagnosed LADA/T1 at the age of 53, but by then I had Lost 1 1/2 st in a week and was thirsty, tired and going to the toilet VERY regularly.)

The c-peptide test will tell them how much insulin your body is producing.
The GAD antibody test detects if there are any of these antibodies which are the pests that are triggered to destroy your beta cells.

let us know how you get on.

@trophywench Thanks for the info.. I have a new Nurse 😉 🙂 . She spent 30+ mins in a phone call and is sending me some items by post. She's aware of the Type 1.5 LADA and is going to check re tests for this. She says to contact her via message system anytime . This week my one a day , varied times are showing 7ish most times. Im upping the carbs gradually.

 

[trophywench]

LOL - I think you meant to 'tag' either just @SB2015 or possibly, both of us as my reply was very short and to the point! 🙂 The sheer fact nursie spent that much time talking to you and finding things out about you, also knowing what you are on about, to me looks like a very good sign for your future help and health!

Do you now feel more at ease in yourself with this?

 

[SB2015]

@trophywench Thanks for the info.. I have a new Nurse 😉 🙂 . She spent 30+ mins in a phone call and is sending me some items by post. She's aware of the Type 1.5 LADA and is going to check re tests for this. She says to contact her via message system anytime . This week my one a day , varied times are showing 7ish most times. Im upping the carbs gradually.

That is excellent news @Jenny105
Great to hear that you have such a knowledgeable nurse that you can access.

let us know how things progress.

 

[Jenny105]

My confidence is rising with the new Nurse Rachel. Shes sent me some info and suggested some leaflets from Diabetes UK. Some of the leaflets are out but I guess they'll come in shortly. Ive been sent a discovery sheet for a weeks reading to discover any food groups that are less friendly than others. Any tips on the sheet. Eat fairly normally but reduced carbs? Add in suspect foods? etc etc.

 

[Jenny105]

Ketones urine test as soon as I track down a white topped sample bottle...... What are ketones and why test? Should I be ultra careful with diet tomorrow in preparation . I'm away from home but can be careful.

 

[Robin]

Ketones urine test as soon as I track down a white topped sample bottle...... What are ketones and why test? Should I be ultra careful with diet tomorrow in preparation . I'm away from home but can be careful.

Ketones are what your body produces when you are burning a lot of fat for energy, They can be dietary, ie, caused by a low carb diet, or when you are needing extra energy so your body is raiding your fat stores, or they can be as a result of high blood sugars, which are the 'nasty' ones, as if they are very high, they can be a sign that the body is entering a state of Diabetic Ketoacidosis. There are two methods of testing for them, a urine dipstick test, or a blood fingerprick (my blood glucose meter also takes ketone strips). The urine strips are cheaper, but a rather crude way of testing, as you compare the colour against a chart, so the answer you get is rather 'ball-park'.
I can’t think why your nurse is doing one particularly, if she was worried about ketones, she should have summoned you for a finger prick test immediately. As she hasn’t, she can’t be that worried.

 

[Inka]

Ketones urine test as soon as I track down a white topped sample bottle...... What are ketones and why test? Should I be ultra careful with diet tomorrow in preparation . I'm away from home but can be careful.

It’s a bit strange to test for ketones now, as @Robin has said, but no, you don’t have to be extra-careful with your diet. Just eat normally.

 

[rebrascora]

I would guess that the ketone test is part of the deliberation about which Type Jenny actually is, since there is some question mark over it. Of course it will tell them very little when her BG levels are not too bad due to following a lower carb way of eating and of course it is a much quicker and cheaper test than C-peptide or GAD antibody tests. I imagine it may be more a question of putting a tick in a box and I have certainly seen people say that they didn't have ketones so the nurse said they must be Type 2 so it is sometimes used to rule out Type 1 when in fact it is unlikely to tell them anything unless ketones come back very high which of course would indicate Type 1 but a negative test doesn't rule it out.

I agree that you should eat normally today rather than low carb if they are testing for ketones and it might have been helpful to eat normally for a few days before hand too, as your low carb diet is suppressing your BG levels so ketones are less likely to show at any appreciable level, even in ketosis (low carb fat burning mode).