I think I am diabetic or pre(input pls)

[tickyul]

I think that I diabetic or prediabetic.I have suspected it for about 5 years but have tried to deal with it,but it is getting worse.
Remember when juicing was popular?I tried it and when I drank something like orange juice I would almost immediately get very sleepy,that was a starting point.I also was on the low fat/high carb diet which worked great for the first 6 months(this was about 12 years ago(I am now 38,male,5foot7 160lbs).about 6 months into the low fat/high carb diet I started having the sleepy episodes after meals(I did not put this together at the time).I eventually passed thru the sleepy episodes and they turned into dizziness(especially after eating),painfull burning on the soles of my feet,red peeling skin on my face,hot burning face,sore that would not heal.I finally figured out that my diet was killing my and changed it to lower carb and more fat and protien.I also got a glucometer and started taking my blood sugar.sometimes when I wake up it will be 120-130.But if I avoid carbs(good or bad doesnt make a difference)it is usually around 90 when I wake up.If I start on monday eating carbs I immediatly get dizzy after meals(with more than 20 grams of carb)and by friday if I continue eating carbs my glucose is up to 200-300,and my feet are burning and my face is red and peeling.Doctors look at me and think I am healthy as a horse but I cannot eat carbs without getting dizzy.I eat low carb so my blood sugar stays ok.The doctors look at my 90 reading and say your fine.The problem is I am eating little carb(I like carbs but they make me dizzy)which keeps my sugar low but also gets me dismissed at the doctors office.Any comments are welcome.

[KLD]

I understand your problem very well, because I'm a type 2 diabetic who keeps my blood sugars perfectly normal by eating a very low carb diet (under 50 grams per day - no more than 12 grams at any meal). I recently went to a new endocronologist. He was was so surprised by my blood sugar records that I think he doubted I was diabetic at all, because he asked me if I would mind having another glucose tolerance test. The two-hour result of 14.2 (255 to you Americans) convinced him that I was.

Have you asked your doctor to order a glucose tolerance test for you? That should answer the question once and for all.

Karen

[HeatherP]

Welcome Tickyul. I'm not sure what to think but based on the information you've given, but it certainly sounds to me like you need to investigate this thoroughly. A GTT is probably a good idea, since your fasting sugars seem pretty close to normal. You should talk to your dr about how you feel after eating a meal high in carbs. Have you ck'd your sugars when feeling that way?

It's not an easy diagnosis to take, and there's a lot to learn if you are indeed diabetic, but you might as well face it and take action so that your quality of life is as good as it can be. Continued high b/s causes damage to all of the body's organs and the nervous system so it's best to take control as soon as possible.

You'll find a lot of great people here w/ great advice and sympathetic ears, so I hope you'll join us again soon and let us know how it went w/ the doc. Oh, and just remember, your doctor is working for YOU, so if you want something done, insist on it. A doctor that won't take his patient's concerns seriously is a doctor that isn't worth having!

Please keep us posted,
HeatherP

[tickyul]

Thanks everyone for the information.I ALWAYS know when I have eaten too much carbs.I can feel the dizziness coming on like a seizure.It also makes my joints sore.The thing that is really bad is that for years I did not put together the carbs with the sickness.I would have sickness after each high carb/low fat meal.And these effects were not terrible for one meal(pretty bad though).but the cumulative effect(lots of dizziness,burning feet,dry scaly skin on face,urination that would not stop,blurred vision,to name a few)really has done a job on me.When I eat too much carb and get dizzy I can predict that my BS will be over 170,then I take it and I am right.If I eat too much carb for a week like I said my BS gets up into the 300's and my feet(soles)start buring,my face starts peeling and I am dizzy most of the time,also when I wake up I feel really dizzy and my eyes hurt and are really red.I am eating very little carb and most of my symptoms(I still pee soo much at night)are gone(no(zero) dizziness,buring of the feet and my face looks good).The problem is I like carbs and cant seem to eat much except for yucky green veggies(potatoes forget it,la la land)Also I bonk if I cannot eat more carbs(hard to walk up hills and pedal the bike.But if I eat the **** carby I get sicky.I think that when I get some money I will do the 5 hr Gtt with 3 day preloading of 400gms of carb(I will get sick).The
problem is where do I go from there(if I am diag with diabetes)?I really seem to be doing good with limiting my carbs but my energy is not really up to par and the brain seems kinda slow
.I think that If I go into ketosis I may have better energy.Does anyone get joint pain if they eat too many carb?ANY ADVICE IS WELCOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[HeatherP]

If you've had this problem for a long time, then there's probably some damage already done.

If you are indeed diabetic, then depending on what form of the disease you have, you will either control your b/s w/ diet and excercise, or go on meds, or start on insulin, or any combination of those options. The longer you go w/o treating this disease the more damage you are doing to yourself. Many people report though, that after getting control of their blood sugars their symptoms lessen so it would be advisable for you to get a dx as soon as possible.

I don't know where you live and/or if you have/need health insurance. Many hospitals do low-cost fasting blood sugar tests from time to time, so check around. If you're in Canada or the UK, then you should be covered.

In the meantime, lay off the carbs as much as you can to try to keep your b/s more manageable.

Take care of yourself,
HeatherP

[KLD]

I want to be very clear that I'm not pushing this on you at all Tickyul, because it's not everyone's "cup of tea," but I manage my type 2 diabetes extremely well by following a low carb diet recommended in a book called Dr. Bernstein's Diabetes Solution. I've been eating this way for over two years and have never felt better in my whole adult life. My A1C is 5.0, my cholesterol levels are excellent, and my blood pressure is back down to a low normal reading after being high for a few years, and some of my early signs of diabetes complications have reversed. If you're interested in knowing more about it, send me a pm and I'll give you more information. If you're not interested, that's fine too.

Karen

[Harold]

tickyul

As with fasting or random blood glucose tests, a markedly abnormal oral glucose tolerance test is diagnostic of diabetes. (http://www.endocrineweb.com/diabetes/diagnosis.html) You do not have to have a GTT to be dx'd with diabetes. When your running over 300 call your doctors office and tell them you want to come in and have a random blood glucose test done. This should be much cheaper than a GTT and it will get your doctors attention when the blood test comes back over 300.

From what I read in your post when you eat low carb your energy level becomes signifigantly lower. Are you eating more fats? You can increase your caloric intake with fats. As long as you are able to digest the extra fats you should be able to maintain an adequate level of energy. However not everyone can talerate a lot of fat in their diet so you may have to experiment to find a balance between fats and carbs that you can tolerate to maintain energy levels and lower blood glucose levels.

[Jenny]

Welcome, and yes I think you may be diabetic but that is just my opinion. Hope you get things figured out!