Hello from a very newbie

[Jenny105]

HI My test was last week . The only 2 things I know is that my glucose levels are high as is my Vit B. My appointment with a nurse comes next week. I really didnt expect to be here as my weight (until it fell) was under 10 stone. My BMI came at 25 green (this may have been wrong) Exercise comes out at over 400mins a week. So this was the last. Just shows you can never tell. I live in the south, near the sea and the hills. I have a large hearing loss so I have a Sound Support Dog we have to go for myriad walks everyday for an hour. Both off our leads 😎.

 

[Inka]

Welcome @Jenny105 🙂 You mention your weight falling - have you lost weight recently without really trying? Or did you mean something else?

Yes, a diabetes diagnosis is a shock. It’s stressful but once you get into the swing of things it does get easier. There’s lots of support here so feel free to ask anything you want no matter how small.

 

[Jenny105]

What comes next ? I havent seen any results but see a nurse next week. What is she likely to tell me on the first meet up.

Welcome @Jenny105 🙂 You mention your weight falling - have you lost weight recently without really trying? Or did you mean something else?

Yes, a diabetes diagnosis is a shock. It’s stressful but once you get into the swing of things it does get easier. There’s lots of support here so feel free to ask anything you want no matter how small.

Thanks Inka. About 2m ago I went on holiday. On return I weighed myself , odd - no gain. Over the next 5 weeks I lost 9lbs. Then 2 weekends ago I became desparately thirsty , was visiting the loo a lot and at night. I wrote a note to the GP . She ordered my regular test I have for another condition and added diabetes and urine infection. The symptoms subsided as quickly as they came. And havent returned. But the tests came back as high glucose and Vit B. Ive just started medication. Im tending to avoid sugars and looking at the carbs. However a friend whos been through this says to wait for the appointment.

 

[Inka]

Ah, ok. The reason I asked was because weight loss (losing weight quickly without trying) can be associated with Type 1 diabetes. If there’s any doubt about your diabetes type do push to have further tests. Too many adults are assumed to be Type 2 when they’re actually Type 1, so if a new member is slim, lost weight recently without trying, doesn’t really fit the profile, I always mention it.

I suggest making a list of questions for your upcoming appointment and having paper and pen on you to note down figures. It’s so easy to forget when you’re being bombarded with info and are still coming to terms with the diagnosis.

If you’re up to keeping a food diary too, that can be useful - both to the nurse and to you.

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Welcome to the forum @Jenny105

Sorry to hear about your unexpected diagnosis. Hopefully you will get some good pointers when your nurse next week - and as @Inka says it would be good to get a confirmation of your diabetes type. Sometimes age is the dominant factor for many healthcare professionals in terms of assigning a type to begin with - but there are many high profile cases that demonstrate that T1 can be diagnosed at any age. Theresa May and Lyndsay Hoyle spring to mind from recent years!

If you get breathlessness, ‘pear drop‘ breath, abdominal pain, nausea or vomiting in the meantime, do call NHS111 or consider visiting A&E

 

[Jenny105]

Welcome to the forum @Jenny105

Sorry to hear about your unexpected diagnosis. Hopefully you will get some good pointers when your nurse next week - and as @Inka says it would be good to get a confirmation of your diabetes type. Sometimes age is the dominant factor for many healthcare professionals in terms of assigning a type to begin with - but there are many high profile cases that demonstrate that T1 can be diagnosed at any age. Theresa May and Lyndsay Hoyle spring to mind from recent years!

If you get breathlessness, ‘pear drop‘ breath, abdominal pain, nausea or vomiting in the meantime, do call NHS111 or consider visiting A&E

Thank you for the reassurance and advice. Ive just found my level HbA1c as 98. My vit B as 2000. I'll be patient. Are there any foods to concentrate on adjusting ? Or just wait.

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

Thank you for the reassurance and advice. Ive just found my level HbA1c as 98. My vit B as 2000. I'll be patient. Are there any foods to concentrate on adjusting ? Or just wait.

Well reducing sweet and sugary things, and cutting back on portions of carbohydrates will probably be helpful in the interim - as will keeping well hydrated.

 

[Jenny105]

Well reducing sweet and sugary things, and cutting back on portions of carbohydrates will probably be helpful in the interim - as will keeping well hydrated.

Right on.. yes Ive been packet , bottle , tin watching . And have made some changes to main meals.
I love fruit but am confused by advice re fruit eg baked apple/ raisins with no sugar yogurt ??? . Mixed berry fruits with tea spoon fromage frais ?? Slice of melon ? for dessert etc. Is there a section on this.

 

[Leadinglights]

Right on.. yes Ive been packet , bottle , tin watching . And have made some changes to main meals.
I love fruit but am confused by advice re fruit eg baked apple/ raisins with no sugar yogurt ??? . Mixed berry fruits with tea spoon fromage frais ?? Slice of melon ? for dessert etc. Is there a section on this.

That is good that you have started to make changes to your meals. If you are used to having deserts then there are quite a few things you can have. the mixed berries either with cream or full fat yoghurt or the protein yoghurt/quark deserts and add some seeds or nuts. It is the raisins which will make the baked apple a bit high carb so be careful with that but with cream or creme fraise or fromage frais, but no need for only a teaspoonful. Sugarfree jelly is something else with added berries which is good. You can make a fruit crumble using ground almonds instead of flour and add seeds and nuts to the topping. Melon is not too bad, just watch the portion size.
It is better to avoid low fat yoghurts as the tend to be higher carb than full fat so check out the nutritional information and look for total carbohydrate not just sugar.
Have a look for keto or low carb puddings on Google.

 

[Inka]

Right on.. yes Ive been packet , bottle , tin watching . And have made some changes to main meals.
I love fruit but am confused by advice re fruit eg baked apple/ raisins with no sugar yogurt ??? . Mixed berry fruits with tea spoon fromage frais ?? Slice of melon ? for dessert etc. Is there a section on this.

I replied on the Fruit thread you commented on @Jenny105 🙂

 

[Jenny105]

I replied on the Fruit thread you commented on @Jenny105 🙂

Apoloies, still finding my way around.

 

[Inka]

Apoloies, still finding my way around.

No need to apologise 🙂 I was just mentioning it to be helpful and because the forum notifications sometimes don’t alert to every reply.

 

[Jenny105]

🙂 thats ok Im always apologising. I had a nice lunch Brown rice, onion, mushroom and chicken. With a drink of milk as dessert. This afternoon we are going to an open garden. With tea !!!! I'll enjoy a cup of tea, maybe half a plain bare scone. We walked for an hour this morning. ...........

 

[Camperman]

HI My test was last week . The only 2 things I know is that my glucose levels are high as is my Vit B. My appointment with a nurse comes next week. I really didnt expect to be here as my weight (until it fell) was under 10 stone. My BMI came at 25 green (this may have been wrong) Exercise comes out at over 400mins a week. So this was the last. Just shows you can never tell. I live in the south, near the sea and the hills. I have a large hearing loss so I have a Sound Support Dog we have to go for myriad walks everyday for an hour. Both off our leads 😎.

Sounds like me! Low weight, exercise etc. I'm struggling to keep my blood sugar in check.

 

[Jenny105]

Excuse another question. What causes weight loss in some?. I lost 9lbs before my test. Weight 8stone 12 (56kg?). This loss halted for 2 weeks but this morning it dropped about 2lb. I walked for 1 1/2 hrs yesterday , could that be the reason? Im only curious not concerned as I see the nurse this week.

 

[Jenny105]

Sounds like me! Low weight, exercise etc. I'm struggling to keep my blood sugar in check.

Camperman - Im glad there's a fellow spirit out there. I take a med called lithium carbonate which bumped my weight up by 3 stone. Eventually I manage 9 stone 7 . Thats when the symptoms started. I have a Sound Support Dog which means walking for an hour each day, including playing ball, running after the dog. And I do Aqua class and swim twice a week. I am 70 which seems to be a factor.

 

[SB2015]

No need to apologise for asking questions. That is what the forum is for, and people are only too happy to help.

You asked what causes weight loss. When I was diagnosed with T1 I lost 1 1/2 stone in a week. This was due to lack of insulin and my body using up the fat stores I had to keep me going Before I was diagnosed. Once on insulin my weight stabilised and recovered as much as I wanted it to, as I was then eating what I wanted when I wanted.

It will be interesting to see what results you get from your nurse. It may be worth mentioning that you would like to be tested for T1, if they have not already done this. Some are misdiagnosed as T2 because T1 in adults often develops more slowly than in children so we manage on the remaining beta cells (that make the insulin) until some sort of overload uncorks such as an infection when our insulin resistance goes up so our body can’t use the remaining stuff as well.

your weight loss may be nothing to do with this, and if T2 and now reducing carbs and exercising more this could well be the reason. I only get weighed at the GP and/or hospital so I have no idea how much variation is possible after exercise, but others may be able to advise on that.

Fire away with absolutely any questions that arise.

 

[Inka]

Excuse another question. What causes weight loss in some?. I lost 9lbs before my test. Weight 8stone 12 (56kg?). This loss halted for 2 weeks but this morning it dropped about 2lb. I walked for 1 1/2 hrs yesterday , could that be the reason? Im only curious not concerned as I see the nurse this week.

Weight loss can be a symptom of Type 1 as I mentioned before. I remember the weight dropped off me and the more I ate the more it seemed to fall off. I remember my nurse saying that although I was eating lots my body couldn’t use the food (because of the undiagnosed Type 1) and was starving so was ‘eating itself’ - ie using up its fat and muscle stores.

Don’t let them palm you off about what type you are. Some GP nurses are quite ignorant about Type 1 and think it’s a childhood condition. That’s not true at all.in fact, more people are diagnosed as adults than children, I believe.

In order to rule out Type 1, you’d need a C Peptide test and a Type 1 antibodies test. The C Peptide test will be useful anyway even if you have Type 2 because it will show how much insulin you’re producing.

 

[Camperman]

Camperman - Im glad there's a fellow spirit out there. I take a med called lithium carbonate which bumped my weight up by 3 stone. Eventually I manage 9 stone 7 . Thats when the symptoms started. I have a Sound Support Dog which means walking for an hour each day, including playing ball, running after the dog. And I do Aqua class and swim twice a week. I am 70 which seems to be a factor.

It is nice to see a few on here that seem to be in a similar boat to me!
I'm to speak to my consultant and gp start of next week so hopefully I can initiate a change to my meds etc and see an improvement.

 

[Jenny105]

Camperman - Im glad there's a fellow spirit out there. I take a med called lithium carbonate which bumped my weight up by 3 stone. Eventually I manage 9 stone 7 . Thats when the symptoms started. I have a Sound Support Dog which means walking for an hour each day, including playing ball, running after the dog. And I do Aqua class and swim twice a week. I am 70 which seems to be a factor.

No need to apologise for asking questions. That is what the forum is for, and people are only too happy to help.

You asked what causes weight loss. When I was diagnosed with T1 I lost 1 1/2 stone in a week. This was due to lack of insulin and my body using up the fat stores I had to keep me going Before I was diagnosed. Once on insulin my weight stabilised and recovered as much as I wanted it to, as I was then eating what I wanted when I wanted.

It will be interesting to see what results you get from your nurse. It may be worth mentioning that you would like to be tested for T1, if they have not already done this. Some are misdiagnosed as T2 because T1 in adults often develops more slowly than in children so we manage on the remaining beta cells (that make the insulin) until some sort of overload uncorks such as an infection when our insulin resistance goes up so our body can’t use the remaining stuff as well.

your weight loss may be nothing to do with this, and if T2 and now reducing carbs and exercising more this could well be the reason. I only get weighed at the GP and/or hospital so I have no idea how much variation is possible after exercise, but others may be able to advise on that.

Fire away with absolutely any questions that arise.

Thanks . Weds will be interesting as this seemed to come on over a few weeks with symptoms over a week end. Now theyve gone . Much appreciate your reply