Toward the beginning of the year (Jan. or Feb.?) I remember we had a big thread in here, where we all talked about different health challenges we were dealing with & all. I don't remember what it was called or I would've tried to find it & post an update there... Anyhow, I remember someone asking me to let them know how things went with me, as I'd just been diagnosed with diabetes... I will share that now, but I also hope you all will share how you're doing as well (journey to improved health, any setbacks or what not). 
I was very sad when I got that diagnosis. I was hoping (and praying) real bad that the A1C test results would come back fine & that I wouldn't have it. But, alas, that didn't happen. I shed a lot of tears & became overwhelmed because I had very little guidance, and the nutrition information I had gotten from the "diabetes educator" was very old (and incorrect - it was obvious, from things I read, that they did not keep up with the latest nutritional info.). So I began to reach out to people I didn't know well to get help - whether it was a co-worker of my husband's that had diabetes (my husband had shared with them that I had it), a lady I met in the digiscrapping world that had it, etc. This was hard, too, as I'm a bit of an introvert......so putting myself "out there" is extremely out of my comfort zone. I remember asking my doctor if she had any recommendations for multivitamins & diabetic supplements, but she had none. This caused me to take matters into my own hands....so I began doing a lot of research online for things that could possibly help my overall glucose results - be it dietary supplements or a multivitamin geared toward diabetics. There were so many choices that I quickly became overwhelmed; and as I couldn't find any recommendations anywhere, I put that on the back burner & never quite went back to it. Instead I just continued with my aqua p/t, made a few minor adjustments within my diet (based on my research), and started following the one recommendation I had gotten from the diabetes educator - the "plate rule" (1/2 plate non-carb veggies, 1/4 plate protein, 1/4 plate carbs). I already ate very healthy, so there really weren't a lot of changes to be made.
Anyhow... today I had my 6-mo. follow-up & my 2nd ever A1C test (for those of you who have never heard of that, it looks not at today's blood sugar level but that of the past 3 months). Test result back in January was 6.9 (which others told me was borderline diabetic, which got my doctor mad) ...... today's was 5.9 (which is non-diabetic level, I was told 
). Despite that she still made a point of discouraging me - she told me that while I was at a non-diabetic level WITHOUT DRUGS OR INSULIN that I was "still diabetic." She still won't take into account that when I was tested back in January I had in my blood food indulgences from my birthday (which is a few weeks before Christmas), Christmas hoopla, New Year's & Superbowl. So, in a way, I trust today's result more than I do this past January's... I brought that up, but she ignored it & told me that I was still diabetic & to "keep on doing whatever you're doing because it's working - you've lost 20 lbs since I last saw you." On the other hand, she mentioned that my blood pressure was high (145/90) and the micro albumin levels were high from my urine test (they were 40 - she did not tell me what the normal range was). She said that's a sign that I may be having kidney problems, and she may have to put me on [life-long] medication. I asked her if there were a natural alternative to try instead, and she said she'd look into it. From doing some reading about it tonight, I wonder how accurate the urine test was - as the sample was more like first morning urine, and from everything I read they suggest you don't do that & that you collect urine, over a 24 hour period AFTER the first morning urine. It's also quite possible that I was also a bit dehydrated, which my research said can skew the result. Not sure what to do about this info. I learned - sometimes she likes my looking into things on my own, and at other times I can tell she's irritated by it. But the way I see it - it's my life, my body, I want to be an active participant in decisions regarding my health & to do that I need to be informed.
So that's where I'm at. I'm still trying to recover from the fall I had (in the Academy pool area) back in early June. It messed me up pretty good, and a pretty long drive down to PA a few weeks later (to visit my in-laws & pick up our vintage camper) didn't help things (my muscles tightened up & shortened a bit from all the time in the car, despite breaking up the trip over 2 days). I'm still working on getting back to where I was before that. The discouraging part is I was SO close to being able to go back to a "land-based p/t program" again, but now I've had to put that off... On a good note, though, I'm not going out of alignment as frequently & my adjustments have been holding.
So that's where I'm at now....how about you?
Lizanne, your A1C rocks. I get so upset with doctors who make people freak out about an A1C that is 6.5-6.9, or even 7.0. I would bet that with some consistent work on being consistent with watching your carbs, you will be able to keep your A1C in check. Sounds like you're already on top of it. I don't have much to add about the kidney issue other than my grandmother had a kidney removed back in the early 70's and she's still alive and kicking at the grand age of 101. I'm sort of thinking you might want to find a different doctor and get a second opinion about all this.
I would agree with Penny. Doctors are there to inform us of the facts of our illness Not freak us out. I think I would be asking for a second opinion. I don't know much about diabetes as I have never had to manage it. I do have friends that do have to manage it and they seem to be well and happy
I would not only be looking for a second opinion, but a new doctor! If you have a doctor that isn't listening to you, switch. ZocDoc is a GREAT way to find great doctors if it's running in your area. Some how, the healthcare world has become a place where those who take care of you can treat you badly. I would suggest taking your money to another provider! My boyfriend's mother is always confused why I don't go to the clinic down the road since it's "so convinent." It's because the wait time is about two hours (If you're lucky) the office staff is rude, and the doctors just immediately prescribe you antibiotics.
So there's my rant on bad doctors.
I'm trying to get my weight down. One of my medications can cause high blood pressure, so I have to watch that, and I curretly have Sinusitis
My face hurts.
Lizanne, I won't go into my health issues right now maybe another time as it will take up a whole page but I would like to give you some information that may help you. Here is a link for some natural vitamins http://optimalhealthbridge.com/ Garey is such a wonderful and caring person and so are his employees. I take a kidney stone pill that has been amazing and I will explain more on that later too but I hope this helps you. If you have any questions call or email them.
I understand where you're all coming from... Unfortunately, I'm limited to within the BC/BS VT network... And, believe it or not, the reason I switched to this doctor was the local practice that I was a patient at was constantly having a ton of overturn (a few years back the doctors left & opened their own practice - I suspect because of Obamacare) and were understaffed. When I had pneumonia last fall they couldn't see me - so I was referred to a small practice about 20 minutes away. That's the practice I'm going to now... The practice was pretty stable (hardly any overturn), and the doctor I had met was so nice & helpful that I decided to choose her as my new PCP. She, unlike some doctors in this area, isn't turned off by alternative medicine (she knows I see a chiropractor to deal with alignment issues & my scoliosis; and that I've been seeing an acupuncturist since December, which has helped immensely, and is supportive of that). She's also open to treating me naturally vs. automatically putting me on drugs to treat ailments. For example, instead of automatically putting me on medicine for diabetes she suggested I try making some dietary changes & continue with my p/t to help my diabetes. So, in that respect, I'm glad to have her & am wary of trying to find someone else.
I will admit at times I've contemplated finding a naturopath (a doctor who looks at the whole body, checks for imbalances, and treats that rather than just "conditions"), but I'm concerned it wouldn't be covered under my plan & given the diabetes diagnosis I'm not sure that's right for me now. I don't know... All I know is I've had a lot of changes over the last 9 months, and I'm looking for some stability right now. I don't want any more drastic changes or health problems......which is why I was especially concerned about potentially being put on more medication (I already take allergy medicine year-round, not to mention my inhaler for asthma) & asked about natural alternatives - a lot of times medicine for one health problem can cause other health problems.
Thank you all for being so supportive & understanding though. And thank you very much for that link, Brenda - I'll check that out.
Here alternative treatments work well - but not alone. I use to take the last traditional meds I can, but I know I still need then, specially for seasonal depression - for my ankle too, but now that I know better what I can´t do without being in bigger pain on the next days, I´m using way less traditional medicine for it.
I have a very good alternative doctor - She´s been treating me with homeopathy for 1 year and a half or more by now. She´s adept of slow changes, which is good because has less colateral effects. We are almost on summer here now - usually in October my seasonal depression ends - but I´m without traditional medicines for it since the middle of July, treating with a homeophatic formula - which changes in potence from month to month and she says she will still keep for a while. In the beginning of the darker days I really needed the traditional meds, as I was really down and with that "thing" that was making me unable to go forward that I knew from other years, but, when I realised I was forgetting to take the med somedays and was still feeling good, I reduced and stopped earlier. Only bad thing of stopping it is the PMS - the med makes it become under control while I use it.
For my ankle pains, someone asked me why didn´t I try to use a walking cane. I felt horrified at this thought at first, but, when a second or third person asked the same I started thinking about it. In mid-July, when I went to work in an event and fell in terrible pain, without being able to walk for the next 10 days properly, I deceided to try this walking cane thingy. And I have to say, that now I really like to use the walking cane. I´d love not to need it, but, as I feel pain and it´s a fact I need to handle with, take pride away and use it makes me walk better, and makes people be more careful when I need to walk on a crowd or take public transportation. If you ask someone in a crowded subway not to push you because you´re feeling pain on your ankle, people don´t believe you. When you are with a walking cane, they do. I could extend it with lots of other examples like that, but it´s already boring enough. Well, I recommend the walking cane use :p
Now, my bigger health problem is that I´m fat. If it was not bad enough for someone with a "bad" ankle, I´m feeling soooooo ugly... So, what I´m trying to do is finding a way to exercise... and eating more healthy.
Lizanne I am so glad to see your update post and I must say I love your photo...you are looking very healthy! As I read I kept thinking that you really need a new doctor but I understand your dilemma. I don't know what I would have done through all my cancer ordeals without the loving and caring doctors I had.
One thing I might suggest to you is that you insist on seeing/getting copies of the results of your tests. I know when I was diagnosed with breast cancer I always asked for my test results, specifically from the biopsy results. Then I took those results and consulted the copy of Dr. Susan Love's Breast Book (a great book even if you don't have cancer) that my doctor actually lent to me and I even knew that I was Stage 2 before I ever say my oncologyst.
Keep up the great work on your health and I certainly am always interested in hearing your updates!
I'm also pretty limited. I have healthcare, thankfully, but it's still pretty lousy. It's for part-time employees.
Bleh. Is it sad that one of the reasons I'm so excited about moving back to Wellington is getting my socialized healthcare again? Yay I get to see my friends, yay I get to do my dream education, but YAY that I ge to see a doctor when I need to, all my meds are covered, and preventative care is taken care of. Oh the days I dream of. I'm glad that NZ is where I ended up with Scarlet Fever, and not here!
Keep up the good work that you´re doing Lizanne! And think again about changing doctors. Maybe you would be better of telling her how this makes you feel and hopefully you can get a better communication. I work in a laboratory and I know there are different "schools" in what kind of urinetests are the best. The Internet is full of different routines (for example ...collect urine, over a 24 hour period AFTER the first morning urine.) the important thing is to know what kind of analysemethod the lab has and follow the instructions from that lab for that specific method. I do hope that you can trust your doctor with knowing this?! If you feel uncertain - don´t hesitate to get a second opinion. But the fact that she is aware of the importance to keep an eye on your kidneys is a good sign. Ending up in dialysis is not something to look forward to.
My youngest son is born with just one kidney due to a malformation during pregnancy and he´s a real sweet-tooth too. So I always have on eye open for those early-diabetic-signs and hope to God that he´s not developing the disease. But if it comes we just have to deal with it, wount we?
Wishing you all the best. And remember that the tests can show the doctor how your body works but you are the best to telling how you feel!
Glad to see the little changes you've made are making a difference!
Just when I get to feeling I'm doing really well with my Fibromyalgia, something, usually a pain, hits me and I have a setback of a couple weeks.
My son was sick about a month ago. Had to miss two days of school, thankfully just a low fever. But I was chatching something about the same time and it took me almost 3 full weeks to get rid of the cough and sinus, settled in my lungs- like walking phemonia. I didn't even Skype with my mom for her birthday until 2 weeks later cause I had lost my voice, just couldn't talk. So I was feeling better when 2 days ago, I got up and thought "I feel great, I'll exercise this morning until waiting for later in the day. Laid down on the floor for some sit-ups and my back felt soooo spiney.... Then when I got up, I felt the muscles mid back just PULL like all get out and I've spent the last to days in pain, sitting standing, changing things up when I can, but careful not to twist. Heat compresses...!!!! And today hubby and I are supposed to be purchasing supplies for our weekend booth in the festival 45 mins from home! 9-9 Fri and Saturday, and we don't have any help, I'm worried! I really need to be there with him, to kick this new job and networking off, but if I go with him, I can't come back home till it's all over, if I have troubles. Those of you who pray, please include us this weekend! Thanks!