Lada and honeymoon phase

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carla42

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Relationship to Diabetes
Type 1.5 LADA
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Hello. I have posted a thread before which i cannot find now. I'm fairly new to all this, having been diagnosed as type 1 lada in September, so please bear with me - (i apologise about the long post). I had/have no symptoms, was diagnosed through routine tests with all 3 anti body tests returning positive (after a false type 2 diagnosis). I am also hypothyroid for 14 yrs but very stable.
I am currently only on metformin and will have my first diabetes appointment in January. I am told I may avoid insulin for awhile being Lada and asymptomatic.
Now to my question... I bought myself the freestyle Libre 2 sensor as I like the data and was fed up pricking.
The data I am getting look worrying to me, but my GP says the sensor will make me anxious and I have nothing to worry about and that the wait till Jan is standard.
As an example, this morning (around 11am) I had 2 coffees (no sugar), a cup of plain yoghurt, 1/2 banana and a kiwi. This is all I had today so far. It is now 2.30 pm and my BG is between 12 and 12.8 for the last 2 hours. It's similar any other day. I eat low carb but my BG is high a lot of the time, with little regard to what I eat. When I do indulge, very occasionally, say on a small biscuit, it can go up to 15 or even 17.
Is it OK to carry on like this till Jan? I don't want to cause myself harm and don't feel I can go any more low carb. I'm already losing 2lbs a week. I'm also struggling to be on such a restrictive diet.
I don't know anyone with type 1 personally so it's all very new to me. And the ppl I have connected with, all seem baffled by my type 1 but no insulin, almost implying I am making it up (I even had this reaction from some medical professional)
Any advice appreciated.
 
Hello @carla42

Your earlier thread is here
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Thread 'Shock type2 diagnosis aged 42'

Hello all
I've just accessed my hba1c result online, so not yet confirmed by the gp but it looks like I will be diagnosed type 2. The result is 72. The test was repeated because it was 69 last week, which came as a complete shock having taken the test yearly for the last 3 years, always getting in the high 30's range.
I've not yet been offered any treatment or advise but I'm completely panicking, knowing nothing about this condition and hearing all the terrible potential outcomes.
I was being tested because I'm overweight and diabetes runs in my family. But no-one was diagnosed this young...

And you already had a fairly steeply rising HbA1c when you posted that. Do your fingerprick readings agree with your Libre sensir on the whole?

It really sounds as if you need to start on insulin sooner rather than later. Both ‘basal’ (background) insulin, and also ‘bolus’ (meal) insulin. You may only need smallish doses to start with, but there’s no need for you to have to eat a punitively restrictive diet, and I really don’t see how waiting until January is in your best interests.

Do they know how little you are eating?
 
Thank you everydayupsanddowns. Yes, my numbers match up. Tbh my GP was fairly dismissive and didn't seem interested in my BG readings, just repeating it isn't advised that I use a sensor since it will cause 'anxiety'. He is right that with twice daily pricks I likely wouldn't know these numbers. Having said that I often wake up with a 9 fasting BG which I believe is also high. And I've had instances where it rises high or dips low during the night for no apparent reason. Of course, I wouldn't have this information without the sensor.
I agree I'd rather not wait till January but what choice do I have?
 
I think many GPs have little experience of dealing with people with T1 or LADA, and resort to the advice given to many with T2.

I am another vote for getting insulin sooner rather than later. I was diagnosed with LaDA 16 years ago and went straight in to Basal/Bolus insulin. I initially needed tiny doses and found a half unit pen very useful. This enabled me to make small adjustments and very gradually increase the doses as necessary. Your GP may see similar glucose readings for some people with T2, but I would not want to continue with this until January. I suspect that those levels will be making you feel pretty awful too.

Do ask to be put on insulin. This is now the normal routine for people with LADA thus protecting the remaining beta cells that you have, as they then have he help of the insulin that you will be injecting. The switch to insulin may seem a bit daunting to start with but it does make life a lot easier and more flexible, and when your glucose levels come back in range you are likely to feel a whole lot better.

Don’t worry about long posts, asking lots of questions, … That is what the forum is here for.
Let us know how you get on.
 
In your shoes @carla42 I think I would be asking either for a referral to a hospital clinic for more specialist support, or say that you cannot continue eating such a limited menu with rising glucose levels, and that you need to be started on MDI insulin as soon as possible.
 
SB2015 said:
I think many GPs have little experience of dealing with people with T1 or LADA, and resort to the advice given to many with T2.

I am another vote for getting insulin sooner rather than later. I was diagnosed with LaDA 16 years ago and went straight in to Basal/Bolus insulin. I initially needed tiny doses and found a half unit pen very useful. This enabled me to make small adjustments and very gradually increase the doses as necessary. Your GP may see similar glucose readings for some people with T2, but I would not want to continue with this until January. I suspect that those levels will be making you feel pretty awful too.

Do ask to be put on insulin. This is now the normal routine for people with LADA thus protecting the remaining beta cells that you have, as they then have he help of the insulin that you will be injecting. The switch to insulin may seem a bit daunting to start with but it does make life a lot easier and more flexible, and when your glucose levels come back in range you are likely to feel a whole lot better.

Don’t worry about long posts, asking lots of questions, … That is what the forum is here for.
Let us know how you get on.
Click to expand...
I was diagnosed with LADA eight years ago and was started on insulin immediately. It was easy to get to grips with and my need for insulin hasn't increased appreciably during the intervening eight years.
 
I don’t believe the wait till January is standard @carla42 Your blood sugars are high and you’re hardly eating. It sounds like you need insulin now, and personally I’d push to get it. You might find you do have some symptoms but you’ve just got used to them as normal. You could also consider eating a normal carby meal and testing your blood sugar 2hrs after. In a way, your minimal diet is sabotaging yourself as it’s hiding the extent of your problems.
 
Yes, ask for a referal to the diabetes clinic and to be put on insulin.
When i was forst diagnosed i was on metformin and glicaside il they got the anitbody tests back, then straight on insulin, even though the glyciside was getting my gluose down to around 7 before meals...
 
carla42 said:
Thank you everydayupsanddowns. Yes, my numbers match up. Tbh my GP was fairly dismissive and didn't seem interested in my BG readings, just repeating it isn't advised that I use a sensor since it will cause 'anxiety'. He is right that with twice daily pricks I likely wouldn't know these numbers. Having said that I often wake up with a 9 fasting BG which I believe is also high. And I've had instances where it rises high or dips low during the night for no apparent reason. Of course, I wouldn't have this information without the sensor.
I agree I'd rather not wait till January but what choice do I have?
Click to expand...
GPs by definition aren't (and can't be) specialists: when my GP did a finger prick diabetes check (because my optician had noticed a small retinal bleed and said that it could be a sign of diabetes) he assumed that his meter was faulty because the reading was so high! He said to me, "You can't have diabetes because you're slim". That is, he (and I) didn't know about LADA. Luckily he referred me straight away to my local Diabetes department - which started me on insulin injections the day of my appointment. So, show your GP this thread and demand an urgent referral: LADA's serious and you need to catch it early to minimise the risk of irreversible damage.
 
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