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Hi all newbies

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Carolg

Well-Known Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Type 2
hello to everyone new and welcome to forum.
 
Hi - i have just been diagnosed with diabetes and have an appointment to see a doctor on friday about this. my diagnosis has come out of the blue, never had any problems/symptoms justa routine blood test to check my medication levels as i had a heart attack in August 15 - these tests showed i am diabetic with a reading of 52. i have looked everywhere and i can not find an answer as to WHY i and others develop diabetes, i know what it is by not why it happens, are there any triggers, like my heart attack perhaps? thanks for reading this, i am completely lost with this.
 
Hi Sarah and welcome to forum. There's lots of people on the forum who will come along and can answer lots of questions or give you links. I'm a not so newbie and was more unwell than I realised, and also had lots of why questions
 
thank you Carolg. hopefully i can get some answers when i see the doctor on friday and any help from here would be fantastic - feeling like i am stuck in limbo at the moment not knowing what, where, or when i should be doing or not doing something. i have had a look at some of the recipies that are about but i have other health issues that prevent me eating a lot of the food recommended for diabetics.

perhaps you can explain the why? - i understand that the insulin works as key in a lock and that if it is broken or not working properly then this is diabetes - WHAT causes the key to stop working or prevents it working properly? i cant find an answer for this anywhere
 
Hi Sarah. Look at the post from northerner- useful information for people with type 2diabetes. There's lots of good info. I bought some of the books to try to make sense of what I was doing. Not sure of the answer to your question, but I am sure soon someone else will help you. Try not to get too hung up on the how, and write all your questions down.take a notepad with you to doc appointment and ask anything you need to know and write down the answers and any advice. i apologised every time I went as I felt I took up too much time, but gp and nurse were excellent, handing me the tissues as required and listening to my fears. Hope this helps a bit and remember- no question is daft and if you ask it, it can help someone else. Carol
 
Sarah Thomas said:
Hi - i have just been diagnosed with diabetes and have an appointment to see a doctor on friday about this. my diagnosis has come out of the blue, never had any problems/symptoms justa routine blood test to check my medication levels as i had a heart attack in August 15 - these tests showed i am diabetic with a reading of 52. i have looked everywhere and i can not find an answer as to WHY i and others develop diabetes, i know what it is by not why it happens, are there any triggers, like my heart attack perhaps? thanks for reading this, i am completely lost with this.
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Hi @Sarah Thomas , welcome to the forum 🙂 Diabetes has a very strong genetic link, so even if they were not aware of it, you may have family history of diabetes. Type 2 diabetes can be insidious, and you can live quite happily with it for some time without realising that anything is amiss as your body gradually adapts to the higher than normal blood sugar levels. However, high levels can cause damage over time, so it is good that you have got a diagnosis and will now get help and treatment to help you get things under control 🙂 Your number of 52 is not especially high, so it looks as though it has been caught early, which is good news (and probably why you didn't have symptoms). Ideally, your aim is to get that number below 48 - the lower, the better, but below 48 is the 'magic' figure 🙂

Do please have a browse of our Useful Links thread - particularly Jennifer's Advice and Maggie Davey's letter. I'd also highly recommend getting a copy of Type 2 Diabetes: The First Year by Gretchen Becker - these will really help you understand what it is all about 🙂

Please ask any questions you may have, there is a wealth of knowledge and experience here, so always someone with an answer 🙂 Diabetes is serious, but the good news is that it can be managed well and lead to you feeling much healthier than you may have done for some time! True! 🙂
 
Many thanks everyone for your replies. I have asked the family and no one else has ever been diagnosed diabetic. I am wondering if it has anything to do with my heart attack last August and subsequent meds etc. what ever the cause, at least I know about it and can deal with it x. Thanks again everyone, I'll probably be back with more questions, hopefully not annoy you too much xx
 
Sarah Thomas said:
Many thanks everyone for your replies. I have asked the family and no one else has ever been diagnosed diabetic. I am wondering if it has anything to do with my heart attack last August and subsequent meds etc. what ever the cause, at least I know about it and can deal with it x. Thanks again everyone, I'll probably be back with more questions, hopefully not annoy you too much xx
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Bring on the questions Sarah! 🙂 What meds were you put on after your heart attack? Some steroids can cause temporary (in some cases, permanent) higher than normal blood sugars. What were the circumstances of your heart attack?
 
I have to take blood thinners, anti rejection, statins, meds to lower cholesterol and blood pressure. My heart attack was caused by a blood clot blocking an artery - just simple bad luck according to my cardiologist as there is no history in family or any warning of it happening. I also have coeliac disease and Hashimotos disease.
 
Sarah Thomas said:
I have to take blood thinners, anti rejection, statins, meds to lower cholesterol and blood pressure. My heart attack was caused by a blood clot blocking an artery - just simple bad luck according to my cardiologist as there is no history in family or any warning of it happening. I also have coeliac disease and Hashimotos disease.
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Interesting that you have both Coeliac and Hashimoto's disease as they are both autoimmune in nature i.e.they are caused by your body's own immune system attacking your body's own cells. The same thing happens in Type 1 diabetes (and it's quite common for people with one autoimmune condition to have others), but not Type 2 - I would suggest pointing this out to the GP when you see them as it is important that you get a correct diagnosis so you can receive the best treatment. Sometimes, especially in adults, Type 1 diabetes can be slow-onset and is therefore often confused with Type 2.
 
Many thanks for your reply Northerner, I also have a third auto-immune disorder, Vitiligo, loss of melanin in my skin. Everything started falling apart when I hit 40 years of age, just 5 short years ago , diagnosed with all three auto immune disorders and a benign brain tumour, inoperable within 3 years and now diabetes - don't get me wrong, I am not complaining, rather me than someone else. I'll speak to my GP on Friday about type 1 xxx
 
Hi Sarah
I hope that you have a useful appointment with the GP on Friday. Let us know how you get on.
 
I certainly will. I have so many questions running around in my head it is driving me crazy .
 
Hi Sarah and welcome to the forum. I was diagnosed in august last year. My HbA1c at the time was 127 and I had no symptoms. This forum is a great place for help and advice.
 
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