Talk to me about diabetes

[BillyJoelLover]

and the glucose tolerance test.

Yesterday I was sitting at Dollar Tree checking out, about to head to the movies when it hit me. Out of now where a small ball of light flashed into my eyes. I started feeling clammy and panicky. I drove myself to the movies (just across the street) where it seemed like the light in my eyes was getting worse and bigger. I had some candy in my purse so I ate it. My friend gave me a ride home. About 30 min later I ate some chicken noodle soup I'd had cooking in the crock pot all day. After about an hour and 15 minutes the light in my eyes (which started in the middle of my eyes) slowly made its way to the outer aura of my eyes and then disappeared. I had an awful headache from it all.

This is the 3rd time this has happened. The first two times this happened I went to the ER and they told me they have no idea what caused  it but I ate something both times before leaving for the ER.

I don't know a whole lot about diabetes. My dad had it and after speaking to my mom it apparently runs in my family. I have an appointment Monday with my PCP. I'm going to request a glucose tolerance test to test for diabetes. I've heard its icky and sucks. Has anyone else had this happen to them or have you taken that test before? Is it the same thing they make you do when you're pregnant?

[sharknado]

Ask for an A1C

[BaliHai]

That sounds like a migraine with aura to me (which are the only kinds of migraines I ever get), but I'm not a medical professional.

[looseseal]

I'm not diabetic, but do sometimes have problems with low blood sugar. My symptoms are generally more that I get shaky, hot, sweaty, and have a hard time concentrating.

I had the GTT, it was similar to the one in pregnancy but it was longer- I was at the office for four hours. Maybe the same that happens in pregnancy if you fail the first test? I had a baseline blood test, then had the drink and blood tests each hour for three hours.

Good luck, I hope you get some answers.

[flex]

Sounds like a migraine to me three.

[BillyJoelLover]

I always thought migraines caused severe almost debilitating head pain. I had a headache but it wasn't anything a couple ibuprofen didn't fix.

[BaliHai]

Aug 25, 2016 12:42:43 GMT -5 BillyJoelLover said:

I always thought migraines caused severe almost debilitating head pain. I had a headache but it wasn't anything a couple ibuprofen didn't fix.

Google migraine with aura.

It doesn't always come with the typical blinding migraine pain - I have been getting these kinds of headaches since I was 13 and I think I've maybe had horrible pain twice. YMMV.

[sacattack]

This doesn't sound like diabetes to me. If you had diabetes you'd be super thirsty and peeing all the time.
To ease your mind, they can do a quick blood test to see what your blood sugar levels are.

[ciescalove]

Aug 25, 2016 12:35:08 GMT -5 sharknado said:

Ask for an A1C

This.

[dirtybella]

Sounds like a migraine. That's exactly what happens to me when I get one. The light flashes are the aura that precede the migraine. That's when I take my medicine to try to keep it at bay.

[TR]

That doesn't sound remotely like diabetes. But it does sound a lot like a migraine with aura.

[tillie]

Optical migrane. I get them occasionally. They last about 15 minutes, no headache.

[FastHands]

Aug 25, 2016 12:44:16 GMT -5 BaliHai said:

Aug 25, 2016 12:42:43 GMT -5 BillyJoelLover said:

I always thought migraines caused severe almost debilitating head pain. I had a headache but it wasn't anything a couple ibuprofen didn't fix.

Google migraine with aura.

It doesn't always come with the typical blinding migraine pain - I have been getting these kinds of headaches since I was 13 and I think I've maybe had horrible pain twice. YMMV.

I've only gotten them since I had DS, but I actually never even get a headache. It's the aura (mine is specifically a scintillating scotoma -- you can google image search for representations of this) and a weird/faint/flushed feeling for 10-30mins. From what I understand, the pain generally follows these symptoms, but there is a whole range from no pain (like mine) to debilitating pain (like what most people think of as a classical migrane).

[BillyJoelLover]

Well I googled Migraine with Aura and wish I hadn't, sort of.

So migraine with aura and headache on one side of the head can be sign of TIA. I've been diagnosed with a stroke before but the Dr's don't know when it happened or what caused it.

[flex]

I used to think that too--that all migraines were debilitating. But based on my own experience, you can have an aura with a mild headache.

[sharknado]

Aug 25, 2016 12:55:18 GMT -5 BillyJoelLover said:

Well I googled Migraine with Aura and wish I hadn't, sort of.

So migraine with aura and headache on one side of the head can be sign of TIA. I've been diagnosed with a stroke before but the Dr's don't know when it happened or what caused it.

Well, crap

[Deleted]

Are you pregnant? It's not necessary to do a glucose tolerance test.
I would tell your doctor your symptoms and then let him or her decide what the best course of action. Those aren't typical symptoms of diabetes so I'd be open to other options for work up and not be insistent on a glucose tolerance test. Your symptoms could be a variety of things without knowing your medical history or medications. I hope it doesn't happen again and that your doctor can help you.

[BillyJoelLover]

I have an appt with my PCP tomorrow at 11:30 now.

[obladi]

Aug 25, 2016 13:02:36 GMT -5 jenny1980 said:

Aug 25, 2016 12:55:18 GMT -5 BillyJoelLover said:

Well I googled Migraine with Aura and wish I hadn't, sort of.

So migraine with aura and headache on one side of the head can be sign of TIA. I've been diagnosed with a stroke before but the Dr's don't know when it happened or what caused it.

Go into your doc! 

I get ocular migraines from time to time and they're exactly as you describe (start in the center and move to the periphery) and it looks sort of like flashing light with a prism. Very odd. The first time I had one I was pregnant with Lu and was terrified I was having a stroke or something. Sometimes I get an actual migraine afterward but often times it's just the ocular piece. 

This was my exact experience with ocular migraines. They started out of
the blue in my early 20s and I used to get them daily. I hardly ever get them now. I thought I was having a stroke too when I had my first one.

[sparkythelawyer]

Its probably your brain shrinking.

[katb]

What is your blood pressure like when this happened and you went to the hospital?

[MixedBerryJam]

Aug 25, 2016 12:42:43 GMT -5 BillyJoelLover said:

I always thought migraines caused severe almost debilitating head pain. I had a headache but it wasn't anything a couple ibuprofen didn't fix.

I get migraines without a lick of pain. Just the visual disturbances, sometimes some nausea after. I can literally be driving, notice the visual disturbance and continue driving on my merry way. They last 15 minutes to maybe a half-hour, start to finish, and steadily move across my visual field until it's gone. I don't usually even get the nausea, I only mention it because the last couple of times it's happened, I have. I've probably been getting them a couple of times a year going on 30 years.

[Deleted]

I got one prepregnancy, but have gotten migraine with aura and no headache at all or no headache until after the aura is gone about 1-2 times a month since I weaned. If you're on birth control with estrogen, you need to come off it and be on a progesterone only pill.

[Mrs. ChanandlerBong]

Aug 25, 2016 12:42:43 GMT -5 BillyJoelLover said:

I always thought migraines caused severe almost debilitating head pain. I had a headache but it wasn't anything a couple ibuprofen didn't fix.

The aura happens for me for about 30 minutes, then if I don't get enough ibuprofen and caffeine in those 30 minutes, I get the debilitating head ache. Either way, I'm usually nauseous for 24 hours after.

The best I can describe the aura is dancing lights around the periphery of both eyes and a little bit that snakes into the center of my right eye.

Edit to add: the first time it happened I was 19, 2nd time it happened I was almost 30 and had just had a baby. Then I got a mirena and have had them every 2-4 weeks since.
Once the mirena was removed, they didn't go away. I track my cycles and they definitely relate to hormone levels, for me at least.

[Alex]

You don't need a GTT.
It would be an odd presentation of diabetes. Ask for an HBA1C though if you are concerned about that angle. It measures your blood sugar over the past 90 or so days.

[BillyJoelLover]

Had to reschedule my appointment for Monday.

Doing further research through WebMD's explanation of Silent Migraine, seems to match my symptoms perfectly. I'll talk to my PCP Monday though to confirm. I've only had 4 of them in the past 7 years so they aren't very frequent. I don't think I'll need to take migraine management medicine. I just need to figure out what my triggers are. Probably the fact that I ate very little that day but drank an XL Decaf iced coffee with no dinner.

I have a terrible habit of skipping meals. I'm so busy all the time I just forget to eat until I feel dizzy or weak. I think I need to make a conscious effort to eat more frequently.

Anyway, thanks for the info ladies. It really helped. I'll let everyone know what the Dr says.

[berbles]

Does anyone remember that reporter who had a migraine aura on camera and everyone thought she was having a stroke? Migraines can present in very strange ways.

[lilafowler]

berbles I felt so bad for her! She looks terrified.

[berbles]

Aug 26, 2016 13:32:12 GMT -5 lilafowler said:

berbles I felt so bad for her! She looks terrified.

I know! You could see on her face that she knew she wasn't making sense. Poor thing. I'm glad they figured it out quickly!

[BillyJoelLover]

berbles, That is one of the scariest parts. And since I've been diagnosed with a stroke (and don't know when or how it happened) it scares me that much more.