Blood sugar questions

Hi, Andrew,
First, let me say "kudos" to you for looking out for yourself. Not that I have anything against doctors but, I think our future is moving towards more self care & prevention than emergency care from professionals (but that's another story

Try not to be so hard on your doc. They tend to be generalists and couldn't possibly keep up on all the latest news for any one particular set of issues (Diabetes, MS, Arthritis, heart disease, etc.). They have guidelines to follow; where blood sugar levels are concerned in this discussion, and according to your lab results, you still fall within acceptable targets. The good news is that "the powers that be" are recognizing that those levels need to be lowered. They've done so but not lowered them enough or quickly enough to catch the growing population of those who need a lifestyle change (Diet is the first area to address regardless of diabetes type). Doctors have an unbelievable time trying to convince full-on Diabetics to get their act together that it's not surprizing to hear they may be somewhat "jaded" to climb that uphill battle with pre-diabetics Unfortunately, most of them just don't know any better. You've got your head up outta the sand and are looking around. Many folks just prefer to keep their head buried. Your numbers look good so far so, be aware but, don't let the numbers get the best of you either !-) Not sure what your area's doctor's guidelines are for referrals to specialists but, you could always express your concerns and ask to be referred.

Do your lab results give you an HBA1C level? This test (an A1C for short) gives the results of your average blood sugar level over the past 90 days. Having a glucose meter handy means that you can test to find out what foods might elevate your blood sugar levels (i.e. pasta, rice, grains, processed goods being some of the usual suspects). Your cheese & broc din-din was "no carb" if that's all you ate so, it should be expected that your post meal readings would be normal. Start a food diary, if you haven't already, and start logging all you eat and how much, exercise, and the times for each along with your blood sugar readings if you really want to make sense of the numbers. A little more info on what you eat might help us understand where you might be at with the "carb" knowledge, too. (Sounds like you might be low-carb?).

I'm afraid I don't know much about neuropathy other than it's effects can be caused by avenues other than Diabetes. I think some of the other members might have some first-hand experience to share. I'm sure they'll chime-in soon.

I guess after having Diabetes for a few years, and major pain from peripheral neuropathy from that Diabetes, I'm a little tainted.

90s are NOT high, from anything I've encountered including the Diabetes Care Clinic and dietitian I go to.

Of course, the standards for me are different, but for me anything below 120 is great, and 120-140 is still 'acceptable'.

After 2 trips to 2 different neurologists, who both said basically that I had 'extreme' neuropathy, one saying 3 of the 4 major nerves are effected, I had an MRI last week. Initial response? Normal.

You can see from the meds in my signature that I'm not having a great time of it. WITH the meds my pain level comes in at a steady 5, with breakthrough at 7 and higher.

Everyone is different, some in major ways. While I would be tickled to death to have your numbers, it may be that those blood sugar levels are high FOR YOU, and point to the onset of Diabetes.

Sorry I can't give you 'nailed-down' advise, but the fact that we are all so different is exactly why doctors are in such high demand - especially the good ones who can sort us each out.

So, I'd say go see your doctor and explain how you are feeling. Or, find another and explain how you were feeling and your desire to get started on a different footing.

Thanks for the response Tony.  To your knowledge, is there any way to know if 90s is high for one person and not that high for another?  I mean, who could determine that type of situation?  Also, if you don't mind answering, (if you do no problem) what kind of neuropathy symptoms do you have?  Just curious to see if they are similar to mine.  I'm really sorry to hear about your situation and hope it improves for you, and thank you for taking the time to respond.

With the testing you're already doing, plus maybe a few more 2-hour after eating tests... you'll have established a good idea of what your baseline is. You seem to hover around the 90's. Normal for "normals" and great for pre-diabetics/diabetics. By keeping a diary and say, noting that 2 hours after you eat rice for example, to register way off your norm (like say 150's), would clearly indicate that you have trouble metabolizing that particular carb. By doing the testing yourself and keeping a log book, you'll very quickly see patterns yourself where food affects are concerned.

I don't think the levels you've shared warrant a trip to the specialist (an Endocrinologist, in this case). Having said that... I am not a doctor. A full assessment of your own personal medical history by a doctor may lead you to one but that's who you need to have the discussion with. Side note: even with a specialist, the patient is in charge of their well-being 24/7. They may have more information to share, especially when riding the diabetes roller coaster , but it always comes down to the patient taking the reins of control.

Knowledge is power and the first thing to learn about is what gets put into our mouths. The best place to learn what a diabetic diet is (think: low carb), is from diabetics themselves. You'll find a wealth of information in this forum if you read past posts. The diet world is a vast and confusing place "out there". Many of us have tried many things, including those recommendations from ADA/CDA and have basically concluded that eating as fresh/natural as possible and "nothing white but cauliflower & cottage cheese" food plan can be a healthy, accommodating, low-carb lifestyle.

LanieG, Thanks for the info. I know you recommend going to the doctor, and it's not that that isn't sound advice, but honestly, I think I receive more help on here than they give me. To be honest, most of my doctors visits start with me explaining my problems, then them looking at me oddly, then me recommending a course of action and them usually agreeing. It would be an idea to get a glucose tolerance test, though. I really believe that I would need to see a specialist to get any answers about blood sugar around the 90s being too high as I don't think my GP would be able to tell me. And to be honest, I think some Endo's would look at me crossed eyed for going to them with fasting in the 90s like I shouldn't be there. But anyway, advice is well received, and I appreciate it. Something is causing my problems, and maybe it's just my own anxiety, which I have had for several years following a hefty concussion. Anyhow, I will see what the MRI of my brain shows...maybe MS? who knows. Either way, appreciate all of the help. Wish you all nothing but the best.

Thanks Phishbowl. I am currently seeing a neurologist for the neuropathy, not sure else where to turn. In the meantime, I'm trying to do some self investigating. I ate a steak, baked potato with everything (sour cream, butter, cheese), green beans and mushroom soup, and cottage cheese for dinner last night. 1 hour after dinner, I came back at 110. 2 Hours after, I came back at 101. This morning fasting I came back at 96, which is about the usual. Interesting though...I did test at 85 yesterday BEFORE I ate dinner. For lunch I had something I think was low carb....salad with quite a few different veggies on it....and caesar dressing. So maybe that lowered my levels, although I think I just run lower during the day than at my fasting level. At the doctors office I was a couple hours removed from eating and tested at 90, so I think the pattern is me testing lower during the day than at fasting for some reason. Do you have any thoughts on why that might be? I'm going to try drinking a Sprite and do the test after that, and then see what I get. Until the last 2 weeks, I had drank Sprite 2-3 a day for years, maybe my whole life essentially. But anyway, I will let you know what the test shows. Can't thank you enough for your input.

Thanks for your input LanieG. Actually, I have to really thank you all. It's great to know that there are people out there who want to help. The green beans and mushrooms soup were both from the can, and I ate a substancial amount. The dinner is a little heavier than I normally eat, honestly, I was just hungry for some reason! Yeah, at least I'm aware of it now, you are right about that. I certainly no my concussion could be a factor, maybe scartissue or something...who knows. I have had a number of mental and physical effects from the concussion that have lasted years. The neurologist actually told me none of this was from my concussion (by none of this I mean symptoms other than the neuropathy such as headaches and dizziness and lathargic) which I know isn't true....I mean she wants me to believe that coincidentally all of these things started at the same time I happened to get a concussion and never let up? That's a tough sell. I mean, I have been living with it so I think I would know. But as far as the neuropathy, I really don't know. I don't think concussions generally cause that, but perhaps i injured my neck when I fell and didn't realize it as it was never xrayed. So I will just have to see what happens. I can't express my gratitude enough to all of you. My own anxiety and depression type issues stemming from the head injury may drive me to be irrational, and talking to so many individuals with so many experiences really helps me sort it.

Andrew,

Glad to see you've gotten some answers while I was away. Most of your questions I don't have an answer for, cause I haven't been "normal" on the blood sugar front for many years.

On the neuropathy front, I have input.

PAIN. RIPROARING, BURNING, SHOOTING, GRAB YOU AND SHAKE YOU UPSIDE DOWN PAIN.

For me, it started out as tingling in my left foot. Then periodic tingling in my right foot, and minor pain in both.

After surgery to fix an infection in my right foot, on the same day as the surgery I went to full-blown pain in both. I get breakthrough pain with the meds that is in the 8-10 range on pain. The bottoms of my feet feel like someone comes by periodically to beat on them with a bat. If I go too long without taking the pain pills, it feels like someone is pouring boiling water on my legs from the knees down.

My left leg ALWAYS feels like it is going to cramp at any second, but it almost never does. Both legs jump around, when I am sitting or laying, but only periodically.

Two fingers on my right hand go numb for hours at a time. My left hand goes numb at times. My face goes numb but not for as long at a time.

I can't walk very well, with the meds throwing off my balance and the bottoms of my feet hurting so badly. Can't stand without walking for very long, either, because of feet.

That's the major stuff, and most of everything. Any questions, fire away.

EDIT: Besides my PCP, Foot Specialist, Pain Specialist, I've been to two Neurologists which is where the stuff going on with my hands & fingers was blamed on the neuropathy from diabetes as well. I've also recently had a brain MRI, which was 'normal'.