new,possible diabetic needing advice

[dawnm78]

Hi my name is Dawn and I am still waiting for blood results to see if I am diabetic.My dad,grandad,greatgrandad,two aunts and two brothers have all suffered from type 2 diabetes.My 13 yr old nephew has just been diagnosed with type 1 and was so ill he barely made it .This printed the rest of the immediate family to check our levels.For 5 years I suffered from thyroid disease which causes the same symptoms of diabetes.I had my whole thyroid removed in November but have still been rather unwell.I checked my fasting levels on Monday which was 6.9.The same test was 5.9 yesterday.For dinner last night I ate small plate of home made oil free stir fry which consisted of lean chicken and veg.75 minutes after that my levels were 11.9,an hpur later they were 8.5 and four hours later going to bed they were 7.9.I woke up today feeling really really sick and so I havnt eaten for 24 hours and my levels are at 6.Would anyone say that this indicates diabetes?There are so many conflicting views out there.

 

[Northerner]

Hi Dawn, welcome to the forum 🙂 The official diagnostic criteria for diabetes is a fasting level over 7.0 mmol/l, where other symptoms are present, or two fasting levels over 7.0 mmol/l with no pronounced symptoms (excessive thirst, peeing, hunger, tiredness - there's quite a list as no doubt you are aware!), or an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) over11 mmol/l.

It does sound as though your blood sugar levels are above normal, but you really need to get the 'official' tests done by your nurse or GP - do you have an appointment? The thing to bear in mind is that although diabetes is a serious condition, as you will know from your family history, it can be controlled and does not have to lead to any of the horrible complications you may be worrying about. With the right knowledge and application you can actually end up feeling much fitter and healthier than you may have felt for some time! Many of our members here have found this to be the case, so if you need any help or advice, please ask 🙂

Get to your doctor's with your suspicions and if you are diagnosed then you will be able to tackle things. Even if you do not get diagnosed I would suggest you adopt the diet and activity levels beneficial to people who do have diabetes because this is healthy for everyone and will most certainly improve your levels and delay any future diagnosis.

Let us know how you get on 🙂

 

[Mark T]

Welcome to the forum Dawn 🙂

With all the family diabetes I'd be tempted to suggest to your GP that they should consider testing you and your family for MODY genes!

You might want to consider sketching out a family tree for your self and see if there are any correlations. Would a fair assumption be that it is your grandfather and great grandfather on your dad's side and possibly the aunt's on his side too?