How long does it take for symptoms(diabetes) to show up?
Like say you’re thirsty as one of the first symptoms, how long until you get another?
and if the only diabetic symptom I have is being thirsty and peeing all the time I probably have pre diabetes right?
I know I should see my doctor, I’m getting the whole test done in a few weeks
If you are concerned about diabetes, then you need to talk to your doctor. That being said, diabetes is a disease that is diagnosed with blood work and laboratory values not just from symptoms. Many people with diabetes have absolutely no symptoms at all and would never have any reason to suspect that anything was wrong unless their doctor happened to discover abnormalities on routine blood work.
A brief explanation of diabetes follows with some on prediabetes:
Type 1 diabetes tends to occur in young people, generally starting at childhood but some people develop it even into their 30′s (I worked with a guy who got it this late). In this condition it is thought that a person’s immune system attacks the cells in their pancreas that make insulin, so they stop producing insulin. Once this happens, a person can have all kinds of symptoms, including thirst, frequent urination, constant hunger, and weight loss. Some people will also feel awful and may become delirious having no idea where they are or what is going on around them. There is not really such a thing as prediabetes with Type 1 diabetes.
Type 2 diabetes tends to happen in older people and is the result of insulin resistance coupled with a failure of the pancreas to produce enough insulin to overcome the resistance. What is sometimes referred to as prediabetes is when the body simply has insulin resistance, but still produces enough insulin to overcome this. When the pancreas fails to produce the necessary amount of insulin, then the person becomes a type 2 diabetic. How is insulin resistance diagnosed? With lab values from samples of blood. The progression of type 2 diabetes is judged by the dose of insulin needed to maintain a low enough blood sugar and by the complications of diabetes present.
Complications of diabetes that doctors look at to monitor disease progression are not thirst and frequency of urination. Thirst, frequency of urination, and hunger (also called polydipsia, polyuria, and polyphagia or the 3 P’s), are acute symptoms caused by high blood sugar and failure to become satiated. Giving insulin and correcting blood sugar will quickly correct these symptoms. To monitor disease progression, doctors look at chronic problems from diabetes, which tend not to get better once present even with insulin and improved blood sugar control.
Some examples are damage to blood vessels (which can require amputation in extreme cases), damage to nerves (leading to numbness in the feet and hands), eye damage, kidney damage, and some other problems. Unfortunately, it is difficult to say how soon this type of damage will occur after the development of diabetes, but it frequently takes years. Chronic good blood sugar control tends to delay the onset of these symptoms in general. However, some people are lucky and have no symptoms despite poor blood sugar control, while other people with very good blood sugar control develop symptoms quickly.
There are also some other types of diabetes that can relate to pregnancy or to non-immune pancreas damage.
To sum things up, a concern about diabetes is a reason to see a doctor, who can do what it takes to make a diagnosis or rule diabetes out. The symptoms can present in many different ways, and may not be present at all. If a person has 2 symptoms suggestive of diabetes, there is no telling how long until they will develop another or if they will.
Diabetes Patient Education Monitoring Blood Sugar
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Diabetes Patient Education
Monitoring and tightly controlling your blood sugar level
can significantly reduce the risk of complications due to diabetes and provide you with a higher quality of life.
Knowledge of your blood sugar levels at different times of the day is an essential input into your diabetes care plan and allows you and your medical team to work out and modify your plan for medication, diet and exercise.
The heart of the system to monitor your blood sugar is the blood glucose meter and the automatic lancing device used to obtain your blood sample.
There are many types of glucose meters with varying degrees of sophistication and abilities to store test results. Your doctor or nurse will recommend the type best for you.
You will need to be familiar with the manufacturer’s instructions for each unit. This program will provide you with general guidelines that apply to all units. The equipment you will need to assemble includes:
* the glucose testing meter,
* a packet of test strips,
* an automatic lancing device,
* and facial tissue.
Diabetes Patient Education
The meter will have a display with blood sugar readings are shown, an on/off power button and a slot into which the Test Strips are inserted. In the back of the meter will be a compartment for batteries.
The Automatic Lancing Device has three components: the body with a release button, lancet holder and cocking device, the removable end cap and a separate short lancet.
The first step is to code the meter to match or calibrate the meter to the reactivity of the Test Strip.
This is done by following the manufacturer’s instructions and matching a number on the meter’s display to a number on the Code Strip or on the test strip package.
Coding is done:
* whenever a new package of Test Strips is opened
* and daily to ensure the meter is coded correctly.
Diabetes Patient Education
In addition, a control test can be run:
* if you need to check that the whole system of the meter and the test strip is working correctly
* and to practice your good meter techniques.
* Follow the manufacturer’s instructions, which usually involves testing a control solution of sugar that is provided with the meter.
Wash your hands vigorously with soap and warm water. Rinse and dry thoroughly with a paper towel.
Remove the Test Strip from its individual package.
With the meter off, insert the correct end of the test strip into the test slot of the meter, according to the manufacturer’s instructions. This usually turns the meter on.
Remove the end-cap from the lancing device.
Insert a short lancet into the lancet holder according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Twist off the protective cap and save it for the disposal of the used lancet.
Replace the end-cap. The depth of the puncture depends on the end-cap used.
Re-cock the lancing device.
Choose your puncture site. The sides of the end segment of the finger are the best sites. Stroke down the finger to push blood toward the puncture site.
Place the end-cap firmly against the chosen puncture site on the side of the fingertip. The more pressure you use, the deeper the puncture. Push the lancet release button without moving your finger or the device.Diabetes Patient Education
After the puncture, remove the lancing device. If a drop of blood does not form on its own, stroke down the finger toward the puncture site without going as far as the site itself.
Hold the tip of the test strip in the drop of blood until the meter tells you the test strip is filled, usually by beeping. Remove the test strip from the blood. Put the device and the strip aside until the reading is complete.
Wipe the puncture site with a clean, dry facial tissue and use the tissue to hold pressure on the puncture site until the bleeding stops.
Remove the end-cap from the lancing device and remove the used lancet.
Replace the used lancet back into the protective cap by pushing it into the open end of the cap which is placed on a firm, flat surface like a counter top.
Once the blood sugar reading on the meter is complete, use the tissue to grasp the test strip and pull it out of the meter. This usually turns the meter off.
Discard the lancet in its protective cover and the used strip into a glass or puncture-proof container with a screw top or a “Sharps” Container purchased from your local pharmacy. Replace the cap on the container. When the container is full, cap it and discard it into the trash.
* Clean the lancing device weekly according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
* Only use a lancet once.
* Do not use the same end-cap on another person.
* Teach another person to use the whole system so that you have a backup when you need assistance.
Diabetes Patient Education
Duration : 0:8:20
