Diabetes

[Tom Earp]

Hon, if you have any doubt in your mind, Damn go see a Doctor ASAP!

If nothing is wrong, then mo the better!

Better Safe than sorry!

Do Not Wait! We love ya and want to keep Ya around for a lot longer!!!!!

You are to neat a lady to lose! Do IT!

[ZTAngel]

Diabetes can be such a debilitating disease.
My great aunt and great grandfather had it. My grandfather died from it when I was 3 so I don't remember what it was like for him. My aunt had a severe form of Type II. She was always in and out of the hospital. About ten years ago, she got an infection in her foot. The antibiotics would not work so they had to amputate her leg. Last December, she got sick again. An infection started in her other leg and the antibiotics would not work. Her other leg was amputated. By then, it was too late. She had pneumonia. From December until March, she was in the hospital. She died in March.
The problem was that she didn't take care of herself. She ate all the wrong foods and never exercised. She was extremely overweight.
My boyfriend's roommate has diabetes and never eats the right foods and drinks like a fish. I told him that he needs to take care of himself better. I just can't watch another person go through what my aunt had to go through.

[Optimist Prime]

My grand mother has it.

[Lady Pi Phi]

I'm a diabetic. I have been so for 10 years. It'll be 11 in february. My symptoms were, frequent urniation, tired, thirsty. AT first my parents thought it was the flu because my brother was sick. But he got better and I kept getting worse, as it got woirse, I had trouble breathing, then I had terrible pains in my sides and legs. The night before I went into the hospital I slept with my mother so she could keep an eye on me, and I was in terrible pain I could barely walk. The next morning I couldn't move. I couldn't get out of bed. My mum had to dress me, and they took me to the hospital. by the time I got there I couldn't walk, stand. I had my parents and the nurse hold me up, so they could do triage. The nurse actually knew what it was right away and asked my family if there was a history of diabetes in the family and my parents said they didn't know. I was rushed into a room and I was on insulin with in half an hour. Later the doctor said that if my parents had waited another day to bring me in I would have been in a comma. I had really bad symptoms.
So that's my story.

Emily

[Hootie]

This disease runs in my family.

I don't know a lot about it, but was wondering if there are certain lifestyles that can lead to diabetes? Such as poor health, smoking, sweet tooth, history of high bloodpressure, stress????

I'm just curious!

Hootie

[SATX*APhi]

Originally posted by Hootie
This disease runs in my family.

I don't know a lot about it, but was wondering if there are certain lifestyles that can lead to diabetes? Such as poor health, smoking, sweet tooth, history of high bloodpressure, stress????

I'm just curious!

Hootie

Yep, yep and yep!! Diabetes runs in my family and I've already been told by my doctor that I need to watch what I eat, quit smoking, need to work out and also need to lose some weight b/c if not, then I will soon become diabetic. What he told me is that EVERYONE is diabetic; it's just a matter of becoming "very diabetic." I guess!

[AOX81]

Well I was supposed to go to the doctor this morning but they just called and moved my appointment to 4:15.

[Lady Pi Phi]

Just a side note...

I think it's important that we remeber what kind of diabetes we're talking about here. There are 3 different kinds. There is type 1 (usually called Juvenille Diabetes), type 2 (adult onset) and type 3 (maternal diabetes). I think AOX81 is worried about type 2, which is ususally a result of a poor lifestyle...obesity, poor eating habits, etc There is also some evidence that it is genetics and those from certaine thnic groups are more likely to develop it than others. Another risk factor is giving birth to child that is 9 pounds or more. Type 1 is...well no one knows how it occurs...I can tell you at 11 I didn't smoke, have high blood pressure, I know it wasn't sweet tooth...sorry I'm ranting now, but I just want to make sure that people know the difference...type 2 is very much a lifestyle disease...type 1 may be more genetic or due to a virus...there is no known reason why it occurs. Maternal, well it occurs when a woman is pregenant. I honestl don't know too much about it.

AOX81, to you I'm sure everything will work out fine If not, remeber it's not the end of the world, just a lifestyle change. Remember, type 2 can easily be treated and controlled with excersise, a healthy diet, and if medication is involved it's usually a pill. Very few type 2 diabetics are required to take insulin shots unless their diabetes is extremely out of control. But there are lots of people here to talk to if you need to and I'm sure there are a few diabetics here if you need to talk to them, including me. Take care and I know everything will be fine.

PPL,

Emily

[rubyrose]

I agree with the majority of what everyone is saying here, but I also want to point out that Type 1 has developed in people as late in life as their early 30's. This happened to a friend of our family.

What they told us when our daughter developed Type 1 was that she probably had a virus and when her body went to fight it, it went too far by killing cells the body needs to make insulin. (It sounds very similar to what happened to you, Emily.) Since she has no insulin at all, she gives herself 4 shots of 2 different kinds of insulin a day and she pricks her fingers about 5 times a day to test her blood sugar. (This sounds like a big deal, but it is very routine at this point.) She was genetically predisposed to developing it, and it was really just a matter of time before it happened. She has always been thin and active, and we were told her weight and activity level had nothing to do with it coming on. We had instances of Type 2 diabetes on both mine and my husband's sides of the family although no Type 1. As a matter of fact there is a test that we were told we can have for our younger daughter to see if she is predisposed for Type 1 although we haven't decided yet if we are going to have the test.

If you have children and there is a family history of ANY kind of diabetes on both you and your spouse's sides of the family, you need to be alerted if your child experiences excessive thirst and urination, extreme weight loss, and periods of inchohesiveness and exhaustion.

As others have stated here, Type 2 can be brought on by poor eating habits and excessive weight or possibly just genetics. In this case the body does not stop producing insulin but instead the body becomes resistant to the insulin that is produced. That is why pills and not shots are generally enough to control it although, my dad is Type 2 and after 20 years of pills, he moved to shots. The effects and symptoms of Type 2 are essentially the same as Type 1 except that they may develop over a longer period of time. Unfortunately, the media has been reporting that more and more children are developing Type 2 when typically it has developed in middle age to elderly age groups. This is clearly a danger sign for our society!

My sister had gestational diabetes when she was pregnant with 2 of her children and it promptly went away in both cases as soon as she gave birth. But her doctor has told her that she is in danger of developing Type 2 if she does not take care of herself now through healthy diet and exercise.

Once you have diabetes in any form, eating right, exercising, and keeping your blood sugar in the proper range at all times becomes the key to long-term good health. You really have to be vigilant about it. A message for all of us to take out of this is that eating right and staying active is so much more important to us than simply how we look. It truly is a matter of health.

AOX, please update us after you go to the doctor. I hope it is not diabetes, but if it is, you are not alone, as you can see from the responses here.

[AOX81]

One more hour until I go to the doctor. I'll let you know how things turn out.

Thank you everyone for your support and concern.

[rubyrose]

AOX, What did the doctor say?

[AOX81]

Well the doctor said that it sounded like I was diabetic or I was borderline diabetic. He said that I pretty much exhibited every symptom except for the issue about weight. He said my weight was good (I've gained 30 pounds since 1994 which is good because I only weighed 100 pounds when I graduated high school) but he said I should start working out.

I'm going back in tomorrow at 7:15am to get poked and prodded. He said that if I don't have it now there is a very good chance I will develop it somewhere down the road. He gave me a list of foods that I should stay away from or should eat in very small portions. I'm glad that I already cut fast food, pop, and red meat out of my life...this will make things somewhat easier.

[rubyrose]

It's great that you are confronting this because the earlier you know about what could happen, the easier it is to take the steps necessary to stay healthy. I hope the testing goes well tomorrow!

[AOX81]

Well I just got back from being poked and prodded. The phlebotomist and the doctors office pretty much sucked. I worked in a hospital for 8 1/2 years and for 6 1/2 of those years I worked in the laboratory. Not once has anyone ever missed my vein!! The chick at the doctors office kept complaining that my arms were too small, my veins were too small, blah, blah, blah. Please...like I'm the first person she's ever drawn with small arms! After she got done I told her that I did not want tape or anything because I am allergic to it...what does she do? She slaps a piece of 1950s medical tape on my arm.

Okay I'm done griping for now....

[DWAlphaGam]

Ugh, that's terrible! I hope your reaction to the tape wasn't too bad. You should sue the nurse for negligence! Do you know when you get your test results?