Newbie and a bit confused

[rei]

Hello! Nice to meet you all 🙂

So a quick background: I’m 25 and I weigh around 8 stone, 153cm tall. Both my parents are type 2 diabetic - my dad’s recently diagnosed at age 58 and is on metformin and my mum’s on insulin for a long time. My grandmother on my father’s side is also diabetic. Let’s just say im unlucky as i have it in my genes lol
Last year, i went to a GUM clinic for a severe thrush and there, they did a urine dip and it was positive for ketones so they advised me to go to my GP as they think i might be diabetic and that’s what’s causing the thrush. So off i went to my gp and they did a fasting blood glucose and i cant remember the results but it was quite high so they did an HBA1C test and my result was 47. At the same time, they found that i may have mild hypothyroidism. The doctor told me to come back in 3 months’ time for another blood test so i did and this week my HBA1C test result is 48, but my thyroid level is back to normal. I have a GP appointment in two weeks’ time.

Sorry for the long post lol but my question is, how likely will it be that I’m type 1 diabetic? The GP mentioned about it due to my weight and age but I also have the impression that I might actually be type 2 due to my family history and also because of my results. To be honest, i dont know if i can manage if im on insulin, and i’d much prefer to be diet-controlled. I hope you can give me an idea so I know what to expect before my appointment haha
Thanks so much for your time!

 

[HOBIE]

How active are you ? A very good friend of mine is OFF all his T2 meds because he really puts some time in & exercises. Good luck.🙂

 

[Docb]

You ask about how likely you are to be type 1. I'm no expert but unless there are things you are not saying (and you can't say everything) or your GP is a complete numpty and should be disbarred, then I would say no chance. Type 2 you can live with. First get a proper diagnosis something which appears to be in hand from what you have said. If it turns out you have type 2 or at risk of being type2 then get into the system, get informed by participating in this set of forums and get on with life! That's my two penneth.

 

[trophywench]

It's dead easy to cope with insulin jabs when you need to - why on earth are you so scared of it? Your body is chucking insulin in all the while and you have no objection whatever to that, so if your pancreas can't produce enough then it makes logical sense to assist it.

I'll tell you what - if you do need insulin and nowt else can possibly work (as in T1) - then you feel so bloody ill before you get it - you wouldn't care if they said they'd got to cut one of your legs off to solve it - you'd hand them the saw! You feel awful for the simple reason all your organs start to shut down and obviously - you die if it isn't treated. You don't actually have a choice, hence you have to accept it. So - you do! You don't put on shedloads of weight and just lead a normal life fitting in the testing, jabbing, exercising, eating, working and check ups as required. No drama.

It's perfectly possible to be diagnosed T1 whether you are 7 months or 70 years old, I'm the only T1 in my family but my sister became T2 in her 50s and so did our only first cousin - on my dad's side (his older sister's daughter) so must be the genes in that line as far as we're concerned, we assume.

T1 doesn't prevent Henry Slade playing Rugby for England and scoring tries, T2 didn't stop Steve Redgrave being slightly good at rowing and getting the odd medal, so it doesn't stop anyone else doing what they want to do either.

 

[Madeline]

I had insulin whilst I was in hospital. Tbh I’d swap it for Metformin any day. Genuinely couldn’t feel the injection (was a pen thing) and I felt so much better, with no side effects.

 

[SB2015]

Well @trophywench has a way with words, and as she says if you need insulin you will soon get used to injecting it. I was one of the many late starters with T1 (at 53) that are in here, and for me there is no other person in the family with any type of Diabetes. It can happen at any time to anyone, it is just not very common.

When I was awaiting diagnosis I remember saying that I hoped it wasn’t the one that required jabs every day. As Jenny said once you start on them you feel so much better and I like being alive, so you just do what you need to do.

Whatever happens there is plenty of help and support available on here. I have learnt most of what I know about Diabetes from others on here, and value the support that is available.

 

[Drummer]

I am a type two able to get normal results with diet alone.
The low carb diet is an advantage if you have thrush - on a carby diet the thrush gets all the benefit and flourishes greatly.

 

[SB2015]

With regard to your question about could you be T1, it is not uncommon for people to be diagnosed incorrectly. Less likely at your age, but possible especially if the onset of T1 is slower. So it is good that your GP is aware of both possibilities. The finger prick tests and HbA1c won’t help to distinguish between the two so if you are concerned you could ask for a Gad antibody and C-peptide test that will give the necessary info.

If you do find you are T1 you will often be referred to the specialist team at your local hospital, at least until things are stabilised. This is where you want to be cared for, as they have specialist experience with T1 and will be able to guide you through adapting to Multiple Daily Injections, the necessary adjustments to your doses and teach you how to manage this yourself. Sounds like a lot to learn but it soon becomes second nature.
Many GPs and Practice Nurses have limited info about T1 and are often not familiar with the recent options available.

Let us know how you get on.