My new Doc thinks I'm an alcoholic!

[Pixi]

Hi People & thanks so much for the welcome last week. GTT is in showing pre-diabetes and my new Doc seems convinced I'm a boozer...help!:eek:

I have seen him 3 times and he keeps telling me to quit drinking - only trouble there is that I am, and have been a teetotaller for many years...I hate alcohol, it makes me feel really sick - even a sip or two. I have never drunk much as I was raised by a violent alcoholic Mother who died young from it and it disgusts me... I'm starting to lose faith in this fellow already... I saw the computer screen in his office and it said in capital letters: ALCOHOLISM (!):mad:

I explained to him that I suffer from a fatty liver - hence my cholesterol being really high (not very well controlled by meds)...maybe that is what he's picking up? I asked for a copy of the bloodwork showing liver function - so he ignored me...

He also said I was obese - which is ridiculous - I'm a few pounds heavy around my middle (which is fairly new) - the rest of me is normal for my tall height. He can see I have impaired mobility (wheelchair) and suggested I take up jogging - I was completely befuddled by this point - as I am in need of a hip replacement - which he also reckons I don't need (even tho X-ray shows bone on bone). He won't give me any pain control for severe arthritis either - so I am still in agony.

I complained to him about many of my "glucose" symptoms, chronic fatigue, thirst, frequent urination, burning feet, buzzing legs, tremors, sweats, terribly dry skin and headaches and he said I'm imagining many of them! WTF? :confused:

He checked my BG meter and said is was reading 2.0 too high, that's why I think I may have the start of diabetes... so I got it checked again by Diabetes Australia yesterday and they said it was very accurate indeed - it's his one that is out and it may be putting other people at risk. (I will fax his office on Monday morning about this!).

I don't think the GTT result is right either, because the nurse took the 2 hour blood sample 20 minutes earlier as she could see I was becoming ill with the glucose hit...

I've had two bad hypo's in the last 2 days and postprandial readings are still too high - am I right in thinking this dude is an A-hole? Or am I being too precious here? I am disappointed as I really thought I might actually get some help finally - I am in an isolated area and have to travel quite a distance to see this Doctor on the mainland.

I feel he is just being awkward or doesn't like me for some reason...I think I'm going to have to start this all over again with yet another Doctor...and all the time I am not getting proper help with this problem. Thank God for this forum and others like it!

I am carb counting and being as active as I can since realising there is something very wrong with my metabolism/glucose etc. I'm planning to start swimming next week - walking is not an option unfortunately at this point.

Thanks for letting me whinge here...

Anyone else been accused of loving the gin too much whilst trying to get a dx? :D

A P'd off Pixi...;)

[morrisma]

Good rant!

The obvious answer is to find a new doc. The less obvious possibility is that he is the substance abuser. I'd find a new doc asap.
Mike

[owlyn]

Whoever this person is, he is not a doctor. At least he shouldn't be. Report him to the authorities and get yourself a real doctor ASAP.

[UpNorth]

Report that "doctor" and find yourself a DOCTOR! :T

[shutterbug]

I used to have a similar doc. But, not this worse. His bottom line was my health. When he first found out my elevated liver enzymes, he asked me if I drink. When I told him I don't, he immediately said, what I had was fatty liver. My liver enzymes are back to normal now (after diet and exercise and loosing 20 lbs)

I'd suggest changing your doc!

[mortis505]

I would have to agree with the others. This "person" should be reported to the medical board, and a new physician found immediately.

[notme]

And, one more time.... Find a new doctor. I had a doctor accuse me of "drug seeking" and I was mortified. I took tylenol with codeine maybe once a month for approximately three years for migranes. I know that codeine is not the drug of choice by most doctors for migranes, but it worked for me and it didn't make me nauseated. I used it rarely. The prescription was given to me by my neurologist. I asked for a refill from my doctor (who knows me and knows I hate ANY pills) and she questioned why a doctor would prescribe codeine for migranes. She was the one that referred me to the neurologist and she denied having anything in her records about the referral. :eek:

I never went back to that doctor. I gathered up my records and immediately sent it to a new physician. My new doctor understands that I am not a drug seeker nor a pill popper and she does not accuse me of lying to her. I no longer need the codeine as it seems the migranes were a hormone problem of a 45 year old woman. Luckily, I don't deal with that anymore.

I love my new doctor. She understands me, my family history and she is good friends with my endo. Make the change. Find someone who will listen to you and not assume you are lying. Who needs that????

[howdysf]

How are you having Hypos???... are you on insulin?

[davef]

Ok, broken record time ... get a Doctor, dump the idiot you saw and report him. Don't hang around thinking about it, just go out and get a new Doctor on Monday.

Glad to see you know that you can come here and rant. It's good to know you have a place to go to blow off steam.

Keep posting and take care of yourself,

[Pixi]

How are you having Hypos???... are you on insulin?


No, I'm not on anything and am not getting any help other than self-educating from this site & reading whatever I can...my Doctor doesn't give a toss...so please forgive me everyone if I am asking some really dumb questions here. The Doctor just said I was pre-diabetic due to "alcoholism" (even tho I protested to him that I am a non-drinker) and said he gave me 12 months before I would be fully diabetic - he then shoved me out of the door with no education about anything...

Maybe I'm not having hypo's? Can people with pre-diabetes have them? It seemed to me that this is what is happening, but I've probably just gotten muddled up with all the new info. Sorry if this is not "hypo" ~ I thought it was.

At this early point, based on what I understand, I can only assume I may be having hypo's or false hypo's because of what is happening to me without much warning. I am suddenly getting pretty agitated at around 4.5 -5.5 without a hunger feeling and outright aggressive/in a sort of panic/surreal mode at 3.2 as well as feeling like I'm starting to seize...I am also spiking at 13.2 (237.6) after meals & craving sugar or even more food (which I deny myself). I seem to be running above 7.0 most of the time and I feel ravaged by something. All I know is - these roller-coaster symptoms are making me unwell...

I am eating low carb, low fat vegetarian food & I'm not very overweight only recently on my gut. I will be seeking a new GP this week and am disgusted this guy thinks it's ok to be like this with patients...he probably wasn't smart enough to be a Vet - just treats his patients like dumb cattle.

[fgummett]

If you've been going along for a while with higher BS levels, even going to "normal" levels can feel low. I have experienced this with a headache and generally feeling bad. A true hypo is where the BS goes so low that there is increasing confusion and loss of physical control which if untreated can lead to loss of consciousness or worse... usually only occurs if injecting insulin.

[Pixi]

A true hypo is where the BS goes so low that there is a increasing confusion and loss of physical control which if untreated can lead to loss of consciousness or worse... usually only occurs if injecting insulin.

Thank you very much for clarifying that for me! Obviously I am just having nasty lows then and nothing to do with hypoglycemia at all...phew! :o I can only imagine how terrifying & dangerous it is for insulin injecting people...

[mortis505]

Direct from the ADA website.

Part of living with diabetes is learning to cope with some of the problems that go along with having the disease. Hypoglycemia or low blood glucose (sugar) is one of those problems. Hypoglycemia happens from time to time to everyone who has diabetes.

Hypoglycemia, sometimes called an insulin reaction, can happen even during those times when you're doing all you can to manage your diabetes. So, although many times you can't prevent it from happening, hypoglycemia (low blood glucose) can be treated before it gets worse. For this reason, it's important to know what hypoglycemia is, what symptoms of hypoglycemia are, and how to treat hypoglycemia.

The symptoms of hypoglycemia include:

* Shakiness
* Dizziness
* Sweating
* Hunger
* Headache
* Pale skin color
* Sudden moodiness or behavior changes, such as crying for no apparent reason
* Clumsy or jerky movements
* Seizure
* Difficulty paying attention, or confusion
* Tingling sensations around the mouth


More info here. (http://www.diabetes.org/type-1-diabetes/hypoglycemia.jsp)

This can happen to T1 or T2.

[ant hill]

Hi People & thanks so much for the welcome last week. GTT is in showing pre-diabetes and my new Doc seems convinced I'm a boozer...help!:eek:
Please see a new doctor and also get a referral to an endocrinologist. Having a low from not taking any insulin is just as serious and should be looked into and state that you are not a alcoholic.

I have seen him 3 times and he keeps telling me to quit drinking - only trouble there is that I am, and have been a teetotaller for many years...I hate alcohol, it makes me feel really sick - even a sip or two.
The reason is that he thinks that you're are drinking alcohol as this lowers the BG level and that is why he thinks that you are drinking. I would look into getting that referral Pix, Even it means an observation in hospital. ;)