Does this sound like diabetes?

[Diabetesquestion]

Had my son at the beginning of 2020. Have always been a size 10-12, 6 at my smallest. Never beyond. Had gestational diabetes when I was pregnant, had serious PND for a year after my son, gone from a size 12 to a 26. Hate myself, want to do something about it.

Over the past year my health has been deteriorating, I was diagnosed with PCOS - have thrush constantly, wounds constantly that do not heal (one has been there for three months and every wound has required antibiotics because they get infected), heavy fatigue and tiredness, headaches.

Been fobbed off by doctors constantly, until I hit the bullet and booked an appointment, took a list in with me and went through everything.

Had a full blood count today, test for diabetes, booked to see a dietician to then get help with weight loss. Also spoke to my mental health team about my medication..

The thing I’m most concerned about is diabetes especially with these wounds. Guess I’m just looking for a handhold because I won’t get my test results until Monday when they’ve booked me in to discuss them.

And if anyone has been in my position, please tell me it gets better…. I’m not myself anymore

I'm so sorry you're going through all this it sounds incredibly hard.

I don't think it sounds like type 1 diabetes as I think you lose weight with that one. Type 2 is more likely but if it is you should be offered help to manage it.

Hopefully someone more useful will come along but just try not to fret until you get the results, although I know that's easier to say than do.

It might be type 2 diabetes if it coincides with your weight gain, which is completely manageable with lifestyle changes.

Thank you @CornedBeef451 i appreciate the kind words x

@GoodChat thank you for the info, is type 2 reversible or is it forever?

Uncontrolled diabetes generally causes weight loss. However being overweight increases your risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

Type 2 diabetes is a possibility, from what you’ve said. Were/are you on antidepressants? They can cause weight gain but some are less weight related than others, and if you do have diabetes you could try a different AD to help with the weight issue. Metformin is the standard treatment for type 2 diabetes, which should also help you lose weight. Some people are able to reverse it (at least temporarily) but it isn’t easy.

I hope you don’t have diabetes. But if you do get a diabetes diagnosis there’s lots of help (and treatment) available to get your glucose back under control, and you’ll feel a lot better.

The first things doctors advise if your HbA1c (long term) blood test points towards diabetes (above 47) or pre-diabetes (42-47) are likely to be permanent changes to your diet to reduce your carb intake, weight loss if you are overweight, and increased exercise to change the way your body breaks down sugar. For many people, those measures are enough to reduce the HbA1c to below 42, so ‘reversing’ diabetes, but if you don’t maintain that new lifestyle, the blood sugar goes up again, so it’s not really reversed, just well controlled.

I had to do that. I lost 4st and completely changed the way I eat and exercise. Each time I have an HbA1c test, the result is now within the normal range. But my body’s ability to deal with carbs is still poor, so if I have a carb heavy meal my blood sugar goes up a lot and stays high for much longer than it should.

As you had gestational diabetes, there is a 50% chance of developing type 2 diabetes within 5 or 10 (can't remember which) years of giving birth. You need to get a HBA1C blood test every year. I had GD in both of my pregnancies and need to be tested yearly. You can reduce the risk of this by eating healthily and exercising.

Other posters have said type 2 is reversible, but I don't think that's the case after having GD (I may be wrong about this).

Your symptoms do point towards diabetes, especially the recurring thrush and wounds not healing. If your blood results come back fine, you could ask your GP for advice on reducing the risks.

I completely sympathise with you. I was always a size 10-12, then after I had my first GD pregnancy, my eating went out of control due to being on such a restrictive diet for months. I shot up to a size 16. I also had PND and it was during the first lockdown. I managed to lose some weight then fell pregnant again. I lost some fat during pregnancy due to being on a basically keto diet, and I swore I wouldn't go back to binge eating after giving birth. I did put on a bit of weight afterwards, but I'm very conscious about developing diabetes.

I hope your results come back OK OP. Keep us posted!