Am I diabetic?

[anywherebutthere]

Put on 5 stone in the course of a year due to medication and other reasons.
My health is horrendous. Blood test 12 months ago showed borderline diabetes and I've been too scared to go back for another test.
All my weight is round my middle.
I have no symptoms of type 2 diabetes, no tiredness or excessive thirst. What I do get is extreme low blood sugar (or what I think it is)
A few hours after eating my hands shake uncontrollably, I sweat from head to toe and become really irritable, shoving stuff into my mouth until I start to feel better. I then get incredibly tired and need a nap.
It happens a couple of times a week now, originally was once every couple of months.
I didn't think hypos were a symptom of type 2 diabetes. What else could be wrong with me?
I also have awful heartburn (I think due to the weight on my belly) and drink gaviscon all day long.
I snore all night as well.

I get that it would be better to see a doctor, but I'm freaking now!

You can experience hypos as a T2 so it's really important that you go and see your GP
Don't stick your head in the sand
I'm T1 so not much I can do about that but you're in a great position in that you can reverse it. Try and reframe it in your mind- call the GP!

Hypos are a symptom resulting from the treatment of diabetes (insulin and other medication) not of diabetes itself.

You can't become hypoglycaemic if you are a non-medicated diabetic.

If you're getting low blood sugar it's unlikely that you have diabetes. So you either need to go to see your GP or ( in the meantime) buy a blood glucose machine and test your blood when you have these "low blood sugar" episodes.

You can feel the way you describe for a whole range of reasons, so doing this would rule out (or rule in) one cause.

Hypoglycemia is unusual in t2. Are you drinking water regularly?

I don't drink as much as I should for sure. Would this affect blood sugar?

It can affect blood pressure and general wellbeing.

i was going to come on and say it sounds like diabetes. I’m newly diagnosed t2 and you sound very much like I did. I’m doing well on meds and new lifestyle but I thought that I get low sugars occasionally as I get those symptoms hot sweaty shaking and dizzy. I’ll have to ring the diabetes team and ask them about it. Hope you get a better answer Op 💐

I'm going to get an appointment tomorrow. I've felt pukey for a couple of weeks now. Along with the heartburn, shaking etc.

Noone can give you an answer here - Especially reassurance.

You urgently need more blood tests

Could your iron be low?

If your not sure eat plenty of green leafy veg and drink fresh orange.

Worth a trip to see your doctor.

Don’t think that’s true. If you have a large blood sugar spike and are insulin resistant your body can produce too much insulin which then leads to a hypo a couple of hours after eating.
I would say the hypos suggest that you are either T2 or prediabetic.
If you reduce the amount of carbs you eat you should reduce the numbers of hypos you are having. You can also check out the glucose goddess website for hacks to help stabilise your blood sugar when eating.

You would need to check your blood sugars to find out if it is a hypo, I had insulin resistance (PCOS) and because I was so used to high blood sugars I would feel how you describe when my levels came down (to normal levels not hypo) then needing a nap would indicate your sugars are too high again after having something sugary.

https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/diabetes/expert-answers/reactive-hypoglycemia/faq-20057778#:~:text=Reactive%20hypoglycemia%2C%20sometimes%20called%20postprandial,Sweating.

Sounds like reactive hypoglycaemia

The shakes always seem to happen after a carb heavy meal. I had a big bowl of coco pops yesterday and it happened and a few days before that I had 2 pieces of white toast and butter. I think it's definitely carb related.

Just googled. Best case scenario it might be a sugar crash?
Going to see my GP tomorrow anyway.

We all have periods of relative hypoglycaemia.

It is most likely to be after a significant glucose spike when you release insulin to deal with and then get a rebound low. This is what makes you feel tired and hungry after a carbohydrate rich meal like a Chinese take away. Avoiding the highs also helps reduce the lows.

OP get the Glucose Goddess book. It explains what you are experiencing and how to reverse your risk of diabetes.

She’s also on Instagram

Is your diet carb heavy, without enough protein or fibre? If you rely on lots of carbohydrates, you can experience a crash a few hours after eating.

Glucose goddess looks great. Thank you all.

It sounds like a sugar crash, which means your body is not properly handling carbs. That points to Type 2 or pre-diabetes. Get to your doctor asap.

@newusern1

Ahh I see. Ok - thanks for educating me!