I am starting to wonder if I am a type 1 and not a type 2.
I got diagnosed as a Type 2 last year ( June 2020) and I remember we did blood work that day and A1C test and I remember it being 7.8. And my GP put me on Metformin and I have been taking Metformin since June and I am down to 1 pill a day instead of 2 and my A1C is 5.6 now.
I don’t even know if my GP tested to see if I am a Type 2 or Type 1 or not. A prescription was sent to CVS and I just went and picked it up and started taking the Metformin twice a day.
Nothing was really said just that my Cholesterol was elevated and kidneys were good and that I need to walk more.
I didn’t even get any pamplets to read or anything about Diabetes, its just you’re diabetic and out the door you go with pills and start walking and watch what you eat.
But I am having some signs of a Type 1.
Excessive Thirst ( I drink and drink and never can get satisfied )
Hunger… I am hungry within about an hour after I eat.
I do pee multiple times a day but thats just because I drink so much water. ( 3 to 4 times a day). I don’t get up during the middle of the night.
No on the Fatigue because I just did a Sleep Study a week or so ago and got my pressures upped on my Bi Pap.
No to throwing up or feeling nauseated.
My Uncle just found out he’s a Type 1 and it just happened out of the blue.
Everyone else in my family is a Type 2. ( mom,moms sister, Their dad, 2 great aunts, 1 cousin.
My experience was much the same as yours. I was diagnosed at age 67 as type 2 by my GP. I started on metformin and my a1c went down. Three months later it went up. I wasn’t given information either. I don’t know what is available for you. I went to a type 2 class offered by a local endo clinic. One of the instructors suggested I make an appointment to see one of them. I got an appointment with a CDE. She ordered a c-peptid test and antibody tests. So at age 69 I was diagnosed as type 1. One of my symptoms was weight loss. Being on Medicare it’s important for coverage benefits to have the correct diagnosis.
The best way to find out if you are a type 1 would be antibody tests and a c-peptide test.
If you are positive on the antibodies it’s a sign of type 1, although some type 1’s test negative and still don’t make insulin and they don’t know why. A C-peptide test tells how much insulin you are making. A low or low normal is a sign of type 1, because you slowly stop making insulin. High or high normal is a sign of type 2, because a type 2 still makes insulin, they just don’t use it well because they are insulin resistant.
Medications and change of diet work at first on a type 1 because as a type 1/LADA you slowly lose the ability to make insulin, The process can take years. A type 1 has to have insulin at some point, because they stop making it. Some type 2’s end up needing insulin too. Type 2 is actually more hereditary than type 1.
The only way to truly know is to get the antibody tests and a C-peptide test.
Well I called my GP yesterday and I talked to her nurse. I asked her did my GP run a C-PEPTIDE and antibodies test on me.
She said that shes pretty sure that they don’t preform those type of tests and that she thinks I am okay and that she doubts that I am a type 1.
I called my insurance ( Medicade) and they gave me a number to a diabetic educator that works with medicade patients. I called the number and they can’t take me because my A1C is below 6.5 and that they only take patients with A1C’s at 6.5 and higher.
I guess my next step is to ask for a endo who could run the tests and tell me and maybe give me better advice on the do’s and don’ts of diabetes?
Most GPs will assume that you are T2 and the majority of the time they are correct. It would be nice if they would do the T1 testing but the fact is most doctors will see a rare few T1’s in their career.
The symptoms you have mentioned are also indicative of Type2 diabetes. Odds are that you are T2 with slight odds of being T1 but don’t let that discourage you from finding out about T1. Your A1c is 5.6 which means you are controlled, the question of which type is not urgent at this time.
There is a lot of stigma attached to being T2 which is wrong. If it does turn out that the doctor is correct, remember that there is no blame in diabetes of any type.
@Stemwinder_Gary Speaking of stigma attached to Type 2… See my latest post called “It’s YOUR FAULT!” Where I speak on that. And I also speak on something I read too.
Your relatives that are Type 2 may be misdiagnosed T1/LADA. Indictors for T1/LADA include not overweight/obese at diagnosis and age at diagnosis (around 40). For me, it was also an increase in dosage or added oral medication about every 15 months until insulin was the only remaining treatment available. It seems a little early for diabetes progression to be an indicator for you.
My grandmother and her 4 siblings were all had adult-onset diabetes, diagnosed in their 40s or 50s. I have a now grown T1D daughter who was diagnosed in childhood. Endos don’t necessarily agree, but I’m quite sure GM and siblings were actually LADA.
You might try the CDE again and see if will take you based on pre-treatment 7.8.
