RE: new here!

[Susie12]

Hi its susie,
Iam new to this site as I have recently been diagnosed with Diabetes type 2.
It came as a bit of a shock to me as I already suffer with two other conditions Epilepsy and irregular heart beats! anyway I went to the doctor due to the fact my young cat who is called Lucy had badly scratched both legs the legs didnt seem to be healing at all she took blood tests from to see what was causing non healing of the legs also strong antibotics.
I had a urgent phonecall 24 hours later to say it was diabetes type 2 and neeeded a further sample of blood to confirm and two weeks later I went back again and indeed it was diabetes type 2 also was diagnosed with skin ulcers at the moment Iam in ulcer leg banadages on both legs!
I was told I would be seen by diabetic nurses at our local health centre at the moment Iam still waiting to be seen can anyone help me to understand what happens when I see diabetic nurses to be honest I dont feel very well.
Had to see doctor last week as nurses at ulcer clinic were worrried as I had been suffering with very bad sweats and feeling dizzy my doctor who is brillant said it was a type of Hypo attack! I have been referred back to consultant re heart
can I also ask do Hypo attacks start like this and if so what do I need to do?
thanks for any help
susie12

 

[Taz]

Hi Susie welcome to the forum im sorry I cant give you much advice because im newly dieagnosed with type 2 my self but there is loads of ppl who will give you good advice on here they have helped me loads and I know they will help you ! Taz

 

[lesleyW]

Welcome I hope you get to see the diabetic nurse v. soon and that you will soon be feeling much better. She should explain your treatment, e.g. tablets - their effects and possible side effects - how and when to take them. She should also give exercise and dietary advice (if you need it) and offer you an education course re healthy eating etc. Also, I would hope she would give you a meter/strips and tell you when you need to test, how to log the results and your 'target' levels and the level below which you are having a hypo and how to treat it. If you go to the link at the top of the Newbies site there is lots of good info. on there - in particular the 'general' link will take you to info. about what you should expect from your healthcare team. Hope you find the info. you need to tide you over and that we can help to answer your queries and support you in the meantime. There is a lot to take in at first and it's all rather shattering, so whatever you feel is understandable and we've all been there. Take care, all the best

 

[Mark T]

Welcome to the forum Susie12 🙂

 

[Redkite]

Hi Susie,

Welcome to the forum. Have you been put on any diabetes medication? If you are on insulin or one of the oral meds which can cause hypos, you should certainly have had a proper consultation with a diabetes nurse beforehand, and you should have been given a glucose meter to test your blood glucose. Otherwise, could it be the antibiotics disagreeing with you? Can you get a GP appointment to discuss your concerns?

Hope your legs heal up quickly, sounds very uncomfortable. Hopefully you can discourage Lucy from pouncing on them! I have a young cat too (Billy, 8 months old), and he's a terror - likes to playfully ambush me, usually with claws out. I keep a laser pointer toy handy to distract him with 🙂

 

[Cat1964]

Hi Susie, welcome to the forum. I know your pain too. I also have a new kitten who is 10 weeks and called Lucy. She pounces on me too and I have some awful scratches on my legs. My knees are the worst and are a bit of a mess right now. 😱 It's a war with her just now to try and get her to stop the pouncing. Seems that our Lucy's are not as innocent as they look when sleeping!🙂

 

[Copepod]

Welcome Susie12. Others have already covered the diabetes related aspects, so, based on my experience of a being favourite human of a cat who is sitting on my shoulders as I type, I'll just cover one cat related suggestion - nail clippers, sometimes used when cat is asleep mean blunter claws 🙂

 

[Redkite]

Welcome Susie12. Others have already covered the diabetes related aspects, so, based on my experience of a being favourite human of a cat who is sitting on my shoulders as I type, I'll just cover one cat related suggestion - nail clippers, sometimes used when cat is asleep mean blunter claws 🙂

Lol! Bet they soon get sharpened up again! 😉 In my Billy's case, his sharp claws have already got him out of some close scrapes in trees, so I couldn't risk blunting them!

 

[Copepod]

Doesn't stop her climbing, as I just remove the needle-like very ends, but does save damage to fabrics and skin. 🙂

 

[Cat1964]

Doesn't stop her climbing, as I just remove the needle-like very ends, but does save damage to fabrics and skin. 🙂

Mine has an appointment at the vet on Friday for her first check up and inoculation. I might ask him to nip off the needle ends of those claws!

 

[Redkite]

Doesn't stop her climbing, as I just remove the needle-like very ends, but does save damage to fabrics and skin. 🙂

It was more like *extreme* climbing 😱 He ended up dangling over a 12 foot drop by the claws of one front paw with the other 3 legs flailing about! But I take your point re the furniture - certainly my sofas will never be the same again . Funnily enough, we were at a zoo yesterday and saw a 4 month old lion cub pestering his snoozing Mum. The lioness shoved him away with a paw (sheathed claws) and growled at him - I might have to try that one sometime!

 

[Copepod]

I find grabbing scruff of her neck and hissing, as her mother would have done indicates that she's doing something she shouldn't. But, usually, she stops when I point and say "no!".

She doesn't scratch me, but if she did, I would train her not to - even with well controlled blood glucose, I try to avoid injuries, and anyway, collect plenty of scratches on legs when orienteering, which usually involved some contact with brambles, nettles etc, at least in summer.

So, in case anyone is doubting, cat training can be important in lessening chances of leg injuries, which in the worst case, could become ulcers.

 

[Cat1964]

I find grabbing scruff of her neck and hissing, as her mother would have done indicates that she's doing something she shouldn't. But, usually, she stops when I point and say "no!".

She doesn't scratch me, but if she did, I would train her not to - even with well controlled blood glucose, I try to avoid injuries, and anyway, collect plenty of scratches on legs when orienteering, which usually involved some contact with brambles, nettles etc, at least in summer.

So, in case anyone is doubting, cat training can be important in lessening chances of leg injuries, which in the worst case, could become ulcers.

I found today that pointing at her and saying no sharply sends her scampering off. It's not her fault she doesn't realise that she's hurting me either. We agree she seems to think I'm her mum and likes lots of cuddles from me hence the jumping on my lap constantly and at 10 weeks she's tiny. I'm keeping a folded up fleecy blanket on my chair and when I'm sitting down I put it over my knees to stop the claws digging into my knees and its working fine so far. I'm sure the problem will stop when she grows bigger and can jump a lot better than she can now.🙂