Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Turtle Dove on April 17, 2012 at 1:29pm

Sweet!

No energy to talk, lassitude, lazy to do anything, that is Qi Deficiency. Lung Qi, Spleen Qi, Kidney Qi Deficiency - all three jiao of the triple burner, water-ways are involved. Good for diagnostic purpose, not so great for clinical treatment. Diabetes is complicated. You might be everything deficiency with excess patterns due to deficiency. Diabetes is complicated,,, no wonder nobody has solved the riddle. I think it is a God Quiz, I should have picked a different disease.

Diagnostic without treatment is pretty pointless. Can you search a Chinese TCM Doctor in your area that specialises in diabetes/xiao ke?

Permalink Reply by acidrock23 on April 17, 2012 at 4:00pm

You should post your pic in the thread! I think that would be a first!

Permalink Reply by Turtle Dove on April 18, 2012 at 8:08am

Maybe you all could post your tongue pics. I'll show you mine, if you show me yours. I can post my tongue pic too. It feels sorta weird and embarrassing to show my tongue. I am grateful for your support in this, it will help me understand patterns better, and see how patterns 'types' of diabetes, manifest on the tongue.

You can go here to see about tongue diagnosis -
http://www.sacredlotus.com/diagnosis/tongue/index.cfm

thank you

Permalink Reply by Turtle Dove on April 18, 2012 at 7:59am

DW,
What is your bg before lunch when you are feeling very hungry?

Listening to Dr. B about diabetic hunger, he mentions low blood sugar is what makes diabetics feel so hungry, insatiable appetite. For me, it is high bg when I get 'hunger'. Dr. B mentioned that he uses amylase injection for patients with extreme hunger, crave for carbs, that tend to over eat and gain weight, and have to chase highs with more insulin injection, then counter act lows with more carb, ect.

In TCM, diabetes in the middle jiao is marked by polyphagia, constant hunger, is stomach fire, too much heat in the stomach. Looking at the Chinese Herbal formula ingredients suggested for this I wonder if they promote amylase production. Maybe some research has been done on this, I will check into it.

One such formula for Diabetes, due to qi and yin deficiency, marked by dry mouth, throat, polydipsia, polyuria, emaciation, lack of strength, fatique, short of breath, difficult to speak, spontaneous sweat - is Yu Ye Tang, the Promoting Secretion of Saliva Decoction. I wonder if this formula promotes production of amylase.

Also, chewing food up to 50 chews before swallowing should promote saliva and amylase production. This is recommended in macrobiotic books. Sometimes it takes me 1/2 hour to eat 30g of brown rice. I think your supposed to chew fast, yet, I tend to eat slow, often hungry with no appetite, starving in the presence of food.

DW friend, I pray you are okay, I am sending love to you.

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Permalink Reply by DiabeticWarrior on April 19, 2012 at 8:55am

My BG before lunch is usually in the 180 mg/dl range.

But when i was in class studying it was lower i think. because my day began at 6 AM so i had breakfast at 6:30am.

So by the time lunch time arrived it was 11 am, so i had time to get hungry and BG had time to go lower since my brain was working more due to programming. I remember i would get hungry around 9:30 am, really hungry.

Now since i am taking a medical leave, i am at home and i wake up later, so my breakfast and lunch are closer, like a 2 hour time frame in between, instead of 4 or 5 hours like i did when i was in class and my brain is more relaxed with no stress, so it's easier to control, but still i am not always on target BG. So if i am having trouble being on target at home, i can only imagine how it will be in a month when i go back to class. It will be erratic all over again. I really need a CGM and Metformin with the insulin doses i am on and maybe i will be able to reduce a little too.

Thanks TD for your help, i appreciate it a lot.

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Permalink Reply by Turtle Dove on April 19, 2012 at 5:36pm

Yeah Diabetic Warrior! You are the master of your heart and mind. You know what you need and what it takes to get it!

Today I went to the pharmacy and for the first time in a long time, I got two vials of insulin without a problem. Often records indicate my insurance is inactive, or the Rx is expired, or the Rx says I only need x amount per month and they won't give me more for the month, when they were not calculating for the amount used to prime my pump tube. Previously the pharmacist has told me, you can wait a few weeks, you don't need insulin that bad. I may have said that before, I might be repeating myself, but anyway I know exactly what you are going through!

Also, today, I got a letter from Medtronic, a bill from a year and 1/2 ago for pump supplies was not paid by insurance, they say the insurance was inactive for that time, (it was not!) They had threatened to send it to collection, ect. I have been going rounds with this for over a year! A few months ago, they would NOT send my pump supplies, until I paid the invoice. Lucky me, got pump supplies from my 'used-to-be D" friend, who got a pancreas transplant and does not need the box of infusion sets and reservoirs, so he gave them to me. That tided me over until I got to the top dog and got supplies sent pending paymt on the invoice. Anyway,,, today, the invoice from a year and 1/2 ago has been 'written-off'. Phew! I must have an angel... a Diabetic Angel looking out for me. And, this makes me want to cry,,, because sometimes I feel like I am begging for my life! And, it gets so frustrating and hard, and often nobody understands. I have walked around with bg over 1000, saying please... please... pleeeeeazzzzee, may I have some insulin? I have even had ppl say, well, you brought this condition upon yourself, as tho I deserve to suffer! It can be so sad! Yet, today... this is a good day to live! On days that I have not had insulin, or pump supplies,,, I say, well today, this is a good day to die! I never know what day I am going to live or what day I am going to die. I just want to live a long time, and live a healthy life,

Medtronic did say that the little blue plastic piece to insert my infusion set was not a medical necessity, even though I had a Rx from my Endo for it, as the tube was getting kinked and therefore insulin was blocked from getting in, and leaking out,,, they said, I will have to pay for that out-of-pocket, the insurance will not cover it. I ordered two pieces, because plastic parts don't last very long, and the freaky little gadget really IS a benefit and necessity! They said, either pay $60 for it, or pay shipping and handling and send it back for refund. I want this little plastic thing, and Need it! I don't have $60. I am doing free acupuncture for ppl who don't have insurance, and can't afford treatment. I only just started a job for a clinic that accepts insurance and has paying patients. I won't get a check until first of next month, I am borrowing money to even drive to the clinic.

Ahh, if it's not one thing,,, it's another,,, everyday... is a good day... to live or die... oh crap, I missed a bolus, my pump is low, got to go eat and reload cartridge,,, I am so thankful this moment for food in my fridge, two new vials of insulin, pump supplies, and fresh batteries, a blood checker and box of strips, a little blue plastic inserter,,, I am thankful for Dr. Yu, who gives me acupuncture - or I'd be in a mental institution, he gave me a good paying clinic job and soon I'll be OFF all state assistance, he knows I am a good person, with a good heart, and I am a skilled acupuncturist, and very good with herbs, I am a strong voice and a good advocate for people on Western medical care and jumping through medical hoops, Maybe Dr. Yu is my Diabetic Angel, with his Chinese Qigong powers! I am so thankful for this forum too, our chats are giving me so much validation, appreciation, and respect... empowering me in ways I don't have words to articulate, and will benefit me as a practitioner. Maybe I will go two more years of school, get my PhD, and open a Diabetes Clinic!

DW, you've inspired me! Maybe I'll slap the ol' CGM on for a few days, and see how my bg's are doing beyond the two - four finger sticks I've been doing. Thank YOU!!!

Permalink Reply by DiabeticWarrior on April 16, 2012 at 8:32pm

Update.
I saw my family doctor today.
He said if they did a Ketones test and i was very low i might not be a type 1.5 but more a type 2 and yes they did one on me and i was 0.1

If i am a type 2, do i need to go back on Metformin asap? and continue with insulin combined.

Ever since they removed metformin i been feeling lethargic and drained of energy.

How long can it take before i feel better?

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Permalink Reply by acidrock23 on April 17, 2012 at 4:00pm

Did you tell the doc that? I think they'd usually take a complaint of being lethargic and drained of energy seriously?

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Permalink Reply by DiabeticWarrior on April 18, 2012 at 9:40am

They don't care, all they care is their paycheck at the end of the week.

My Endo closed her office door and did not even want to talk to me.

She was making her nurse do all the work.
I will go back on friday with a letter of complaint and if she refuses to help, i will ask for another Endo.

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Permalink Reply by Brian (bsc) on April 18, 2012 at 8:35am

Your doctor seems a bit, how do I say this? Whackadoodle.

Time and specific tests "may" tell whether you are type 1 or type 2. Ketones occur when you burn fat, particularly on a low carb diet (such as a reading of 0.1). They also happen when your blood sugar goes high and out of control and you start to enter DKA. Are you entering DKA with a blood sugar of 3-400 mg/dl?

I think you will be ok. And hence ketones tell your doctor nothing.

Metformin will help anyone who has some insulin resistance. It will make the insulin more effective. But in the end, if you use insulin and dose it properly, you can control your blood sugar. And if you are still struggling to eat properly and dose your insulin properly you may be having high blood sugars and that can make you feel terrible.

ps. I felt terrible, only to find out I had sleep apnea.

pps. I still take metformin even though I use a full insulin regime.

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Permalink Reply by DiabeticWarrior on April 18, 2012 at 9:47am

My BG has been between 8 and 14 mmol lately.

I probably burned some fat when i was constantly high for 3 months, because i lost a lot of weight. I lost 20 to 30 pounds. Probably my body was burning fat for energy. I also went through a break up and lost my job, that did not help either.

I just have trouble believing this is a type 1, because i was able to stay on metformin and glyburide for 4 years without using insulin.
I think i am type 2 with a depleted pancreas or tired pancreas because of the High BG. Ever since i am on insulin only i feel terrible. I get very unstable and restless and irritable. I cannot concentrate. I feel like i am constantly worrying about my BG level because it became so unpredictable. i was more stable with the oral meds and insulin combined.

Why my doctors don't believe me? They think i am acting or something...

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Permalink Reply by Brian (bsc) on April 18, 2012 at 10:50am

I see no reason why you can't go back on metformin. Most people feel better when they can normalize their blood sugars. It is not just worry, but you will feel more even, less stressed and you won't be subject to the ups and downs. And remember, for a slow onset T1 (LADA), oral medications can improve your blood sugar control temporarily. But in the end, if you don't make enough insulin, no oral medication will fix it.

I am diagnosed as a T2. I had the c-peptide that showed I did not make enough insulin. So I started insulin. And I now feel better (well except for the apnea).

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