Hello again my friends..

[KimKim2023]

Hiya - In January 2023 i joined this lovely forum concerned about a set of strange symptoms - some of which mapped to Diabeties i.e. peeing and low levels of energy. I am 67, female and here's the set of symptoms i had / have that remain unchanged.

1st - 2021 - dual tennis elbows / ache at night / great fatigue ALL the time - dont play tennis golf or hockey or use keyboard.
2nd - 2021- Hot hands / tingling hands / worse at night
3rd - 2022 - dual trigger finger
4th - 2022 - Tinnitus - continuous, high pitched
5th - 2022 - Tingling/Numb Toes and soles of feet
6th - 2022 - Nerve damage in both feet - Dec 2022 and worse in Dec 2023

Not thirst, some weight gain, no vision changes, no huge appetite. But I do pee for England like 20 times a day and have 3 cousins who are Type 2. I cannot go one hour without peeing.

Anyways, after Habc1 my tests ( all fasting pre-prandial) were 34 in Jan 2023 and then 36 in July 2023 - I sort of ruled out diabeties. However, my latest tests this autumn ( all the same Labs) were both 38. My worry = its increasing steadily?
I bought a good BGM testing thingy - and have used it for 7 days - with these initial results.
On getting up - 5.9 to 6.1 Two Hours after breakfast 7.1 to 7.8 - Two hours after evening meal 7.4 - 8.4

My B12 nd Vit D are both in mid-range. But I have been slightly anaemic throughout the year.
Any views or observations on these readings would be very helpful..

 

[rebrascora]

Hi and welcome.

Sorry to hear you are experiencing all these troubling symptoms.

Your finger prick test results look pretty normal and your HbA1c results are in the normal range, so I would say definitely not diabetes. If you are anaemic then that can lead to an increase in HbA1c, so that might be the reason it is creeping upwards slightly, plus current thinking is that HbA1c naturally increases a little bit as we get older because red blood cells are not replenished as quickly, so the ones in the blood stream are older and therefore over that extra time, a little more glucose has had the opportunity to attached to them.

As regards weeing often, whatever fluid comes out must be replaced, so either you are naturally drinking more to produce more urine (but without notable thirst) or each passing of urine is of low volume which suggests a possible issue with the bladder/urinary tract, maybe a low level infection or some hardening of the bladder meaning it can't expand as it used to to hold urine. How many times a night do you need to go or is the problem mostly during the day when you are eating and drinking? I found that HRT stopped the need for night time excursions immediately and I now sleep right through without needing to go at all, even when I have a drink before bed and daytime visits are minimal. It was an unexpected and very surprising benefit as I had assumed that it was just age, but it is just over 4 years now and even on just half a dose I still get this benefit as well as relief from the horrendous overwhelming hot sweats day and night.

Just to clarify, the thirst and weeing lots with diabetes only starts to occur when your levels are constantly above ten, but usually mid teens measured with a finger prick test and the thirst is very memorable as it is unquenchable. It started one night for me after I had been out for a meal and I literally spent all night and the next days drinking pint after pint of water and obviously going to the loo as a result. Many people with diabetes don't experience this symptom, because their levels creep up slowly and the body adjusts to the higher levels, so I think it may to be something that happens when there is a sudden and dramatic change in BG levels.

As regards the joint pain, HRT might help that too but I would push your GP to investigate further. Maybe look for inflammation markers if they haven't already.

Nerve damage in your feet may be due to peripheral artery disease (PAD) and again you should get that checked out. If you are able, walking or doing other exercises is important to stimulate blood flow to the feet, to help keep nerves and other tissue as heathy as possible or even help them regenerate in some instances. Long periods of sitting is really bad for blood flow to the feet and can lead to things getting slowly clogged up.

Those are my thoughts on your situation. I am not a medical professional so can only speak from my own personal experience. I hope you manage to get some answers as to what the problems are and get some effective treatment. Will be interested to read other members' take on your situation.

 

[Leadinglights]

If you drink a lot of caffeine in the tea. coffee, diet coke etc then it could be that your bladder is ultra sensitive to the caffeine and is being irritated which stimulates the need to pee a lot.
It could be problems with muscle control if you also get urgency as well. It would be worth asking your GP for a referral to a urologist.

 

[Inka]

You mentioned possible vitamin deficiencies in your earlier post @KimKim2023 They can cause nerve issues. A relative had deficiencies of various B vitamins which had a major effect on them and, before it was discovered, meant a visit to a neurologist. Targeted supplements basically cured them. I know you’ve mentioned B12 but there are other crucial B vitamins too.

Your blood sugar fingerprick test results look fine and your HbA1C is non-diabetic. I’d look into other causes for the urinary frequency (hormonal? Sensitivity? Excess caffeine? Too much water? Too little water, etc, etc). I’d also investigate the possibility of a trapped nerve in your neck/shoulder area. Another thought is fibromyalgia.