Physio not giving me injections

[greg75]

Hi everyone,

My physio refuses to give me steroid injections due to my high blood sugar,my friend who also has high blood sugar has had many injections for his frozen shoulder,however he is in a different part of the country.What are my options as my shoulder is getting worse.

 

[Sally71]

Steroids are likely to make your blood sugars go up even further so your physio is just being careful. How high are they exactly and what are you doing to try to get them down?

 

[rebrascora]

What sort of blood glucose levels do you call high and what are you doing about them?

If a medication is contraindicated then it seems reasonable to refuse it, particularly as in this case, it will almost certainly make your levels go even higher. Getting your BG levels under control therefore should be a top priority.

 

[greg75]

Steroids are likely to make your blood sugars go up even further so your physio is just being careful. How high are they exactly and what are you doing to try to get them down?

My hba1c was 148 so now on Metformin.But I'm off work with my shoulder so will probably have to give up work as my next blood test isn't scheduled til March.

 

[Leadinglights]

That is a very high level and could well be contributing to you shoulder symptoms.
You say you are now on metformin but have you made some substantial changes to your diet and metformin alone is not going to be a magic bullet. It would seem to be a priority to review your carbohydrate intake.
I can fully understand the reluctance of you physio to give you steroids with glucose levels that high in the first place.

Dr Google says
People with diabetes are at an increased risk of developing frozen shoulder because unmanaged blood sugar levels can affect collagen, a major protein that makes up your connective tissue.

 

[helli]

A physio told me steroid injection only hide symptoms but does treat the under lying cause so I have always chosen to avoid them and get rid of the underlying problem

 

[greg75]

What sort of blood glucose levels do you call high and what are you doing about them?

If a medication is contraindicated then it seems reasonable to refuse it, particularly as in this case, it will almost certainly make your levels go even higher. Getting your BG levels under control therefore should be a top priority.

M

 

[greg75]

To be honest I don't trust my GP,he wants me to go down to 10 and a half stone which I've refused to do (I'm 12st 3 at the min)as when I had my gall bladder out I went down to 11 and I was like a prisoner of war.im not a believer of the BMI

 

[Leadinglights]

To be honest I don't trust my GP,he wants me to go down to 10 and a half stone which I've refused to do (I'm 12st 3 at the min)as when I had my gall bladder out I went down to 11 and I was like a prisoner of war.im not a believer of the BMI

Maybe his thought is that if you lost some weight it would reduce your HbA1C which it might. Have you been given any dietary advice for blood glucose reduction.
For all people there will be a range that BMI that is acceptable and really is only a guide not gospel.

 

[PattiEvans]

My hba1c was 148 so now on Metformin.But I'm off work with my shoulder so will probably have to give up work as my next blood test isn't scheduled til March.

Hi @greg75 The simple answer to that dilemma is to get yourself a BG meter and test yourself - do a test before each meal and at 2 hours after. Then at least you can show the physio your current results. It's also helpful to you to see what different foods do to you and what to avoid in the future, enabling you to tailor your diet to your own needs. Metformin alone won't control your diabetes, but your diet will contribute far more to getting levels down. The foods to avoid generally are carbohydrates i.e. rice, pasta, baked goods, bread, potatoes etc. Members here recommend the GlucoNavii as it has reasonably priced strips and you will need a lot of them.

As others have said, the frozen shoulder may well be caused by your high BG levels as @Leadinglights explained. FWIW I wouldn't want steroid injections either... I had one once and BGs went through the roof for about 2 weeks. However, a colleague of mine's frozen shoulder was successfully treated by acupuncture. My own Chiropractor practices acupuncture and it's very effective.

 

[greg75]

Hi @greg75 The simple answer to that dilemma is to get yourself a BG meter and test yourself - do a test before each meal and at 2 hours after. Then at least you can show the physio your current results. It's also helpful to you to see what different foods do to you and what to avoid in the future, enabling you to tailor your diet to your own needs. Metformin alone won't control your diabetes, but your diet will contribute far more to getting levels down. The foods to avoid generally are carbohydrates i.e. rice, pasta, baked goods, bread, potatoes etc. Members here recommend the GlucoNavii as it has reasonably priced strips and you will need a lot of them.

As others have said, the frozen shoulder may well be caused by your high BG levels as @Leadinglights explained. FWIW I wouldn't want steroid injections either... I had one once and BGs went through the roof for about 2 weeks. However, a colleague of mine's frozen shoulder was successfully treated by acupuncture. My own Chiropractor practices acupuncture and it's very effective.

Thanks but my physio has discharged me

 

[greg75]

Maybe his thought is that if you lost some weight it would reduce your HbA1C which it might. Have you been given any dietary advice for blood glucose reduction.
For all people there will be a range that BMI that is acceptable and really is only a guide not gospel.

Hi, no diabetic nurse at any of my local surgeries and no dietary advice from GP as he said he wouldn't know where to start.I've cut down to two meals a day now just breakfast and tea with a banana in between and I've lost half a stone already,I've also switched from semi skimmed to full fat milk and cut out alcohol altogether.

 

[PattiEvans]

Thanks but my physio has discharged me

So go somewhere else! I have found the chiropractor far more help than the physio, good as she was.

no dietary advice from GP as he said he wouldn't know where to start.I've cut down to two meals a day now just breakfast and tea with a banana in between and I've lost half a stone already,I've also switched from semi skimmed to full fat milk and cut out alcohol altogether.

Not surprising, many GPs don't seem to know about diet. No need to only eat 2 meals a day if you don't want to and frankly alcohol in moderation isn't necessarily bad, though beer and sweet drinks aren't a good idea. FWIW Bananas aren't very diabetically friendly. Anyway, the advice to get yourself a meter still stands as the best advice members round here give. Also have a look at the Learning Zone (orange tab at the top of the page).

 

[rebrascora]

That HbA1c is very high indeed, dangerously high and Metformin will not sort the problem itself and you need to make dietary changes. It doesn't have to involve weight loss, but you do need to reduce your carb intake and as others have said, a BG meter will help you to see which foods are causing you the most problems and help you to tailor your diet to what your body can tolerate.
We can help and support you with this but you have to be prepared to tackle that high HbA1c because it is a much more serious risk to your health than the frozen shoulder and I don't blame the physio for not wanting to give you a steroid injection with levels that high.

I see you have responded since I started typing.
What do the two meals normally consist of? ie what did you have yesterday? Perhaps we can suggest some alternatives.

A banana is pretty much the worst fruit you can choose as regards Blood Glucose levels. Most of us just have a small portion of berries (rasps, black berries, blackcurrants, redcurrants, blueberries, strawberries) as our portion of fruit a day..... usually with some natural yoghurt. A good low carb snack would be a boiled egg with mayonnaise if you like it or some veggie sticks with a sour cream and chive dip.... the sort from the chilled counter rather than the Doritos type in a jar. Or a chunk of cheese.

 

[Lucyr]

Hi everyone,

My physio refuses to give me steroid injections due to my high blood sugar,my friend who also has high blood sugar has had many injections for his frozen shoulder,however he is in a different part of the country.What are my options as my shoulder is getting worse.

Sounds like you’ve got a great physio, really switched on to diabetes. The steroid injection would make your blood sugars far higher than already and put you at more risk.

 

[grovesy]

Steroid injections are not guaranteed to work, and I believe you can only have limited number.

 

[Leadinglights]

Hi, no diabetic nurse at any of my local surgeries and no dietary advice from GP as he said he wouldn't know where to start.I've cut down to two meals a day now just breakfast and tea with a banana in between and I've lost half a stone already,I've also switched from semi skimmed to full fat milk and cut out alcohol altogether.

Going down to 2 meals a day won't necessarily help unless you are eating the right foods for those meals. 2 meals piled with high carb foods will do you no favours, better to have 3 proper low carb meals which have plenty of protein and healthy fats with vegetables and salad.
Instead of the high carb banana you could have a meal of eggs, cheese, cooked meat with same salad or coleslaw which would be low carb.

 

[Pumper_Sue]

Hi everyone,

My physio refuses to give me steroid injections due to my high blood sugar,my friend who also has high blood sugar has had many injections for his frozen shoulder,however he is in a different part of the country.What are my options as my shoulder is getting worse.

Options are quite simple get your blood sugars down. I doubt the physio can do the injections anyway it would be a GP.
With an A1c of 148 you are way to high you should be in the 40's if possible. Steroids would put you in a coma at the levels you are at the moment.
Look at what you are eating carb wise for starters. Also I see you have had gall bladder surgery, are you sure they haven't damaged your pancreas in the process and caused your diabetes thus needing insulin? You need a long chat with your GP me thinks.

 

[Drummer]

As your Hba1c is so high, it might be a good thing to gradually reduce your carb intake over a couple of months or more, cutting down portion size and gradually eliminating the high carb foods, as a sudden drastic alteration can be quite a shock if you are used to higher numbers.