Hello!

I just saw your post in response to Hope*'s question. You seem really friendly and knowledgable so I was wondering if I could ask you a couple questions. I'd love some honest opinions from a friendly source. http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/smile.gif

Basically, my fiance is convinced that I have diabetes or at the very least hypoglycemia. I've been having strange symptoms for months now (my guy can actually pinpoint odd symptoms starting last June). Symptoms included thirst, peeing a lot, tingling/numbness in hands & fingers that comes and goes, headaches, dizziness, eating everything in sight yet being hungry 10min later. I lost a few pounds without trying but it didn't seem like a big deal as I was already thin. I've gone from 120 to 113 (am 5'7") without trying at all. Now I haven't lost anymore but I also haven't gained it back.

Anyway, my first trip to the doctor was a bit humiliating. All she did was prick my finger, said all was well, told me that it was all in my head and sent me home. Needless to say I felt 2 inches tall! I'm never at the doctor and never sick yet I was basically being accused of being a hypochondriac.

I resigned myself to live with the strange symptoms. A few weeks ago the headaches started getting worse. Certain foods like rice, pasta, sweets, everything seems to drill my head with pain. Dizziness started getting worse and resulted in me crashing over our coffee table! At the insistance of my fiance I called to make an appointment with my doctor but he was on holiday so I was stuck with the on-call doctor. I told him that I have several diabetics in my family (grandparents) and he told me not to worry because I didn't have it. No tests were ordered, no meds given. Again, I was made to feel like a hysteric.

Through all of this the symptoms have continued but now nasuea has kicked in. I'll feel so ill after eating dinner but I haven't actually vomited (thank goodness!!). The other night my guy and I were eating spaghetti for dinner and I ate him under the table and was still starving afterwards!

All of this is slowly driving me crazy but I'm so reluctant to go to the doctor again. I hate being made to feel like a hysterical little girl that needs to be calmed down.

What do you think of all this? I'm desparate for advice because I am concerned. So sorry that this was such a long post. Just loads to get off my chest I suppose! Thanks for listening! Any advice/opinion is most welcome.

Cheers,

Nicola http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/wave.gif

In the meantime, does anybody else have any advice or opinions? Concerned chick here....

Thx!

Nicola http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/wave.gif

Ok...I'm not going to beg people to answer my post.

Take care everybody. http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/smile.gif

I would definitely demand a glucose tolerance test
since diabetes is in the family. It is the defining
test. I passed the blood and urine test with flying
colors! If you need to go to a different doctor, do
so. If you are crashing over your coffee table, something has to be wrong. Also, spaghetti is a fast
starch or carb, switch to whole wheat! Good luck.
If you have anymore questions, I'll check back!

------------------

Thank you soooo much for responding!!

My fiance is on me to get back to the doctor but like I said in my post I'm reluctant because of the brush-off I'v been getting.

I plan on giving the doc a call 2morrow to set up an appt. We'll see how that goes!

Again, thanks a lot for responding. http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/smile.gif

Nicola

WallSal,

Just thought I'd give you a bit of an update. I called the doctor but I can't be seen until next week.

My fiance and I went out and bought a blood glucose monitoring kit as they're really inexpensive over here. Everything came with the kit. There's even a chart that tells you when you should test yourself and what normal readings are.

I know that this is no way to diagnose diabetes but hopefully it can be of some help anyway.

I'll keep you posted! Thx again.

Nicola http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/smile.gif

Hi Nicola,
I hope you go to a dr. and fast, Some dr. are so stupid i think, i get the same thing except i am heavy in weight and they look at me and say well its your weight, well helloooooooo. something is not right, i feel weird, and i know something is not right, i am a dibetic, but i am a controlled one, i dont' take pills yet i control it with my diet, and exercise, but i feel bad, and have pressure in my chest and sick to my stomach but yet i am hungery all the time and the sickness goes away for about 30 minutes then comes back and i am hungery again, i am goin back in for a blood test again monday, and a upper GI, he thinks i have acid reflux. i told him i dont have burning in my chest just pressure and some time pain, I did buy me one of those things to check my blood, and my sugar was running high, i wasnt'taken him serious about the dibetics thing until i started doing the blood test thing, now i see when my sugar goes up and what i ate that causes it, your guy is right you really need to go to another dr. you know something is wrong, i think our bodies knows something is wrong and the dr just look at you and think we are nuts. well good luck i will check the post and see how you are doin, Donna S

Hi Donna,

Thanks so much for your post! Really means a lot. http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/smile.gif

I know exactly what you mean about doctors just completely blowing you off. You have to wonder why some of them are even in the medical profession if they don't really care about people. (answer is probably money!) http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/rolleyes.gif

Tuesday is when I'm planning on going in for an emergency appoinment. I'll let you know how it goes!

Again, thanks a lot and take care!

Nicola http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/wave.gif

Just an update for WallSal and anybody else who's interested.

Called this morning for an emergency appt. and found out that I can't see my doc until 2 weeks from now. I'm just getting depressed and really don't care anymore whether I have it or not. The nausea and headaches are getting worse and I'm now at the point where I'm having to nap after every meal. Its all very depressing and frustrating.

Thanks for everybody's responses.

Nicola http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/frown.gif

When I cannot get my apt. in two weeks, I usually
call a clinic (nearby a hospital) that has a huge staff. They have family practitioners that are "on-call" just for the flu, viruses that need anitbiotics, migraine patients, etc.
Specialists are usually booked up for 2 weeks in
advance. (Ilive in a rural area, so
finding openings can be annoying. You call and
they ask "Have you ever been a patient before?" No,
I just need medical care!) And then sometimes, it
is so easy to get in with a Nurse Practitioner (who
will call a doc for consultation, if necessary). I
usually pick up the phone, and call, call, call,
with persistence so I can get in today or tomorrow!

------------------

Thanks again so much WallSal.

My guy took me to get my eyes examed today and the doctor I had was fantastic. He actually sat down and LISTENED to me. Asked me loads of questions about my symptoms and how I was feeling.

Thankfully my eyes were fine but the doc said that if he were a betting man he'd say that I had diabetes. All I need now he said was a blood test to confirm it. He also said that general practioners are often too pushy and need a prodding to get on the ball. So I'm calling the doc in the AM to make sure I get in for a same day appt.

Feeling a lot better since seeing my eye doc today. Nice to know that there are some doctors who really do care.

Thanks again!

Nicola http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/smile.gif

Nicola -
Your symptoms sound like they could be coming from either diabetes or low blood sugar. With low BS, when you eat carbs, especially without protein at the same time, your body produces too much insulin, uses up the sugar too fast, and the result is low blood sugar. Headaches, dizziness, sweating, nausea, etc., can all be signs of low blood sugar as well as very high blood sugar.

I'm not sure how low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) is diagnosed these days, but you can probably diagnose diabetes yourself with a blood glucose monitor. In the US, the parameters for a fasting blood glucose (eight hours with no food...usually done first thing in AM), are 70-110 is normal...if you have two fasting blood glucoses over 125, you're considered diabetic.

If you're using UK measurements, you can find out what's normal by doing a search for "blood glucose levels" +United Kingdom (or + Canada, Great Britain, etc.).

Meanwhile, try eating smaller amounts several times a day, and make sure to include some protein with every meal and cut back especially on refined carbohydrates. You can have fruits and vegetables, but I would limit to 2 servings a day of fruit and 3-5 of vegetables (measure your quantities so you can be sure it's one serving!), keep starches (breads, potatoes, grains, etc.) to a minimum and never without at least a small amount of protein. This should help you feel somewhat better while you're waiting to see the doctor. If you are, in fact, diabetic, you'll need to find out whether you're a Type I or Type II. If you're hypoglycemic, be aware that hypoglycemia often presages the onset of diabetes, and get checked at least once a year.

A great website for diabetics is the American Diabetes Association at www.diabetes.org. (http://www.diabetes.org.) Also, read some of the other posts on this board re treating, diagnosing, etc.

Good luck...I hope you find out what's making you feel so sick and get better soon!