Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Joanie on June 9, 2012 at 12:18pm

I second this!

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Permalink Reply by MKSSS on June 7, 2012 at 4:39pm

I just found out I have positive antibodies for developing thyroid disorder. Great. I just found out I have diabetes (LADA) only recently. However, my Endo. reassured me that it doesn't mean that I WILL develop thyroid issues. Still, nothing like a test reading "positive" to make me worry.

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Permalink Reply by Maru on June 8, 2012 at 5:58pm

HI friends ... I am sorry to hear you are living with a complication or more than one...
I have been 10 years with diabetes now and I am worried already and of course afraid and I feel fear ... I am a positive person and very energetic but that doesn't mean I don't have fears...
I have 3 small children and I would like to live the longer I can!!! ... I have tried my best to stay in control of my diabetes and I am ok but I know i could do better ...
do you have any piece of advise, based on your experience, that can help avoid or delay complicationa? anything you wish you could have done different or better or anything you learn that can help me do my best??
Thanks a lot and count on me if you need someone to listen

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Permalink Reply by Tom Goffe on June 8, 2012 at 6:07pm

Gastroparesis from both ends.
Kidney failure
Autonomic neuropathy
Peripheral neuropathy
Macular edema
Coronary artery disease + heart attack @ 42.

Even with that laundry list, every time I go to see my doctor at the local VA hospital, I am reminded that I don't have it all that bad.

I am a DIABETES SURVIVOR!

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Permalink Reply by muleman on June 9, 2012 at 7:19am

First. I really appreciate that your doing this. Thank you!.
Accelerated Neuropathy in left ankle, Due to Necrosis in that area of ankle joint.

Poor Circulation.

Complications: Poor walking has caused spin off issues with left hip which has spread to pain in outer pelvic region when sitting! Becoming chronic cause of sleeplessness!

Kidney functions well, but Prostate issues have become more difficult to treat as the number of prescribed drugs I take increases!

Bowl emptying issues occur, but are not chronic!

Impossible to diet now since moving to a town last week! I barely have strength for more than 2 hours and have to sleep laying down regularly. See my blog

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Permalink Reply by Cosumne Jan on June 9, 2012 at 11:06am

Diagnosed 5 years ago with T2, immediately brought my A1C down to the low 5's, where it has been ever since. Nevertheless I have several complications that the docs say usually only occur after prolonged high blood sugar (which is NOT true in my case). I lost a toe and 1/3 because of bone infection. I have severe neuropathy up to my knees on both legs, but the circulation is very good. In fact it was excessive circulation that caused a bout with Charcot last year. I don't have the common diabetic problem of wounds that do not heal. Mine heal very fast. I had diabetic amyotrophic neuropathy, a delightful condition wherein you lose 40 pounds very quickly, unfortunately most of it is leg and butt muscle. I was in a wheelchair for a while, on a walker for quite a while. The muscle eventually came back with a lot of work, but the nerves are shot, so I "lurch" instead of walk. I have autonomic neuropathy, which means my pulse and respiration don't self regulate very well. That might be a problem if I could actually run, but my exercise has been limited to water aerobics. The main effect is I don't sweat and my pulse doesn't go past 102 when I push it on something like a stationery bike. I can't ride a real bike because I lack the coordination. I do have digestive problems and have to watch not only what I eat, but when I eat it. I'm not aware of needing to use the bathroom until moments before I need to. Eeek! Not a good thing when your legs can't help you run. My kidneys are great. My eyesight has improved over the past 5 years to the point where my prescription is only half as strong as it once was. I have leg cramps but they don't hurt because of the neuropathy. I don't get hot. I don't get cold. Again, because of the neuropathy. The only fear I have is that I feel my diabetes was a result of an autoimmune attack, NOT the CAUSE of all my complications. The docs haven't even looked into that possibility and I get the same broad, but inapplicable, treatments everyone else who is diabetic gets. I am afraid that because I don't know what caused this, I don't know how to avoid it in the future. I'm not afraid of diabetes, maybe that's being naive, but so far my blood sugar has stayed great with just a low carb diet. I added a small dose of metformin a few months ago when the BS was consistently in the high 90s in the a.m. instead of the mid 80s it had always been.

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Permalink Reply by David (dns) on June 9, 2012 at 5:50pm

No obvious complications yet. Definitely no retinopathy (just checked). A few very very minor symptoms that could conceivably be diabetic, but could just as easily be something else -- like just plain age, for instance. So nothing obvious.

Biggest fear -- which I try hard not to obsess about -- is that some "silent" problem will suddenly come front and center without warning. Since my control has been only mediocre for most of the time since diagnosis (17 years), I do worry that something deadly might be creeping up and getting ready to pounce. But as I say, I don't think about it night and day.

I am also taking steps to finally get this under real control once and for all, but that's WAY too big a topic for here. I will be documenting it thoroughly in my blog as I go along.

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Permalink Reply by Nel on June 10, 2012 at 7:11pm

I was diagnosed back in January and don't have any complications (at least that I know of) yet. My main fear right now is that diabetes with interfere with my ability to have kids. I know women with type 1 diabetes have successful pregnancies and healthy babies, but it's still a fear.

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Permalink Reply by Kathy on June 11, 2012 at 5:35am

I was dx'd in '74 at age 21. I come from an extended family full of type 1's, and spent my childhood watching 15 of them die long slow deaths from various complications. So, for at least a decade I was so totally paralyzed by fear that I was nearly dysfunctional.

12 years ago I developed severe retinopathy resulting in a detached retina requiring immediate surgery and then lying face down, not moving, for 7 days as it healed. I year later I had a similar surgery in the other eye to stabilize it, again 7 days face down. Today I have 20/30 vision in one eye and 20/20 in the other (with corrective lenses). I did lose a lot of peripheral vision so I no longer drive. Also some troubles seeing in the dark.

I've been hospitalized 3X for DKA.
18 months ago I suffered acute kidney failure following two cardiac arrests after surgery for ovarian cancer. I was on dialysis for 14 months. There are varying opinions as to whether this was caused by the db or not.

I've had frozen shoulders, trigger fingers, and am still dealing with carpal tunnel syndrome, which I've had for decades.

I take meds for restless leg syndrome, hypothyroidism, cholesterol, depression, insomnia, osteoporosis, and edema.

Yada, yada, yada - so most of the things I feared have happened. And you know what - I still consider the quality of life to be GOOD. Yes, you can still live well with complications, and a lot of people here are doing it.

A couple years ago I was visiting a friend in a hospital and as I was leaving I saw a sign "diabetes support group - room A". I stopped in to see what it was like. After we got to talking, the moderator said, "oh, I'm sorry, this group is for those without complications".

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Permalink Reply by Trudy on June 11, 2012 at 5:47am

Well, good grief, Kathy! Some support group. Maybe they should start another support group for Diabetes With Complications Only. In the meantime, your handling of complications is inspirational. Cheers!

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Permalink Reply by Jen on June 11, 2012 at 6:46am

I've had Type 1 for over 20 years and have no known complications. My fears are mostly the fact that although I've always had decent control and put in the effort, I don't have stellar control, and the fact that I've had diabetes for a fairly young age. It scares me that by the time I'm 70 I'll have had diabetes for over 60 years. I've had to stop reading a bunch of the sites that advocate "You will die a slow, painful death if your A1c is over 6!" and stuff because it makes me feel horrible. My A1c has never been under 6, and it makes me feel like I'll be dead by the time I'm 40.

I feel incredibly lucky that I don't have complications, but I also get more nervous with each passing year that something will crop up.

On a related note, I've recently started a blog about living with diabetes and vision loss. I was born legally blind so it's not exactly the same as experiencing it as a complication, but I know a LOT of people really fear losing their vision. I'm hoping the blog sheds some insight into this area as well as the fact that losing your vision doesn't mean you have to lose your independence or stop doing anything else (aside from driving). For me, retinopathy is actually the only complication I don't fear at all. I have enough vision that losing the rest would still take some adjustment, but blindness is also the only complication that isn't life-threatening in some fashion.

The complication I fear most is heart disease/a heart attack. Not something most 30-year-olds even have to even think about ...

Having said all that, I don't really think of complications that often. It's a balance between thinking about them enough that it motivates me to work hard at control, yet not enough that I spend undue energy worrying about something that may (hopefully) never happen.

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Permalink Reply by kim on June 14, 2012 at 9:33am

i'm 49 years old, a T1 and have been for 37 years. my complications started years ago, but i ignored them, as much as i ignored my diabetes in general. they started with pains in my legs and feet. severe cramping in my calves. i suffer from peripheral neuropathy, have had laser treatments many time due to retinopathy. in 2006 i had an aortic biphemoral graft and in 2011 i had triple bypass surgery. this was a direct result of my lack of diabetes care earlier in my life. i take meds for high blood pressure, high cholesterol and hypothyroidism. i have a frozen left shoulder right now, and my right was frozen about 10 years ago. it is starting to feel as though it may be starting to freeze again. my kidneys are okay, but i see a nephrologist just to keep on top of things. i have had both hands operated on for dupuytens contracture, which is common in diabetics. some of these complications you cannot control, like the frozen shoulder and the dupuytrens. however, there are a lot that can be delayed by doing your best to keep your bg's in the normal range as much as you possibly can. i must say that even with all of this going on, i consider myself one of the lucky ones! i have never been depressed and i don't use diabetes as a crutch. i live my life! i have 3 wonderful kids, 2 awesome grandchildren and a husband who loves me despite everything! i plan to be around for a very long time, even if that means being in a wheelchair with a guide dog someday!

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