[Edmundich]

Hello everyone.

I am so glad this forum exist and I can ask some questions. I am still deeply in shoke, after my doctor's visit. He diagnosed me with Type 2 and my A1c level is 8.9. I could never think i have diabetes, never had any symptoms besides being a little tired, after a day of work. I am going to see a dietician and changed my diet. (as of today). My question to you is a little dumb: how did you find out that you had diabetes? What were the symptoms? Many of you have lowered your A1c, does it mean you still watch your diet, but once in a while you can let yourself go a little crazy and eat these carbs? I guess I am still confused...

[Metermaid]

Welcome, you've come to the right place. I am new here too, and the people are very eagar to help.
Didn't you have increased thirst and urination as well as being tired??? That would be your first and most common symptoms. Any blurry vision?
Dietician is a great place to start...she will help a lot. The Did the doctor start you on any oral medications? You may want to make an appointment with an Endocrinologist asap.
Diet, exercise and medication will get your A1c back into normal range. Yes, you will be able to add some foods that you like back into your diet at some point and your healthcare team will hopefully teach you how to do that.
Good luck! It will be less confusing the more you learn.

[Edmundich]

Thank you so much for the encouragement. This is what drives me nut, i had no symptoms whatsoever. I don't eat sweets, never felt really thirsty or had ubnormal urination. Just a little tiredness, that I thought was due to stressful business life. I went to see a doctor and uncovered this accidentally. I could have lived my life another 10-15 years and not go see a doctor (i am glad i did)

[dbc]

Originally Posted by Edmundich

Thank you so much for the encouragement. This is what drives me nut, i had no symptoms whatsoever. I don't eat sweets, never felt really thirsty or had ubnormal urination. Just a little tiredness, that I thought was due to stressful business life. I went to see a doctor and uncovered this accidentally. I could have lived my life another 10-15 years and not go see a doctor (i am glad i did)

Count yourself lucky! (??!!??) You have been diagnosed before serious symptoms showed up, so you've got the best chance of taking control of the D before it gets a chance to mess up your life.

But I can empathise with your reaction to the diagnosis - my experience was similar 4 years ago: went for a medical checkup and walked out with a diagnosis of diabetes . No symptoms, no warning, totally out of left field. It messes with your head for a bit, but life is not over, and you will get things sorted. Hang around here and you'll learn more than your medical team can teach you.

good luck!

[princesslinda]

Welcome Ed! Glad you found the forums. Before diagnosis, I was feeling quite tired, which I attributed to the fact that I was working a part-time job in addition to my regular full-time job. The tiredness got worse, then I began waking in the middle of the night in a sweat with my heart pounding. I'm an over 40 female, so I assued this was perimenopausal, and went to the doctor to get something for anxiety. Doc told me it could certainly be perimenopausal, but diabetes could cause the same symptoms. A blood test later, i'm diagnosed with diabetes.

It is shocking to get that diagnosis. I started metformin, low-carb diet and exercise. A1C at diagnosis was 9.6...3 months later, 6.2 and now I try to keep it in the low 5's as best I can.

There's a great book I recommend, "Type II Diabetes, The First Year," by Gretchen Becker. It has a lot of good information in very easy to understand terms. The author herself is a diabetic, which makes it even more interesting IMO.

I encourage you to test often, so you can see how you blood sugars are affected by the foods you eat, which will allow you to make smarter food choices. Watching those carbs and getting regular exercise will go a long way in lowering your blood sugar/A1C.

Look around, post often, learn all you can about this new chapter in your life. We're here to help.

[mho357]

Hello and welcome to the forum.

I found out as a result of a regular checkup/bloodwork. My A1c was 7.0 so mine was not terribly severe at diagnosis.

Mark

[Holly]

My diagnosis came as a result of somewhat unhappier circumstances. My husband got diabetes diagnosed the day of his stroke. He has had fairly good but not complete recovery. His stroke symptoms were sudden confusion, short term memory and nominal/expressive aphasia - not the classic symptoms. For "fun" I tested myself with his glucometer and got readings I didn't like. In retrospect.....yes - I was symptomatic - tired (and still am), thirsty and craving sweets. They were making chocolate bars smaller so that I needed two to satisfy my hunger. I also found out yesterday that I've fatty liver disease and 40% blocked carotid arteries. Whoa..... anger at myself and depression at it's finest! It took a while to accept the diabetic diagnosis and the changes needed in my life. I haven't had a chocolate since mid - October. I've lost five pounds with many more to go. Been to two diabetic classes. Becker's book is helpful. So is the support I receive on this site and I find I'm making myself come here more often. It was hard to read at first. I'm an R.N. and not proud of putting myself in this position. My MD told me yesterday that he didn't consider me to be overweight....DUH...How's that again - 170 lbs and only 5'1". Reality check needed here.

[Wolf]

Last summer I had slowly gained weight and was at my heaviest and generally not feeling healthy and was tired a lot. I also urinated a lot but in my mind I chalked that up to drinking lots of Diet Cokes. I hadn't been in for a physical for a while and I also knew that in the past my blood glucose level was always a little higher than average.

So when my number came back (6.5), I wasn't really surprised. But once the reality of big problems diabetes can cause sunk in, I vowed to make big changes.

You're going to have to make life long changes. I know you probably don't want to hear that and you might even shed a tear about no longer being able to eat some foods.

Instead of periodically splurging on "bad" foods, you might want to find out which foods you can eat and still be within acceptable ranges. I'm sure you'll be able to find food you really like that you can safely eat. You'll be amazed how much you'll savor each bite!

Hunt around for low carb alternatives. There's a lot out there you'll probably be able to eat, like Dreamfields Pasta, Breyer's Carb Smart ice cream, Diet V8 or Diet Ocean Spray juice, Mission low carb tortillas, etc. Also educate yourself on low glycemic food.

Good luck.

[JadeMonkey]

Welcome to the forum, Edumundich. Sorry to hear about your Dx but glad that you found the forums. I think you will find them and the people you meet here very helpful. I have.

The story of my Dx is in this thread:
Allow myself to introduce..... myself.
Keep in mind though that I'm a Type 1 and we're a little different.

Are you on any meds or insulin? Have you been to see an endocrinologist or is your regular doctor monitoring your condition?

-Jade

[notme]

Hi Ed and welcome to Diabetes Forums. Knowledge is power! Glad you joined the forums and are checking things out here. There are a lot of great people with good advice and experience. WELCOME!

[TheKnight571]

I found out via regular blood work.

I hadn't really noticed any of the symptoms, probably since it came on slowly.

[Evermont]

Welcome to DF!

No symptoms at all, I just decided to get a check-up which I do every 10 years or so. Fasting BG was 150, A1c 8.8.

It came as a surprise to me, but now that I know more about diabetes, I could have anticipated it. My dad is T2, I carry some extra weight around the middle, just over 40 years old and sit behind a desk day after day... all of which are major risk factors for T2.

I regret now that I could have prevented it, but I was oblivious. A lifetime of excellent health set me up. At least I can be grateful for all the years of no problems, and catching T2 early enough to avoid complications.

[pdxdennisj]

I was drinking vast amounts of water and losing a great deal of weight. I thought I had discovered the secret to dieting. I mentioned it to my lipid doctor and the rest is history .