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UPDATEHello and I guess some of you have also been where I am !

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tigerted

New Member
Good evening all I have just found and joined the forum but at the moment its only my wife is Type 2 !
Unlike myself she is not one for seeking knowledge of her ailment on the Net and has an attitude of "well I am 68 not young so I will just get on with it ".Which is fair enough I suppose but I personally feel we can all learn from others experiences.
Which brings me and to why I have joined.
Literally for years now I have had tingling in my toes and at one stage I was even sent to a neurologist but they found anything wrong. But that said the tingling has continued for years since.
More recently I have been having problems with my vision, it gets blurry,and even though I have had a terrible biscuit habit I have put on more weight than I ever have before.
As a result of all this I recently went to an optician who referred me to my GP because he told me I had signs of a cataract forming and possibly glaucoma.
The GP referred me to my local hospital and unbelievable the earliest appointment I could get, and this was back in January, was for the middle of May. Thats even out of the set standard.
So it as meant to get seen earlier I have had to go private and I will be seeing a doctor next week.
I should add that I have also been getting headaches.
Now I appreciate that none of us on here are qualified to give a diagnosis but given the blurred vision, headaches, tingling in feet and extra weight do this symptoms sound familiar to those any of yourselves have had !
I would genuinely be pleased to receive any comments you may have and once I have seen the doctor I will let you know how I got on.
I should of added that I also have a feeling of grit in my eyes at times.
Whilst I am of cause hoping that it is not diabetes that would probably be a better thing to have than some of the alternatives.
Best wishes to you all.
As I said I would I will give you an update on what happened today.
Visited the ophthalmologist and he closely examined my eyes and he also photographed the backs of my eyes to carry out an analysis. His conclusions were that I had a thing nerve that was entering or attached to the eye at an acute angle and that may be the cause of my problem. He also told me that I was not developing cataracts and at the moment there was no sign of glaucoma and my eye pressures were not any greater than they should be. Thankfully he did not mention retinopathy at all so my fears of having diabetes do not seem to have any foundation then ! Would it be fair to say that he would of spotted any signs of this if I did have it. So I suppose I am pleased that I do not have diabetes but as I sit here typing this feeling visually the same as I did last night I cannot but now wonder what the problem is given the eye problems I am still experiencing.
With regard to the forum I will still be visiting it frequently to garner information to pass onto my wife because if I don't she won't. Best wishes to everyone that is suffering from diabetes or indeed fear they may have it.
 
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Hi tigerted, welcome to the forum. What you are describing are symptoms that occur after someone has been living with diabetes for a while, usually as a consequence of struggling to control their diabetes. With both types, weight loss rather than weight gain is the norm. fingers crossed your doctor will have the answer.
 
On NHS Choices, we have 2 or 3 'localish' hospitals we can go to for eye things. The main Coventry Uni hospital, the normal wait for cataracts is 18 weeks and has been that for about 4 years. It's the same at Solihull Hospital. However at Nuneaton Hospital is 11-12 weeks so I've chosen to go there for both of my cataract ops. Hence I don't think the wait you've outlined is anything unusual, TBH.
 
Thanks Bronco Billy that is very interesting as being a keen cyclist over the years I have questioned my GP at times about why I am struggling and my general fitness. I wont go on as I am sure many on here have gone through what I am currently going through ie visiting your GP and being told there is nothing wrong with you.
Thanks Jenny what is so amazing is that you can float through life fit and healthy and suddenly your health deteriorates for whatever reason and suddenly you realise that the NHS is not as good as you once thought it was. Yes the majority of people working in it are working extremely hard but to them it must feel like pushing a rock up a hill with demands on their services increasing daily. I broke my wrist last year and I could not believe how great the service is. So I am not surprised to read that you have to wait 18 weeks for a cataract operation. When I was told I may have them developing I was not too concerned as I know how they can be successfully removed but I am very concerned about the onset of glaucoma and given how serious this is I was appalled to be told I would have to wait 5 months to see a ophthalmologist . I mean this is my sight I am talking about here. Given this long wait and I must say here we are both on pensions so we don't have money to throw away we agreed to get seen quicker I will have to go private. For the three tests I need it is affordable but I am pretty sure that if as a consequence of these I need further treatment we will not be able to be afford to have it. What also rattles is that the fella I will see also practices in our local hospital.
To repeat what I have read on here already I am really pleased to have found this forum as there is so much useful information on it and its great to be able to contact those that are either going through or have gone through what I currently am experiencing.
Monday can not come fast enough for me, particularly as my eyes are giving me problems a I write this, and I will let you all know how I get on. Hopefully my experiences will also help someone else down the line.
 
Hello @tigerted welcome to the forum🙂, just to wish you good luck with your appointment.
 
Does your wife have a blood glucose meter? If she does have you thought about testing yours on waking? It could be quite a good indicator to see if you’re at risk of diabetes. A “ normal” person probably would struggle to reach 7 after fasting all night. Worth a try, but I truly hope you don’t have to join our club.
 
Thanks eggyg its funny you should ask that because a few years ago suspecting I my have diabetes I brought one of those meters and at the time none of my family seemed to have a problem. So it got stored away somewhere and would you believe since her diagnosis we have not been able to find it. She of cause tells me I have mislaid it but we both know it was her that has lost it dont we !
I know this may seem strange but whilst I really dont want to join the club given what other ailments it could be having diabetes would be preferable. That said thanks for your kind words. I do also think my wife is right in one sense in that I too am aged 68 so I too cannot really moan if I do have an ailment of some description given there are so many youngsters who get serious illnesses.
 
I know its not nice to say but I don't want you to join the club. Good luck 🙂
 
I know its not nice to say but I don't want you to join the club. Good luck 🙂
Thanks HOBIE that is very kind and in return its not a club I really want to join and it rattles me that in the 21st century you need funds for even more research to find a cure.
 
Just as a spot of reassurance, I am 67 - nearly 68, and was diagnosed type 2 over two years ago now. I feel a lot better than I did on the 'healthy' diet, and one of these years I might get to say 'I told you so' to my doctor - I think he's sulking as I have not seen him since diagnosis.
 
Thanks Drummer I am really glad to read since your diagnosis your feeling a lot better. I can certainly concur with your comment about wanting to say " I told you so to your GP as I have been there too. Being a keen cyclist runner I always felt that I was in tune with my body so when things started going wrong I use to go and see my GP. Nothing wrong with you blah blah blah. Told me I had an anxiety problem and prescribed me some Happy Pills. Which my daughter and wife insisted I take but I didn't . So as you do consulted Dr Google. Very long story short went back to see him.
Tell him I have lost the enamel on my teeth is that normal and I thought I might have Acid Reflux. Five years later I am still on Lansoprazole.
Going back to this issue I really cannot wait to find out what my problem is tomorrow. Thanks again.
 
Just as a spot of reassurance, I am 67 - nearly 68, and was diagnosed type 2 over two years ago now. I feel a lot better than I did on the 'healthy' diet, and one of these years I might get to say 'I told you so' to my doctor - I think he's sulking as I have not seen him since diagnosis.
HI, I think I am impressed. How did you manage not to see your GP for all this time?That's hilarious😛
 
HI, I think I am impressed. How did you manage not to see your GP for all this time?That's hilarious😛
I think he's sulking.
I was on a diet sheet printout for 'lowering cholesterol' and was putting on weight and my numbers were getting worse. I reached 264lb before I stopped weighing myself.
After 80 days of low carb eating my Hba1c had dropped from 91 to 47. Having told me that I was 'a very bad diabetic' at diagnosis, he put NFA on my notes - I don't know if that is no further access to him, or no further action about anything - though I have had a couple of minutes with the nurses taking blood samples, who seem a bit bewildered as to why they are needed.
 
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