Do You Think Enough Is Being Done About Diabetes Health Care?
By KrauseHome
@KrauseHome (36445)
United States
August 25, 2008 5:46pm CST
Personally, as someone who has Diabetes, and due to other health factors as well, I will be on insulin now for the rest of my life. Maybe one or two things could have been done to prevent some of this, but mostly where I am at today is because of me, and choosing to become proactive as well.
I have seen way too many people have severe complications and problems with being Diabetic, myself included to where I could write a Book about them. Most of the time anymore Doctors are not even testing people for Diabetes and telling people who are, if your sugar levels are in the 200s there is nothing to worry about as well. I had a neighbor who it took an A1c of at least 14.1 for them to say she was a Diabetic. For me, I had chronic wounds, and my Blood Sugars were over 350 all the time, and they never thought of bringing my Sugar levels under control would help heal the wounds.
It is Sad. Until I ended up in the Hospital almost 4 yrs. ago with a severe staph infection on my legs and arms, no one seemed to care. No matter what I did, it was always me. When I ended up in the hospital the first thing they did was put me on Insulin, and I have been on it ever since. No, this is not the way I would have liked it to go, but continue to see them still being lax with people who are prone to being Diabetic as well.
What will it take for someone to wake up and change this? I am not sure, but the best thing we can do is be proactive, and look for warning signs ourselves, and then hope there will be a Doctor who will believe us and want to treat us for it as well. People need to remember just because it has never ran in your family, and you are not overweight, it will never happen to you.
~~TINA~~
4 people like this
7 responses
@howard96h (11640)
• New York, New York
26 Aug 08
Yes it is a serious condition. I know a guy who lives in my building and he tells me he his levels are around 200 but when he urinates it has an acidity/fruity smell to it especially when he wakes up from sleeping but he thinks he can never become a diabetes because he is not extremely overweight. His mind is locked into thinking like this. I told him he should go and get tested for Diabetic acidosis (ketoacidosis) maybe this is the cause of the smell in his urine, I don't know, but he feels that if he has this condition it would show up when they take a blood test. Maybe ketoacidosis will only show in a urine strip test.
3 people like this
@LouiseKnittel (4764)
• United States
26 Aug 08
This is a very good point Howard. How they shouldnot just test the blood, but test the Urine also!
1 person likes this
@spalladino (17891)
• United States
26 Aug 08
I have a granddaughter who has type 1 diabetes and will also be on insulin for the rest of her life unless a cure is found. She was perfectly normal until one day, about three years ago when she was around 14, she got sick and fortunately my step-daughter took her to the doctor immediately instead of waiting. She ended up in the hospital for three days while they tried to get her sugar under control. Now, at 17 she suffers from arthritis, caused by the diabetes and has pain in her joints every day. She's a fighter though and an inspiration to the rest of us. We all belong to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, participate in the fund raising walks and my husband is planning to organize a motorcycle run to as soon as he's finished building his latest bike. Katie (my granddaughter) spoke before a senate committee in support of stem cell research and had everyone in tears before she was done.
Because Katie's diabetes is inherited, my step-daughter checks her two boys for ketones regularly and the youngest one, who is only 8, has recently started showing early signs of sugar problems so he's being followed closely by the doctor who treats Katie.
I pray every night that a cure is found for this disease.
@rogue13xmen13 (14402)
• United States
26 Aug 08
No, my brother had Type 1 Diabetes for eight years, and it finally took his life in 2006. He was 20 years of age when he passed away. You are not just battling Diabetes physically, it is mental as well. My brother became depressed at times because of his Diabetes. There has to be a cure for this problem, not just treatments.
@GardenGerty (161881)
• United States
26 Aug 08
I have known for years that it is important to be an informed healthcare consumer. I just cannot imagine the doctors I know being that lax about elevated blood sugars. Maybe I am lucky. I know that some people believe that my doctor is a little quick to treat and to prescribe, but I have confidence in him. If I mention anyone in my family being diagnosed with anything, he runs the appropriate tests. I have not told him that in the last five years all the adults have been labeled diabetic or pre diabetic. I have had some private testing done which had told me that I had better get some lifestyle changes in place or I will join that group. My responsibility, however. I think we are a lot more aware of diabetes now than we were five years ago. It is a major health care crisis.
2 people like this
@Kowgirl (3490)
• United States
9 Oct 08
Funny you should say that . I live in Florida and I guess the doctors here are different. The first test they give every patient is for diabetes. I was in a car accident and before they even x-rayed my arm they did a diabetes test on me. I have changed doctors twice in the last 3 years and each one did the diabetes test. It could be because so many elderly come to Florida to retire. But now they are checking all children who show the least of any signs of having diabetes. My neighbor had to get a physical for her son to play pee-wee football and they gave him the test too. I have never been overweight but my family is full of diabetics.
My grandmother was a type 2 diabetic. My mom who is 92 years young has never had diabetes. My sister and all my cousins on my dads side have diabetes. My doctor said I inherited it from my grandmother. Lots of skinny people develop this disease so it's not just one overweight people have to live with.
1 person likes this
@LouiseKnittel (4764)
• United States
26 Aug 08
With so many folks suffering it is hard to feel that enough is being done. I know that they are doing research on it all the time. But it still seems like it has been a long time sence they have made new discoveries.
My mom has Diabetes aslo. and it runs in her family. She goes to Dyalisis 3 times a week. she has really gone through so much. I wish so badly for a cure.
1 person likes this
