Could someone please give me some advice? Type 2 Diabetes.

[RhubarbAndRoses]

I posted this on the diabetes board earlier today but I didn’t get a single response.

I had gestational diabetes last year. It was very bad, I was on a lot of insulin and my DD had to be delivered 5 weeks early.

Three months after she was born I had my HbA1c test. It came back fine. Result was 22. Since Christmas I haven’t been feeling so great. Night sweats every night, dry mouth, thirsty all the time. I started checking my sugar levels at home a few weeks ago. My fasting levels have been consistently over 7 every morning for weeks. I contacted my GP two weeks ago and we did the HbA1c test again. It was 36. I was told that’s fine and that home testing isn’t reliable.

The last week has been awful. I am exhausted, the night sweats are horrendous. In the last three weeks I’ve had two UTIs and a yeast infection. My last four fasting levels first thing in the morning were 10.4, 13.1, 9.9 and 12.0.

This isn’t normal is it? My GP has told me I’m fine and that I should stop testing at home. We’ll repeat the HbA1c in 6 months.

What should I do? I don’t want to bother my GP again if I don’t need to.

Of course home testing is accurate, it's how millions of diabetics control their blood sugars.

With those readings and symptoms I'd be demanding a second opinion.

Try fast 800
It's a low (not no) carb Mediterranean diet designed to help people with type 2 diabetes lower their blood sugars.

Incidentally does the code on the strips match the one input into the reader. Not sure if this it's for the newer machines but in the older ones you could get a high reading if they weren't the same

@GCITC that’s what I thought! After my initial borderline result when I was pregnant, it’s how I was officially diagnosed. I had to test at home over 4 days to get a better picture of what was happening.

@JamesAnderson thank you! I’m going to look into that right now. I’ve bought the same strips that the hospital gave me last year. The codes aren’t exactly the same though. That’s interesting. On the box that the reader was in it does list these exact strips as being compatible with the reader.

What model of meter are you using? I’ve been a type 2 diabetic for a while now after having gestational diabetes similar to yours with my youngest (ds16).

Your fasting levels are very high and unless your meter is wildly out (which I doubt) , you should get back in touch with your GP and tell them you want repeat bloods now, especially with the symptoms you describe.

Have you got some fluid to do a QC test?

I agree. Don't be fobbed off. Politely insist that something is done, this week, you are referred, seen by the diabetic nurse, a knowledgeable GP, offered metformin, something!

You can't have your HbA1c done more often than 3 monthly.

I'd go back to your GP or the practice diabetic nurse if you have one (they're often far more helpful than the GP tbh), and in the meantime really watch your carb intake. I can't do strict low carb as it made me feel really unwell (I'm vegetarian), but I follow the low carb program and their kickstart book has been really useful for carb swaps and good meal plans.

www.lowcarbprogram.com/

HbA1c represents the average of the last three months. If it only started after Christmas it may not have been long enough to be representative. Unfortunately, NHS labs will only process them every 3 months.

I would ask for a second opinion. The GP surgery can lend you a monitor that they know is calibrated if they're worried about accuracy.

Yes, I agree with pp - you need to be seen again ASAP. For now, try to really limit carbs. Your fasting glucose levels look like they are steadily increasing. I second the idea of talking to the diabetic nurse, if your practice has one.

@meemaww it’s a Nexus GlucoRx

@TheAuthorityofJackieWeaver Thank you for reminding me about this! Yes, I have some QC fluid. I’ve just checked and it’s within the allowed range so the machine is working as it should.

@Oblomov21 Thank you. I will be calling them first thing tomorrow.

@missbridgerton that’s really helpful, thank you. I’ve bookmarked the website and will take a good look at it now.

@justchecking1 Yes, I did wonder about that. It’s quite a jump from 22 to 36 isn’t it? I know it’s still within normal range but isn’t a jump like that something to keep an eye on? I don’t know much about how the test works but I was surprised at how much higher it is.

@SpecialToffee thanks! I will definitely be asking to speak to the diabetic nurse tomorrow morning and will start limiting my carb intake straight away.

If you've got the funds to get one, the freestyle libre sensor may be a good idea even if you just use it for a couple of weeks.

It will give your GP or nurse proof of your blood sugars and is a really simple way of getting accurate readings. I've got a very love/hate relationship with my blood glucose monitor, it can be very temperamental and I go through more strips than I should

I would definitely see someone about this again. It's possible you have type 1.

Hi @RhubarbAndRoses - just spotted your other post and replied there too:

Insist that the GP investigate further.
I had Gestational Diabetes with my second child, and a year later I was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes.

A fasting BG of 13 in the morning is NOT normal.

And as for home testing kits being "unreliable" ...what they hell does he think we T1s base all of our insulin decisions on - they're pretty reliable! Perhaps consider buying another BG monitor and compare the readings? I expect they'll be pretty similar.

Low carb is great for helping to keep a steady BG and j thoroughly recommend it, however whilst you're fighting to get your GP of a diabetes nurse to investigate and give a diagnosis it might be worth continuing eating as you would normally, just for now?

@MacDuffsMuff

I would definitely see someone about this again. It's possible you have type 1.

I must admit I was wondering about type 1

GP or a diabetes nurse.
Sorry, typos everywhere, it's late 😄