Alright, here it goes. I was diagnosed as diabetic in september of 2005 when I went into a diabetic coma (opiate withdrawal induced). At the given time, I had no idea I might have or had diabetes. I looked at hospital records from a 1 1/2 prior to that occurance, and I had a BGL reading of 236. If I'm type 1, how did I live for a year and a half w/o insulin. I never urinated frequently, seldomly felt dehydrated etc. And I am type 1. Also anyone know success rates of pancreatic transplants and what are the chances of getting one if you're not inches away from death?

Alright, here it goes. I was diagnosed as diabetic in september of 2005 when I went into a diabetic coma (opiate withdrawal induced). At the given time, I had no idea I might have or had diabetes. I looked at hospital records from a 1 1/2 prior to that occurance, and I had a BGL reading of 236. If I'm type 1, how did I live for a year and a half w/o insulin. I never urinated frequently, seldomly felt dehydrated etc. And I am type 1. Also anyone know success rates of pancreatic transplants and what are the chances of getting one if you're not inches away from death?

If you get type 1.5 (basically T1 at an older age, say mid 20s) then the honeymoon period is often much longer. I know of a couple of folks who didn't start insulin until about 2 years after diagnosis. So that may be how you lasted that long.

As for pancreas transplants, the average life of a graft is now about 10 years, which is about the same for a kidney. So that's very good. I'm listed right now. I don't know how difficult it is for people to get listed and get their insurance to pay for it. I do know that in the short term, if you haven't been diagnosed that long, you are much better off without it. You currently have a low risk of complications and the anti-rejection meds are powerful and risky. You are much safer staying as you are.

If you have any more specific questions about the transplant, just let me know. I've done a lot of research.

Cora

I'm confused- was it a diabetic coma, or an opiate withdraw coma?

Sometimes stressful situations cause the blood glucose to be higher. So, it's quite possible that your bg was 236 then, returned to normal, then you got diabetes later. Elevated blood sugars during illness may predict diabetes for the future, but not mean you have diabetes at that moment. As Cora said, type 1.5 is a logical explanation, though type 2 is as well. Have you had a c-peptide done?

It was a diabetic coma which was opioid withdrawal induced, the heavy withdrawal snapped the honeymoon into full onset, i presume.