General illness.

[hemase]

I know as diabetics our immune system is not as good as it should be and we are more likely to pick up colds and any other illness going round. My question for you all is this- when we get colds and stuff do you find it affects you worse now?
I have been T2 for over a year now. Before I was hardly ever ill, never got a cold or flu or anything. In the last year I have trebled the amount of times I have been ill.
I have a cold at the moment and last night felt so bad I had to come home from work early. This is something I would never have done.
I suppose this is just a long way of saying does the diabetes make you feel worse when you are ill?

Its not how hard we hit, its how hard we can get hit and keep moving forward.

 

[PhilT]

Basically diabetics should not be any more susceptable to illness than non-diabetics, the problem is when we do become ill it usually affects us more and takes us a bit longer to get better.

 

[Caroline]

I was also told we are no more likely to get ill than anyone else. I don't think it is we do get ill more than anyone else, we are just more aware of what is going on and pick up on it more quickley.

These days, if I get anything I'm not sure about that isn't getting better in a day or two I'm off to the doctor, or if it hurts and I can't get an appointment, to A&E.

 

[Northerner]

Illness for a diabetic can make your blood sugar go higher (or lower, in some!) and this can make you feel worse. If it's a cold or something, the higher blood sugar could make you more dehydrated as you try and flush the excess sugar. I've been fortunate not to have suffered illness since diagnosis, except the odd sniffle, but I would imagine that we feel the symptoms coming sooner and they probab ly feel as thought they're taking longer to go afterwards, giving the illusion that the illness is lasting longer. I think a lot will depend on what your levels are generally, and how easily you are able to correct the elevation with medication.

 

[Steff]

At the minute hemase i could write you a book of whats wrong with me , the one thing i notice is im getting a cold more frequent i just had one 2 weeks ago it went and now i have another it is very tiring more then anything else.

 

[Corrine]

I've got another one too - only just got rid of the last one! I do put that down to working in close proximity with several others who also have germs and being in an air conditioned office. I think we just recycle every ones elses lurgy!

 

[Caroline]

I've got another one too - only just got rid of the last one! I do put that down to working in close proximity with several others who also have germs and being in an air conditioned office. I think we just recycle every ones elses lurgy!

It is amazing how the coughs colds and other bugs circulate in the air conditioning. My consolation is even the cheif executive is not exempt...

 

[Corrine]

It is amazing how the coughs colds and other bugs circulate in the air conditioning. My consolation is even the cheif executive is not exempt...

True - but he does sit on the top floor in a massive office with a really thick blue carpet.......us normal people have to mingle with others and get a threadbare pinky carpet for our troubles.....(well, maybe its not exactly threadbare!)