A question for diabetics

worm761

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Joined
Feb 4, 2001
How did you know there was a problem?

I was diagnosed as hypoglycemic as a teen. My sugars tend to drop or at least used to. When I was pregnant with DD, 3 years old, I had gestational diabetes. There is a strong family history of diabetes on both sides of my family. Because of these things, I tend to eat little sugar and lower carb.

Last summer, I had an issue and my blood sugar numbers were higher than I liked. I had an appointment with my doctor and showed him everything I had eaten and my sugars both fasting and two hours after eating. He wasn't too concerned but still ordered an A1C. It came back normal. That was in July. I felt off yesterday and checked my sugars and was at 148 almost 3 hours after eating. I ate again and they came down to 88 two hours after eating.

I am considering purchasing a home A1C and doing it again since it has been 6 months. I know I need to track my sugars better since I haven't been. I guess I am just wondering if I am on the right track. I would really really like to avoid having to give myself shots again!
 
I had no clue when I was diagnosed.

My suggestion would be to get a meter and test strips and start testing yourself for a week or two, then go see a doctor.

The home A1c test might help some, but a glucose meter can help you adjust on a daily/hourly basis, if needed.

Make an appointment with your doctor once you have some data.

And try to keep calm, stressin' over this can make your glucose levels go wacky too.
 
I would ask for another A1C test...and see what it comes out of for the last three months ....
Sometimes my sugar is way up and I wonder why and then I go down fast if it was to much carbs ...I have gone down so fast once that I just was in a daze..I do not take drugs still and try to maintain with diet and exercise...I hope I can keep this going..
Went for my A1C this morning ..so I will know how I did from the last test..
GOOD luck ...you are being pro active and that is good...ask also for a dietician referral...that sometimes helps too
 
I do have a meter. I have always had one due to the hypoglycemia. I'm not really stressed about it. Just sort of wondering. I plan to start tracking. I am just really bad at being consistent with it. Like I did two meals yesterday but none since. I hate sore finger tips!

Pumba~ I had thought about it. I have orders to go get a panel done since I am on blood pressure meds. It could be done when I go get that done.
 


I do have a meter. I have always had one due to the hypoglycemia. I'm not really stressed about it. Just sort of wondering. I plan to start tracking. I am just really bad at being consistent with it. Like I did two meals yesterday but none since. I hate sore finger tips!

Pumba~ I had thought about it. I have orders to go get a panel done since I am on blood pressure meds. It could be done when I go get that done.

Yeah, I'm bad about it too. Can't help with the sore fingers, other than see if you can test in another location (i.e. arm). Either way, those darn little needles hurt! LOL
 
they taught me at the education for diabetics...to pick on one side of the finger and then the next time the other side of that finger...then go to the next finger one side and then the other side...this is supposed to help us not have the sore fingers...
I do admit to keeping the same pick in the meter...it is only being used for me so I dont think it is necessary to change the needle every test...
Also if you use the same finger to much ..your finger will get calloused...and then it is hard to get any blood for a test..
Call your doctors office and ask them if the A1C test is on your next blood tests.
 
The A1C is the one you want to be concerned with.

It is the best indicator and determinant of risk for developing complications of diabetes, Since A1C averages blood glucose for the past three months, it gives a good measure of blood glucose control over time. It's important to measure A1C in addition to your regular blood glucose tests.
 


The A1C is the one you want to be concerned with.

It is the best indicator and determinant of risk for developing complications of diabetes, Since A1C averages blood glucose for the past three months, it gives a good measure of blood glucose control over time. It's important to measure A1C in addition to your regular blood glucose tests.

Agree with manning. I print-out my glucose readings and take them to my doctor every visit, and he barely glances at them. He wants to see the A1C and doesn't seemed too concerned about anything else.

In my case, with the help of oral meds, my A1C is at a healthy level. For me I think the glucose test is just kind of a running record to make sure my levels don't go too haywire between doc appointments(every six months). If my readings tracked unusually high over an extended period I'd make an appointment with the doc.

Excellent advice from hiwaygal too: Try not worry, these things are treatable and it's usually not as bad as you think.:)
 
I didn't even suspect diabetes. :confused3 And I'm a nurse! My own mother has type 2 diabetes; my sister and my nephew have type 1 diabetes(insulin dependent.) Mine showed up on a annual routine blood test. The fasting blood sugar was only a little high, but the A1c and the glucose tolerance test revealed type 2 diabetes.

I shouldn't have been surprised. Looking back on it, I had all the signs. I was urinating ALL the time, even wetting myself at night a few times. I wrote that off to age and having had 4 pregnancies. I kept a Coke at hand ALL the time--couldn't get enough to drink. And I was very fatigued. Didn't have the energy to get out of my own way. Around that time i had a small skin biopsy and I noticed that it took a looooong time for it to completely heal, like 2-3 months. How I managed to overlook the symptoms is a mystery to me.
 
The A1C is the one you want to be concerned with.

It is the best indicator and determinant of risk for developing complications of diabetes, Since A1C averages blood glucose for the past three months, it gives a good measure of blood glucose control over time. It's important to measure A1C in addition to your regular blood glucose tests.

Agree with manning. I print-out my glucose readings and take them to my doctor every visit, and he barely glances at them. He wants to see the A1C and doesn't seemed too concerned about anything else.

In my case, with the help of oral meds, my A1C is at a healthy level. For me I think the glucose test is just kind of a running record to make sure my levels don't go too haywire between doc appointments(every six months). If my readings tracked unusually high over an extended period I'd make an appointment with the doc.

Excellent advice from hiwaygal too: Try not worry, these things are treatable and it's usually not as bad as you think.:)

I respectfully disagree. You can have a great a1c and have wild fluctuations in blood sugars. Especially for someone who already has hypoglycemia, their a1c will skew low every time, since they've got a lot of lows being thrown into the mix which will always mask any highs. And it's the yoyo of blood sugars which cause the damage.

The best thing you can do right now, to the OP, is just check on waking, before meals, and 2 hours after meals for a few weeks. You'll get a good picture of what's going on and which blood sugars are the issue. Fasting insulin production is usually the last to go, and sadly that's usually what a doctor looks at first. Post meal insulin production, is usually the first to go and will be easily recognizable when you test frequently. If you can control the post meal from spiking you are more likely to keep that fasting insulin in production.

That said, a 148 3 hours after eating isn't really a big issue. Normal people without diabetes have tons of ups and down after eating, especially if the meal is high carby or high in protein and fat. (like pizza). I have tested out continuous glucose monitors on myself and I have seen some weird things - eat a bagel. it's crazy. Every CDE will tell you the same.

As far as poking, just go get a different lancer with a smaller lancet (high gauge)
Best on the market (and comfy for kids even)
OneTouch Delica
http://www.onetouch.com/onetouch-delica-lancing-device or
Accu-chek multi click
https://www.accu-chek.com/us/lancing-devices/multiclix.html

chances are you can call either company and they'll send you one for free. ;) Just say you want to test it out....Delica, I can't even feel when I try it.

anyway, the home a1c's can be off by a ton and a half. Don't waste your money.
 
I was diagnosed with diabetes through a non-traditional tolerance test. It was a 1hr vs the typical 2 or 3 hr. Turns out my A1C is typically in the normal range, but I hit lows and lose my sight, get shakey and lose color in my face. I had the syptoms years before being diagnosed, because they were always looking for the 'highs'.

If you feel your sugar levels are changing to the high range, I do agree you should keep a running record to show your doctor. I am like you with being hit or miss with testing. They won't believe you till you take the time to journal, especially if the A1C keeps coming back normal.
 
Thanks for the tip about alternating sides and fingers. Would never have occurred to me. LOL

And thank you for the advice about testing before and after eating. I will have to get in the habit.

My machine says I can test on the forearm. Is that as accurate? How painful is that?

The spike that bothered me, I had eaten a Jimmy Dean sausage, egg, and cheese croissant thing. No idea why they are in the house since I don't usually buy processed crap. Anyway, that was the 140 3 hours later. Chicken soup (homemade) was 88 2 hours after. Today I had a grilled chicken wrap (ceasar dressing, iceburg lettuce, 2 slices of a small tomato, some red onion, and a home grilled chicken breast pieces on a burrito size tortilla) and 2 hours later my sugar was at 209. It just seems really really high to me.
 
my doctor sent me for diabetes education...it was 8 different meetings...some with people and some by myself with the diabetic educator...she was very good...she showed me the do one finger both sides and then the next finger both sides..
My A1c 4 months ago was up to 6.7...I try to keep it under 7 ...but doesnt always work..In the morning fasting...I hope (and pray too) that it is under 120..but lately it hasnt been...it is up to high for my liking..I have the low readings if I had a carb and I bottomed out with nothing to skid on...Like an english muffin for breakfast and no protein to keep me going...I feel shakey and sweating...and it really isnt low...but they said it was because I dropped fast...
Keep track for a few weeks and then take it from there..fasting, two hours after a meal and right before your meal..
and remember to keep a snack in between your meals..I forget sometimes and then I am a mess..
Good luck
 
The A1C is the one you want to be concerned with.

It is the best indicator and determinant of risk for developing complications of diabetes, Since A1C averages blood glucose for the past three months, it gives a good measure of blood glucose control over time. It's important to measure A1C in addition to your regular blood glucose tests.

Someone who is hypoglycemic will have a lower A1C typically because their numbers tend to go low any way. I wouldn't waste the time or money.

I would be more concerned with your daily numbers. Like someone else mentioned a 148 3 hrs after eating might not have any issue. I would track for a week your waking number daily (gives you a good idea of a fasting BS), try to take it before meals as much as possible and take a two hour post prandail number. If you track for a week it will give you a picture of where your BS numbers are heading.

When you say you have lots of people with diabetes in the family are you talking type 1 or type 2 or a mixture of both? And what relationship siblings and parents or second cousins.
 
My husband didn't really have any clues. He was diagnosed during a routine screening for life insurance.

My best advice is to buy a monitor and check yourself. You don't need an rx and can get the monitors fairly cheaply. I'd probably only check morning fasting unless your numbers look bad. Then I'd check during other times of the day.

Note: I am not a doctor nor do I play one on the Internet. I do think mild diabetes can be controlled by diet and exercise. YMMV.
 
When you say you have lots of people with diabetes in the family are you talking type 1 or type 2 or a mixture of both? And what relationship siblings and parents or second cousins.

I am not really sure. I think type 2. They were all insulin dependent. And by lots I mean grandmothers on both sides, mother, father is borderline, plenty of aunts and uncles, and at least one first cousin that I know of. My mother was my age when she was first diagnosed which I think has a lot to do with my paranoia about it. She also did not take care of it and let it kill her before she was even 50 years old. I am trying my best to not walk in their footsteps. My uncle recently lost a toe to diabetes. I have seen the worst that it can do and I don't wish for it to happen to me. I am trying to be as proactive as I can be.

Should I not be concerned about numbers? What is normal after a meal? I was at 150 after dinner tonight. I guess I just tend to think that your numbers should always be between 80-110 and anything over 120 is bad. Is that wrong?
 
I respectfully disagree. You can have a great a1c and have wild fluctuations in blood sugars. Especially for someone who already has hypoglycemia, their a1c will skew low every time, since they've got a lot of lows being thrown into the mix which will always mask any highs. And it's the yoyo of blood sugars which cause the damage.
.

Very interesting posts. Yes, a doctor is the best point person on this, but it sure seems that your individial body reactions can vary wildly.

I have been on "watch" with my doctor for about a year after 2 blood sugars of 108.....so he did A1C...most recent 6.8.... sent me to specialist. Losing weight, exercising and restricting carbs and sugar has sent all my blood chemistry crazy. Will continue the weight loss and reevaluate, but the "healthier" I live, the worse it gets. And I have never had any signs of diabetes, at the start of this process or current. All based on lab work.

Like I said, your individual body has to be considered, there is a lady at the Board and Care my mom lives in that is at risk of going into coma if her blood sugar goes below 200, and she is not the first diabetic I am aware of with that situaiton.
 
I am not really sure. I think type 2. They were all insulin dependent. And by lots I mean grandmothers on both sides, mother, father is borderline, plenty of aunts and uncles, and at least one first cousin that I know of. My mother was my age when she was first diagnosed which I think has a lot to do with my paranoia about it. She also did not take care of it and let it kill her before she was even 50 years old. I am trying my best to not walk in their footsteps. My uncle recently lost a toe to diabetes. I have seen the worst that it can do and I don't wish for it to happen to me. I am trying to be as proactive as I can be.

Should I not be concerned about numbers? What is normal after a meal? I was at 150 after dinner tonight. I guess I just tend to think that your numbers should always be between 80-110 and anything over 120 is bad. Is that wrong?

I asked because if it is Type 2 there are a number of things you can do to try to avoid it. I say try because sometimes Type 2's body just don't follow the normal rules.

1. You say 150 after dinner how much time are you talking? 2 hours or more?
2. Yes normal BS is 80-110. Usually Doctors tend to go with a number of 126 being considered prediabetic.
3. Look at the entire picture. Like I state prior commit to doing a weeks worth of testing. First thing in the am, before meals and 2 hrs after meals. That will give you a large snap shot of your BS numbers.
 
1. You say 150 after dinner how much time are you talking? 2 hours or more?

Yes. Two hours after I start eating. I set an alarm so I know when to test.

I downloaded the glucose buddy app and started tracking first thing this morning.
 
Yes. Two hours after I start eating. I set an alarm so I know when to test.

I downloaded the glucose buddy app and started tracking first thing this morning.

Good. What you need to look at is what your morning number is probably the most important number. This is a fasting number. If your morning number is 100 and over the course of the day eating you may increase 30-40 pts but return to a lower number that would be better then if they keep increasing over the course of the day and don't return anywhere near the fasting numbers.

Then you need to compare your number prior to eating to the two hour after. Example if your number prior to eating is 120 and two hours later it's 150 the change is not that great. If your starting at 70 and ending at 150 then that's more important.

Do this for a few days and get a picture of your BS without any huge changes. I would then review where you feel your weight is in comparison to what a healthy weight is. If it's normal then no need to look at making a change there. What about exercise? Do you need to increase your exercise? Watching your diet would be the final item that might need help. A few small changes to your life style might fix your slightly elevated numbers; if it is type 2 diabetes. You might be able to make your own fixes and the next physical you have you will be fine.

If it is a adult onset Type 1 any changes in life style won't make a bit of difference in the long run and your numbers will continue to rise over time. If that is the case you will have to involve an endo and insulin shots are back for good.
 

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