Can private healthcare be used to get a definitive diagnosis?

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So just a wee update for anyone watching this thread...

I was away on a wee getaway over the weekend there and my bloods were abysmal. Peaked mid 20s and rarely went under 14. I emailed my nurse who spoke to the doctor and phoned me back today.

It's not a definitive diagnosis, I'm still technically between types, but they're going to take me off gliclazide and put me onto insulin. They're also going to mark me as Type 1 in my health record so that I can get the Libre sensors on prescription. Think this is so they can build up a better indication of how my diabetes is progressing. Got an appointment at the hospital tomorrow so they'll explain it all properly!
 
So pleased they are starting you on insulin and marking you down as Type 1. Personally from reading your story I would be pretty confident that you are a slow onset Type 1. The Type 1 testing is not always conclusive particularly if it is a slow onset.
Having levels that high for such a long time is really not good at all so I hope they bring you down slowly to allow your body to adjust. Do ask for a basal bolus insulin regime if they initially offer you a mixed insulin. You do have a say in this and it will help you to balance your BG and give you greater flexibility with meals, even if it does take up a bit more brain space. Great that they are prescribing you Libre too.
At last you are being given the tools to start managing your diabetes, rather than just being left to tread water.
 
rebrascora said:
So pleased they are starting you on insulin and marking you down as Type 1. Personally from reading your story I would be pretty confident that you are a slow onset Type 1. The Type 1 testing is not always conclusive particularly if it is a slow onset.
Having levels that high for such a long time is really not good at all so I hope they bring you down slowly to allow your body to adjust. Do ask for a basal bolus insulin regime if they initially offer you a mixed insulin. You do have a say in this and it will help you to balance your BG and give you greater flexibility with meals, even if it does take up a bit more brain space. Great that they are prescribing you Libre too.
At last you are being given the tools to start managing your diabetes, rather than just being left to tread water.
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On the phone with the nurse earlier, he mentioned that it would be a long-acting insulin at night (is that basal?) and then a fast-acting for meal (bolus?), so I don't think they're looking to do mixed. I suspect we'll have a more in-depth discussion tomorrow but for now it seems like everythings heading in the right direction!
 
Hi scotty, so pleased you have turned a corner. Its so hard when you have no clue what you are and even harder to explain to others…. If people ask me what type I am I just say I haven’t decided yet but I will let them know once I’ve chosen :rofl:
 
fantastic!

Did they get anywhere with blood results and where they got to?
 
EmmaL76 said:
Hi scotty, so pleased you have turned a corner. Its so hard when you have no clue what you are and even harder to explain to others…. If people ask me what type I am I just say I haven’t decided yet but I will let them know once I’ve chosen :rofl:
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That's pretty much what the nurse said :rofl:

Give me a few years then I'll decide what type I want to be :rofl:
 
gll said:
fantastic!

Did they get anywhere with blood results and where they got to?
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Yeah so I phoned up last week and they told me they got sent to Dundee. I thought it was Exeter they were sent to but hey-ho. Basically said I had a 75% chance of having MODY but tested negative for all known types. So while they've marked me down as Type 1 just now it's not a definitive answer, but at least gets me a bit further forward in terms of treatment.
 
How do you feel about insulin and all that goes with it?
By now of course you know there's plenty of peoples here who will answer anything that comes up that you aren't sure about.
 
gll said:
How do you feel about insulin and all that goes with it?
By now of course you know there's plenty of peoples here who will answer anything that comes up that you aren't sure about.
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Honestly I'm not too stressed about it. I get that it'll be a bit of brain work trying to figure out how much I need, but I think I'm mentally ready for that :rofl:

My biggest issue will be the actual injections I think. I struggled badly at the beginning with the finger pricking, and that's when I couldn't even see the needle! It's just one of those things I think, where I'll struggle at first but it'll become second nature. I mean, it'll have to! :rofl:
 
gll said:
How do you feel about insulin and all that goes with it?
By now of course you know there's plenty of peoples here who will answer anything that comes up that you aren't sure about.
Click to expand...
I think the advantage of being given the Type 1 label is we don't have a choice,
There is no "how do I feel about insulin?" Compared to the alternative (high BG levels and death), I love injecting 😎
 
scottwatters said:
Honestly I'm not too stressed about it. I get that it'll be a bit of brain work trying to figure out how much I need, but I think I'm mentally ready for that :rofl:

My biggest issue will be the actual injections I think. I struggled badly at the beginning with the finger pricking, and that's when I couldn't even see the needle! It's just one of those things I think, where I'll struggle at first but it'll become second nature. I mean, it'll have to! :rofl:
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I was diagnosed 3 months ago, and I hate injections! And I'd never known anyone with T1D; so, when it emerged that I might be, I imagined insulin injections as involving some sort of huge needle like a vet might use on a horse ...

Turns out the insulin pen needles are teeny tiny little things! Very short and also very thin; I feel them much, much less than I feel the lancets when I have to prick my finger. I'm still not exactly wild about injecting! but it is nowhere near as bad as I thought it would be. Fingers crossed the same applies to you; and hope your appointment goes well!
 
scottwatters said:
Hi all,

Recently at work we've had a 'learning week' of sorts, and I dialled in to one of the sessions around working with a chronic condition. On the call, lots of people kept swearing by the private healthcare provided through our work, and I wondered if it could be used for diabetes.

While I know I'm diabetic, I have still not got a definitive answer of what type I am. So far, I've been told I'm not type 1, might be type 2, might need to go on insulin, won't need to go on insulin, might be MODY. I've been waiting nearly 7 months to get my results back for my MODY diagnosis and still continuing on with my original dosage of gliclazide.

Is there some way that getting a diagnosis could be covered through private healthcare so that I can get a final diagnosis quicker? Has anyone had any experience of this? I know that it doesn't cover ongoing treatment, which is fine, I'm just purely interested in finding out what type I am, mainly for closure! :rofl:
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In January of this year I was diagnosed with my Type 1 by using my PMI (Bupa) which covered the initial Consultation with a Consultant Endocrinologist and the tests necessary for diagnosis, after I displayed the original acute symptoms that then led to my diagnosis, I got an appointment the day after my GP had diagnosed Type 2 initially.

I was then transferred into the NHS on the same day and was sat with a Diabetic Nurse within an hour, my PMI doesn't support the ongoing treatment and the private sector isn't set up to do that.

Hope that's helpful.
 
helli said:
I think the advantage of being given the Type 1 label is we don't have a choice,
There is no "how do I feel about insulin?" Compared to the alternative (high BG levels and death), I love injecting 😎
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that usually swings it 😉

scottwatters said:
Honestly I'm not too stressed about it. I get that it'll be a bit of brain work trying to figure out how much I need, but I think I'm mentally ready for that :rofl:

My biggest issue will be the actual injections I think. I struggled badly at the beginning with the finger pricking, and that's when I couldn't even see the needle! It's just one of those things I think, where I'll struggle at first but it'll become second nature. I mean, it'll have to! :rofl:
Click to expand...

Your nurse should lead you with regards to dosing and you'll probs know by now reading stuff on here that it wont be the right dose to start with. Adjusting will come in time.
Be patient and be kind to yourself. you will get there <3

I'm just glad somethings being done at last.
How many boxes of lancets got used to tally up the wait time on the walls in the end? :rofl:

Good luck and you can rely on @EmmaL76 and I to add much needed sarcasm help, to your posts if you need it :D
 
Cromp said:
In January of this year I was diagnosed with my Type 1 by using my PMI (Bupa) which covered the initial Consultation with a Consultant Endocrinologist and the tests necessary for diagnosis, after I displayed the original acute symptoms that then led to my diagnosis, I got an appointment the day after my GP had diagnosed Type 2 initially.

I was then transferred into the NHS on the same day and was sat with a Diabetic Nurse within an hour, my PMI doesn't support the ongoing treatment and the private sector isn't set up to do that.

Hope that's helpful.
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Thanks, that's really helpful. I knew the private care wouldn't cover the ongoing treatment so I knew that going in. Mainly I just wanted to get a diagnosis, but that seemed to happen before I had time to phone up :rofl:
 
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