# The start of a hopefully long journey



## Bradford84 (Feb 22, 2022)

Hi all

I have been browsing the website over the last few days and found it really helpful and expect to be on here a fair amount moving forward.

I have recently been diagnosed with Diabetes, although the type isnt yet established. 

I am 6ft 2 and 37 years old- quiet heavy built.The background is that I have usually been quiet active (rugby), but for 3/4 year period this dropped. Since Jan 2021 I started doing HIIT sessions and a really healthy diet, which I kept up for the majority of the year- losing around 10kg to 106kg. Over Xmas I wasn't as strict with either diet or exercise but didn't seem to put on as much as expected.

I started developing some symptoms around this time but didn't recognize the thirst as a problem. I went to the doctors when I lost 4kg in 3 weeks with only 1 or 2 HIIT or kickboxing sessions per week and little dieting. 

The readings I have had were 114 and having started using a glucose machine 17.2- both which I believe are very high. After some changes to meds due to Keytones of around 0.2-0.5 I have just finished my first week where I have been using Glimipride which has risen from 2mg to the max of 4.

My bloods until today have fluctuated between 14.7 as rare low, av around 16 and maxed at 19.8. I have been strict with my foods throughout so these have been a little disappointing being honest. Keytones seemed to have settled around 0.2 having been higher so that seems reasonably positive.

Went to the Nurse a little downbeat, and they have put me on Metformin and I saw the lowest reading of 13.7 after so hoping its going in the correct direction.

I am going through all the tests atm (ECG, CAT) and had bloods taken today for GAD???, just want to get to the bottom of it so I can plan accordingly and hopefully lose some of the symptoms which are wearing me down a little.

Sorry for the long post but quiet therapeutic, and hopefully I can post more positive updates as things improve. 

Thanks all


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## trophywench (Feb 23, 2022)

Well if we're taking bets, I reckon you're really Type 1 !


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## Jago (Feb 23, 2022)

Welcome to the forum - everyone’s very friendly and it’s a good place to come for answers.

My understanding is that a GAD test tests for antibodies often present in cases of Type 1 Diabetes - and as such it is used as a way to determine if an individual might have T1D-  I had one and the results seemed to confirm my diagnosis of T1D.

Hopefully your diabetic team will be able to give you some more certainty as to which type of diabetic you are - I found th confirmation of my diagnosis a relief…knowing one way or the other helped settle things on my mind….and helped focus my reading!

Anyway - do keep us updated and best of luck on your journey… And if we were taking bets … I wouldn’t be betting against @trophywench


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## SB2015 (Feb 23, 2022)

I am with @trophywench on this one.
It sounds like T1 and that is what the GAD antibody test is used for.

Let us know how you get on and then fire away with any questions you have.  I know once I got my diagnosis, and started to inject I felt heals better physically. It took a bit of time to get sorted with all the testing And stuff but it does get easier and becomes a new normal.


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## Bradford84 (Feb 23, 2022)

Thank you all- a few people have said T1 but diabetic nurse said could be T2- either way hopefully they find out soon enough.

They have mentioned and tested for something called late onset diabetes although I am unsure on what exactly the difference is with that and T1- if anybody knows it would be great.

In more optimistic news, my readings have stayed at 13.7 today so I am hoping the Metformin pushes it down again tomorrow. Did others notice it took a little time to drop when trying the meds, or should it be reacting quicker?

Thanks again- just feel better typing about it!


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## Leadinglights (Feb 23, 2022)

I think what she is referring to is LADA or Type 1.5 and there are a few people on here with that diagnosis and from what I gather it is treated much like Type 1 if that is a confirmed diagnosis.
I think it takes a while for the effect of metformin as it builds up in your system over a few days but changes in diet will be something that will be making a difference as quickly.





						Latent Autoimmune Diabetes in Adults (LADA)
					

Latent Autoimmune Diabetes in Adults is called LADA for short. It's a different form of diabetes. What is LADA? It's a type of diabetes which seems to straddle type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Bits of it are more like type 1, and other bits are more like type 2. That's why some people call it type...




					www.diabetes.org.uk


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## Bradford84 (Feb 23, 2022)

Martin.A said:


> I'd been taking Metformin and eating low carb for 3 weeks after diagnosis before my numbers dropped into single figures.


That’s positive to hear- I am sticking to a strict diet so hopefully the 2 can push it down!


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## trophywench (Feb 23, 2022)

The metformin can't physically lower the blood glucose but what it can do is assist your body to utilise the insulin you are making yourself, properly.   Of course if you aren't producing enough insulin to sustain you, it can't help.  Anyway - the antibody test results should (hopefully) sort that puzzle out!) that out for everyone!


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## Proud to be erratic (Feb 23, 2022)

Bradford84 said:


> Hi all
> 
> I have been browsing the website over the last few days and found it really helpful and expect to be on here a fair amount moving forward.
> 
> ...


Hello @Bradford84 and welcome. 
Don't worry about the long post - the therapy from sharing is a recognised part of helping members: asking questions, having a rant or similar and just finding others who have read your post and responded is in itself helpful. I hope you get useful answers quickly, so that you can plan accordingly. Good luck.


Bradford84 said:


> and hopefully I can post more positive updates as things improve.
> 
> Thanks all


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## Bradford84 (Feb 25, 2022)

Had a day of massive frustration yesterday where my results were 15+ still and then, out of the blue this morning a 10.9 reading which was brilliant to see. They have returned pre lunch to 13.5 but still feels like major progress- hopefully they keep reducing now!

CAT scan is also booked so I feel like i will know a little more quiet soon.


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## Bradford84 (Feb 28, 2022)

Treating this as a mini diary atm, but had a good few days!!

Levels weren't dropping then went from 12.6 to 7.2! Most readings since have been under 10 which feels like great progress less than 1 week after starting metformin. Would others agree this indicates type 2 if the meds are working?

Been strict on the diet although I had a glass of rose after having nothing since diagnosis. Have an ecg and cat scan in the next 10 days but feel much more positive and feeling better as I’m actually sleeping!


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## trophywench (Mar 1, 2022)

Not definitively.  LADA can not only behave like T2 but cn also respond well to T2 treatments for weeks, months or even years - until it says Haha! you've been well fooled, haven't you!  ROFLMAO.  From now on, I'm only going to respond to injected insulin, just as if you'd been diagnosed T1 all along.


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## Bradford84 (Mar 1, 2022)

trophywench said:


> Not definitively.  LADA can not only behave like T2 but cn also respond well to T2 treatments for weeks, months or even years - until it says Haha! you've been well fooled, haven't you!  ROFLMAO.  From now on, I'm only going to respond to injected insulin, just as if you'd been diagnosed T1 all along.


Thanks Trophy.

Weirdly my ketones have just hit 0.6- I was initially told to go to A&E if this happened but think that was with high glucose too and it’s only 8.5 so I’m awaiting the doctors to call- maybe celebrated a little early


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## Inka (Mar 1, 2022)

Bradford84 said:


> Thanks Trophy.
> 
> Weirdly my ketones have just hit 0.6- I was initially told to go to A&E if this happened but think that was with high glucose too and it’s only 8.5 so I’m awaiting the doctors to call- maybe celebrated a little early



Watch things carefully @Bradford84 If you are Type 1, then things can change quickly. If in any doubt, seek medical input and mention that you might be Type 1.

I see you’re waiting for a call from the doctor. Do phone them if they don’t call you. My guess is Type 1 too. More people are diagnosed with Type 1 as adults than children and diagnosis in your 30s wouldn’t really be ‘late’ at all.


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## Bradford84 (Mar 1, 2022)

Inka said:


> Watch things carefully @Bradford84 If you are Type 1, then things can change quickly. If in any doubt, seek medical input and mention that you might be Type 1.
> 
> I see you’re waiting for a call from the doctor. Do phone them if they don’t call you.


Thank you- I certainly dont want to take any chances. I am at the doctors this morning for an ECG and am also awaiting a call back so hopefully should get some direction pretty soon. I know I had to go in at 0.6 but think that was when the glucose was at 15/16- going to retake bloods in an hour if I dont hear back and any worse I will go in as a precaution


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## everydayupsanddowns (Mar 3, 2022)

Hope you get some clarity on your diabetes type soon @Bradford84 

GAD results can take a while to come back as there’s aren’t all that many labs that offer the tests I think. Do you know if they were also measuring for cPeptide at the same time? This can give an idea of how much home-grown insulin you are still producing, which might be an indication of whether you have been losing beta cells in your pancreas.

Hope the CT scan comes out clear if it’s looking for any nasties on your pancreas.

Let us know how things go


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## Proud to be erratic (Mar 3, 2022)

Bradford84 said:


> Treating this as a mini diary atm, but had a good few days!!


Mini diary is, in my opinion, a fine thing just now as events and diagnosis unfold. You keep a simple record and those with an eye on this thread can throw in their experienced observations.

How did you get on at your Doctor's on Tuesday and how are your ketones now? Have they settled?


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## Pattidevans (Mar 3, 2022)

Proud to be erratic said:


> Mini diary is, in my opinion, a fine thing just now as events and diagnosis unfold. You keep a simple record and those with an eye on this thread can throw in their experienced observations.


It's also a very good record to look back on when you are further down the line.  I still have my little blood splattered paper diaries from when I was first diagnosed.

Good luck finding out your type (I concur with the others who say T1).  I found it came as a huge relief and allowed me to move on with control.


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## Bradford84 (Mar 21, 2022)

Sorry I didn’t reply- had some whirlwind days. Things settled down with my keytones and a few false alarms. My readings were getting better although I still wasn’t feeling great, ecg and Cat scan were clear and started to lower Glimepiride and taking empadliflozin.

Had and pretty bad hypo just 90
Mins after eating which was weird but thought nothing of it. Have now been told tonight to stop with new med as my GAD results are positive (taken 1 month). Speaking with the specialist tomorrow so just trying to not be too frustrated or annoyed!!


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## Proud to be erratic (Mar 22, 2022)

Hope your conversation goes well today. I assume its a phone call, rather than f2f.


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## Bradford84 (Mar 22, 2022)

Hi and thanks for the reply.

I feel a little more rational today which is good! Today was a phone call and it was decided I dont need to go on insulin just now as my bloods are ok, although I have had another hypo today. Just taking 2 Glimipride and 4 Metformin- and if I have another Hypo I will halve the Glimipride.

Thanks for all the support- this board has already been invaluable, even though I have been poor at replying!


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## Proud to be erratic (Mar 23, 2022)

Bradford84 said:


> Hi and thanks for the reply.
> 
> I feel a little more rational today which is good! Today was a phone call and it was decided I dont need to go on insulin just now as my bloods are ok,


So have you been confirmed as T1 or is that still under consideration? Was the Libre sensor discussed? Do you have a DSN that you can reach out to if necessary?


Bradford84 said:


> although I have had another hypo today. Just taking 2 Glimipride and 4 Metformin- and if I have another Hypo I will halve the Glimipride.


I'm T3c, which is akin to T1 in that I'm fully insulin dependent. But my dependency is from a total pancreatectomy, not because of autoimmune problems - so my understanding of the finer points of T1 (or T2) is limited.
But regarding hypos, those new to DM and on insulin often find they can get on a roller coaster going from low to high and back again repeatedly. Are you experiencing this? Are you content with your ability to manage these hypos?


Bradford84 said:


> Thanks for all the support- this board has already been invaluable, even though I have been poor at replying!


Don't feel bad about your delayed replies. You will have numerous things going on as you adjust to your new circumstance. If you have questions ask away and someone will know the answer.


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## Bradford84 (Mar 24, 2022)

Hi
They have said that I have tested positive for GAD antibodies so its likely LADA, and have changed my treatment. As my bloods are in range with the meds, they dont see the immediate need for insulin but I am to keep a close eye on things, and have been referred into a specialist clinic which is different to my current one although I haven't been yet,

With the hypos, I am hoping that dropping the Glimipride dose will now stop these although I certainly dont feel comfortable yet. Some days are fine, yet some days I can eat a decent meal (example being 3 eggs, 2 wholemeal toast) and less than 2 hours later my bloods are below 5 and I can feel that I will need to eat. At present- If I go much longer than 3 hours without eating, I will feel the jitters which is super frustrating. On the occasions I have dropped below 4 and had to eat something to raise the bloods, I end up feeling pretty rubbish and tired- is this normal??


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## Bradford84 (Mar 24, 2022)

A Libre has not been discussed but I am yet to have a f2f since being told its likely LADA. I will ask about it though as it will help me work out what foods I can have etc- as my energy levels feel all over the place/


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## Proud to be erratic (Mar 24, 2022)

Bradford84 said:


> Hi
> They have said that I have tested positive for GAD antibodies so its likely LADA, and have changed my treatment. As my bloods are in range with the meds, they dont see the immediate need for insulin but I am to keep a close eye on things, and have been referred into a specialist clinic which is different to my current one although I haven't been yet,


Who was "They"?  The referral to a Spec Clinic is good, presumably that will include a DSN.


Bradford84 said:


> With the hypos, I am hoping that dropping the Glimipride dose will now stop these although I certainly dont feel comfortable yet. Some days are fine, yet some days I can eat a decent meal (example being 3 eggs, 2 wholemeal toast) and less than 2 hours later my bloods are below 5 and I can feel that I will need to eat.


Yes, can be normal. Depends on a number of things, in fact there are at least 42 factors that can affect BG - not necessarily all at once(!); the 43rd is the D fairy! But activity and exercise can move the goal posts and can affect your BG 24 hrs (or more) later. Without knowing what else has been happening, or you've been doing, its difficult to pin-point exactly why.

So at this stage you can only be alert to going hypo and have a response kit very close to hand. By response kit  that might need to include unscented wash-wipes, so you can test a clean finger; you will know if you are likely to have contaminated hands - what you don't need is delay while you wash and dry! Plus a snack of high GI carbs, such as Dextrose, Jelly Babies etc, within very easy reach at all times.

Once the hypo has cleared consider taking a small snack of medium or low GI carbs (eg 1 small biscuit @6-10 gm CHO) or even a little more (eg 1 Nature Valley bar, 13gm, out of a packet of 2) - to reinforce the recovery; particularly if you are even mildly active.

Hypos are unpleasant, particularly deep ones. They are also frightening, initially; over time you will come to realise they aren't unduly dangerous - just unpleasant and inconvenient. In fact, the likelihood of you going so low you are getting towards comatose is surprisingly small, and you seem to have a reasonable hypo awareness. So the quicker you can confirm you are hypo and treat, the better. But if also you can resist "over-reacting" then that helps a lot. By this I mean stay relaxed and don't let yourself get stressed, if at all possible; and resist over-eating (surprisingly difficult when hypo and all you want to do is eat ... ) then you reduce the possibility of a really high rebound into hyper.


Bradford84 said:


> At present- If I go much longer than 3 hours without eating, I will feel the jitters which is super frustrating. On the occasions I have dropped below 4 and had to eat something to raise the bloods, I end up feeling pretty rubbish and tired- is this normal??


I certainly used to feel rubbish after some of my hypos. Also, for no obvious reason some would last for ages, not seeming to respond to my first JBs; whereas others were done and dusted in a relatively short time. Going hypo can be tiring; your body gets stressed simply because your BG is too low and in its (unsuccessful) fight to help, you get tired. You are also, at this stage, still not particularly well and dealing with the consequence of being diabetic; this is in itself stressful and tiring.

One generic is that we are all different, so individual response to most aspects of DM can be quite different from person to person. This applies to your personal responses to hypos. Keep a log of exactly what you did and when; then adjust your procedure if that didn't work out so well.

Another generic is think of Diabetes as akin to running a marathon; slow and steady (learning as you go) is better than a sprint. Learn from a bad day, but start afresh the next day and don't let that bad day drag you down.

I'm away this weekend and got a difficult funeral to attend on Monday, so I'll be stepping back for a bit. But I'm sure others will pick up on your posts.


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## Proud to be erratic (Mar 24, 2022)

Bradford84 said:


> A Libre has not been discussed but I am yet to have a f2f since being told its likely LADA. I will ask about it though as it will help me work out what foods I can have etc- as my energy levels feel all over the place/


I don't know what your current meds are doing for your insulin production. But, in principle, since you are now definitely diabetic and not T2, I think you should be able to eat whatever foods you want and let the medications take the strain, ie bost your insulin production to cover the carbs you are eating. However, I don't truly know what the Glimepiride is supposed to be doing, nor can I remember if you also need to lose more weight and so need to control your food intake.

But a Libre might not be the panacea you might imagine it to be just now for your present circumstances. Also Libre has some limitations and when it isn't playing fairly you might find it confuses you more than it helps, while adding to your stress levels! Generally stress, all sorts, is not a friend of diabetes.

Returning to the marathon theme, I've just remembered the title of your Thread alludes to this analogy: the start of a long journey.


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## everydayupsanddowns (Mar 25, 2022)

Thanks for the update @Bradford84

Glad to hear they are adjusting your meds in light of your reclassification to LADA.

Don’t be concerned if they suggest introducing insulin fairly shortly. I believe there are some specialists who advise introducing insulin sooner rather than later with LADA, instead of using meds that encourage your remaining beta cells to work double-shifts to produce extra insulin. I think this is thought to help prolong your ’home grown’ production


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## Bradford84 (Mar 30, 2022)

Hi all

A little update as I have now spoken with the specialist who has confirmed LADA. I am not going onto Insulin immediatley but this will be reviewed at my next appointment in 10 days. Since coming off the Glimipiride my Hypos have stopped which is good, and I am feeling slightly better after a tough tough week (deffo the hardest last week).

I have been told I can up my carbs which will hopefully help my energy levels and hopefully the readings stay lowist. They have crept up to the 7s recently and started to have a couple of thirsty nights- the specialist said if the increased carbs push the levels up, rather than reduce the cards, it would be an indicator to start the insulin.

Not sure how I feel RE the Insulin, on one hand I want to get a better handle of my energy, on the other I found the hypos particularly unpleasant so a little cautious.

Thanks again for all the support and advise!


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