Tested for diabetes 5 years ago..

[dlib]

...which came out "borderline diabetes". The doctor told me nothing more and didn't recommend anything. It is 5 years later and my symptoms have really hit me. I'm always tired/fatigued, my hands and feet are always cold, I believe I urinate 3 to 4 times a day but I'm not sure if that is frequent or not and I get extremely tired after eating anything. I also wake up extremely hungry and am constantly hungry throughout the day. I went to my doctor today where they drew blood for tests and I will get the results back on the 17th. My question is will waiting this long to get checked on again cause any serious damage in the case I did have diabetes over the 5 years before I last got checked? I consider myself pretty healthy as I work out 3 times a day for about a hour and a half each session and I drink only water. No juice, alcohol, or any other type of beverage but I do have some poor eating habits I need to change. Also, my grandmother and father are both diabetic so I'm guessing me testing positive for diabetes is rather high. Any information would be greatly appreciated. Thank you for your time.

[dlib]

Thank you for your quick response.

I am not sure which tests the doctor did but from the sheet he had I do believe there were 5 different tests and I do believe the A1C test was one of them but I am not sure. I know one for sure was the fasting blood sugar one.

I am 6'0 and weigh 175-80. When I exercise I do a half hour of cardio which is usually on the stairmaster or elliptical with about an hour of weight lifting. It's been about a week since I last worked out due to me being too tired to do so but I will ask the doctor about my exercise routine and what is safe when I visit him for my results. Again, Thank You for your response.

[Zoelula]

Hi dlib

I find it a bit disconcerting that your doctor termed you "borderline diabetes" and gave you absolutely no recommendations. You should at least have been given recommendations for diet and exercise appropriate to diabetes and regular follow up tests. But there is no point in dwelling on that now, but just making sure you get all the information you need to go forward and take care of yourself.

No, I wouldn't say that waiting another week is going to make a dramatic difference, though I understand you are anxious. You might want to use the time to do a bit of research, to Google Type II diabetes and learn what you can, especially about diet and exercise so if you are diabetic you will be ahead of the game. Do you know what test your doctor did? He probably just did a fasting blood sugar. When I was diagnosed in 2007, my fasting blood sugar was 325 which is high enough that there was no question. If your results are unclear, you might want to ask for an A1C test. This test takes an average of all your blood sugars for the last couple months, where the fasting blood sugar is just that one moment.

You don't say anything about your weight. If you are overweight you will want to work on slowly losing the excess weight as that very much contributes to diabetes. You are right that you will need to change the poor eating habits. Depending on the results your doctor might have you try to control your diabetes with diet and exercise or might prescribe one or more oral medications. But regardless, it is always a combination of those things and there is a lot of self-management involved. Diabetes is a chronic illness but it IS one that can be managed. So take a deep breath and do some reading and be prepared with questions for your doctor. If he waves you out of the office with either "you're fine, don't worry" or "just take this/these pills" do not accept those answers even if you need to change doctors. You need to learn how to eat, how to test your blood sugar, and how to manage your weight.

Also, please let your doctor know about your exercise routines. I am nobody to talk because that is my personal weak spot, but unless you are an athlete, it sounds extreme. Should you be placed on diabetic medication you will need to be careful you don't become hypoglycemic due to all that exercise.

Good luck and let us know what the results are.
Zoe