Diabetes and weight gain

[er90]

Is it likely to have gotten diabetes, then gained all the weight from extreme hunger and fatigue?

Before I had all the symptoms of diabetes I was in great shape, year round athlete and an A student...but since the symptoms have occurred well, I've kind of stopped everything...

Yea, yea, I know I should see a doc, and I am, but is the above question possible or likely, cause' I'm sick of being told I may have it, only because I have slowed down so much, and gained so much weight AFTER the symptoms have came....

[Jan B]

Most Type 1 diabetics end up losing weight, not gaining before diagnosis. Are you extremely thirsty, drinking a lot, and going to the bathroom all the time?

Do you have symptoms, other than hunger and fatigue? And if you feel terrible, why don't you want to go to the doctor?

I'm only asking so we might be able to help more!

[princesslinda]

I was overweight at diagnosis, and had put on about 10 lbs JUST before diagnosis, along with extreme fatigue/sleepiness, heart palpatations, waking up in a sweat at night and general anxiety.

Type 2 diabetics have a component of insulin resistance, meaning your body produces insulin, but your cells aren't adequately utilizing it.....your cells recognize they aren't being "nourished" and signals your brain that you need to eat...you feel hungry, eat, produce more insulin that your aren't using properly, feel hungry, eat...its a vicious cycle that can certainly lead to weight gain.

Also, high blood sugar levels will certainly make you feel fatigued.

Do you have a family history of diabetes, either type? A blood test would help determine IF you have diabetes and which type.

Best plan of action IMO would be to see your doctor and have an A1C drawn, which will give you an indication of your average blood sugar over the past 90 days....no point in guessing when a diagnosis can be easily determined by seeing your doctor.

Keep us posted on how you're doing.

[xMenace]

It may cause you to add weight, but not likely. I suppose feeling sluggish can cause you to stop exercising and eat more thus gaining weight. It's not a typical scenario. So many other things can be at fault too such as stress. You seem to have had a lifestyle change for whatever reason and are searching for an answer. It may be the D, it may be stress, it may be some myserious disease, or it may just be you.

Good luck!

[er90]

Well,

Just so you know, I have been to the doctor about this, and usually am just told to exercise and eat right...which after doing for 2 years with these symptoms present, I generally feel like beating the doc to a pulp.


However, since now (after I have gained weight and have quit everything) I am "high-risk" for diabetes, and my extreme hungar and drowsiness right after eating is not generally equated with hypothyroidism, I was just wondering...I will get tested and all for diabetes...just figure as with most illnesses, the patients usually end up knowing way more than the doc. Hence, I go here while waiting on an appointment date...

[Jan B]

er90,

I nearly always research & diagnose myself too, before seeing a doctor. It's not a good idea to rely solely on that though. It wasn't the case with diabetes since I was 18 at the time and knew nothing about it. It sounds like you have been looking for an answer for a while . . . I'd search "hunger and drowsiness after eating" (yes, I often keep things simple) and just keep looking until things seem to match up. If you feel you have done what the doctor said with no results, keep working on it and keep insisting on help. Of course, keep a good attitude w/the doctors & that should help you more.

I could have been diagnosed earlier with Type 1, but my mother was being told by the doc that I was a hypochondriac. At 18, I wasn't being taken seriously.

[Lizzie G]

hi there, i dont really know how it works for type 2, but for type 1 id be inclined to say that **** would freeze over before you gained weight with undiagnosed type 1!!! i ate SOOOOOOO much and lost weight at about a pound every 2 weeks....doesnt sound much but i was feeding constantly and i think most people are and losing weight/not gaining....but i may be wrong...

[Harold]

Is it likely to have gotten diabetes, then gained all the weight from extreme hunger and fatigue?

In my own case my doc had warned me to eat more protein. Then five or six months later over a two month period I was suddenly 40 pounds heavier. Did not notice any symptoms at the time, but I did loose 20 pounds over the following 2 months and was stuck there. About three months later I was dx'd. It did appear, to me, that the onset caused the weight gain. However what is known about type 2 and it's mechanisms, especially the onset and causes are not very well known. Regardless once you have it, it is what you do about it that counts.

[er90]

I lost about 22 pounds 2 weeks ago out of the blue (over the course of about a week or two!), but I gained it all back since...so again with the weight gain, however my underactive thyroid is usually considered the culprit of the actual weight gain...despite above average excercise and eating habits...the thing is loosing that weight to begin with is abnormal for hashi's with hypothyroid....so that was one of my concernes when reading the diabetes association website....I honestly would hate to have diabetes, and I'm glad hypo accounts for almost every symptom of diabetes that I seem to have exhibited every day over the last few years...

To be honest a diagnoses of diabetes of any type will ruin my career, and destroy any hope of serving my country. Hence, I don't think I'm a hypochondriac or whatever, or at least I don't actually hope to be sick....I just know when something is wrong with me, and if most docs would rather rely on "modern medicine" and pharmaceutical companies, than actual patient health and prolonged symptoms than it's no wonder we still know relatively little about health issues like diabetes....