Let's Talk #Oral and My #Diabetes

Let's Talk Oral,and My Diabetes 

Yes iv used the word "Diabetes" all on its own because I'm talking about both Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetes.

Taking our Type 1 or Type 2 Diabetes seriously is something we all must do if we want to live long happy and healthy lives in the hope of skidding to the finish line rather than arriving in bits.

We hear all about the danger to feet, limb amputation, eyesight and retina problems and deterioration of Hearing, to name just a few among many other complications. I remember after diagnosis of my T1 coming home with only a small amount of information, only discovering later the vast amount of other things I needed to know.

Nobody ever mentioned "Oral Problems"

My oral hygiene has always been a little OTT and brushing vigorously 2-3 times daily would be my absolute minimum, yep me and my toothbrush are never far apart. 

We use our mouth for many things like breathing, eating, drinking, smoking, talking, smiling, and kissing etc lol. We ladies outline it with lip liner and slap on the lipstick hoping we look great. 

You men pucker up without the lippy and hope you'll get lucky.

In the dead of night when I reach to the bedside locker to treat a hypo without even getting out of bed and then falling straight back to sleep, do I brush first ? 
NO .......  

I wouldn't even be thinking, I'm shaking,sweaty, and desperate for sweet stuff so I can see yet another day. I never totally wake in a hypo, I sort of move and react while still sleeping, yep that's it, I sleep eat.......

Then I wake up in the morning with an awful sickly sweet taste in my mouth, honestly that's when I realise iv treated a hypo through the night, and only then do I brush.

Do we ever stop to think about what our diabetes is doing to our Oral status?

I sure didn't.......

As I am a regular 2-3 times a day brusher, it never even entered my head. Until Christmas week when a tooth started being a bit more than sensitive.

First week in January straight after new year I treated myself to a trip to the dentist, did I tell you I HATE going to the dentist ( probably why I brush so much ) the only consolation was, he was young, good looking, had a lovely smile and a great bedside manor.

I even joked with the receptionist about it being ages since I'd had someone that good looking talking Oral to me ...... ( well that's not exactly what I said lol )

However, my tooth was causing grief so I opened wide just like I was told to, the result was a crack in the molar that he'd try to save with a big filling. It was a long shot and I knew it, but we took the shot and lost. It continued to cause problems and 2 weeks later it had to be removed. 

The root broke off during the procedure and a little digging was needed. ( it wasn't good )

I went back a week or so later to have stitches removed and it was then, he said he was surprised that the healing wasn't as advanced as he had hoped. He suggested because I was a diabetic a really deep clean done in his office would be advised, and I took his advice, starting 2 weeks later. 

Cutting a long story short here, iv had to have more "work done" than I hoped. We discovered not only is my healing not good, but my gums are inflamed. The result of my diabetes, the work done and a lack of healing.

The local anesthetic he gave me at 9.30 in the morning, had managed to remain in place until between 8 - 10 pm and all day as I sipped my coffee in one side of my mouth it spilled out the other side and down whatever top I was wearing this time. Eating wasn't pretty ......

I felt like I belonged in a comedy show, yes it was hilarious to look at, my sense of humour however wasn't great. 

Another thing, the anesthetic for my molar had now numbed me from the base of my neck to my hairline and just to keep things balanced out it also totally numbed my ear, enabling me to stab myself while putting on my glasses without pain, or as another option just miss my ear target and wear the glasses sliding down my face. 

I did bump into my Mr 50 shades of Dentist at the shop in the afternoon, he was more than a little surprised that I was still talking with a sort of "spit and drool" action. No he hadn't given me too much. The reason ??? My metabolism and my diabetes, meant the anesthetic was acting differently, and not wearing off too quick. Yep you could have punched me anytime through that day and I wouldn't have felt a thing.

I also spent a full 24 plus hours, eating ( everything ) and not injecting insulin just trying to reach a (5. Plus) on the BG meter and CGM, I did manage it just once for about 40 minutes but I very quickly dropped back to the 2s ( no sleep was had that night ) just my T1 system reacting to local anesthetic. 

That was January and guess what ? Iv still got another molar with a crack, just filled but the issue is not resolved. Iv got a lack of enamel now and dentures are now on my bucket list for this year.

I'm thinking diabetes has a lot to answer for, and more regular check ups are advisable for those with diabetes. 

The only good thing is, my Mr 50 shades of dentist, can't and doesn't  say "don't eat sugar" to a diabetic and when it comes to treating a diabetic, their protocol is to be guided by the patient and what they need, they will only work on us if we are happy with the BG numbers at the time. His exact words were " the diabetic knows best " ( music to my ears )  now that's one very clever man, my 50 shades of dentist.

How my Dogs will think when i get my new set of dentures. 

That of course is if Princess Kate does'nt eat them on me.

Some wise words from the dentist here :

http://www.diabetestone.com/our-dentist.html

Another Dental article

http://www.informationaboutdiabetes.com/lifestyle/lifestyle/why-your-dentist-is-part-of-your-diabetes-treatment-team

Just a Type 1 Diabetic sharing experience
Davina

Type 1 Diabetes is an Autoimmune Disease but does Stress and Trauma play a part in triggering it ?

I

​Im well aware of the fact that we dont have a clear cause of type 1 diabetes, some say it was triggered by a virus or other illness, many people say when it comes to children, that the child had'nt been well with another illness in the run up to being diagnosed​. 

In my case i blame ( if thats the right term ) stress and trauma and iv always believed this is what started my autoimmune problems. i had hit a part in my life where life as i knew it had just fallen apart in every form. The changes that came with it left me feeling extremely lost and very shocked and very frightened. extremely stressed and barely coping is the way i would describe this episode of my life.

When i had lost a huge amount of weight, and had various other symptoms i did go to a gp about it but i prescribed zanax to help me relax and take me down from the extreme state of fear and stress i was living with. 

It was only after i had collapsed in work and was brought to another GP that i ended up in A&E, the blood test taken there revealed Hyperthyroid, ( full blown Graves Disease ) an autoimmune disease where the thyroid gland was over active and producing too much iodine. My finger nail beds were dying and were parting company with my nails, the same thing was happening with my toe nails, my skin had taken on a tan to be proud of, i walked around in the depts of winter looking like id been sprayed on a daily basis. My hair was clearly thinning, o ye and i had the shakes as id hand over money to pay for something in a shop, i had a shake like someone who had been on the vodka all night. palpatations became very regular and lasted for hours. SVT's they called them, which eventually led to a situation i hope never to have to face again. I ended up in intensive care after my heart had to be stopped by injection and then they brought me back to life.

A procedure a few weeks later called an AV node ablation sorted this out. Although my thyroid condition was put into remission a few years later with medication and to date it has remained there, i do firmly believe that this is what and where my autoimmune problems started.

Moving forward a few years and my symptoms seemed to have re visited me and thinking i was out of remission i went for blood tests and that was when the word "Diabetes" was first said to me.

At first because i was of the older generation and heading for my 50s it was presumed i was a type 2 diabetic and getting rid of it (curing it) became my mission. i was NEVER going to end up injecting insulin and that was something i was 100% sure of. I look back now and just laugh at this........................

Despite changing my whole lifestyle and doing everything i was now supposed to do, i wasnt making any improvements on blood sugar and got very sick. It was only then after an antibody test was done that i was told i was a type 1 diabetic. Yep the autoimmune kind........

Devastated is the only way i can describe my feeling on that day, to be honest in many ways it was a relief because now i was going to start feeling better, but it did'nt stop me feeling like id just been thrown down a very black hole with nothing but a tea towel to cry into, and cry into it i did, for weeks, and the rest as they say is history....

Nothing will ever change my mind that the horrendous, and frightening time in my life and the trauma i suffered at that time was what started the autoimmune response in me, something back then was telling my body that bits of me didnt belong in my body so the attack started. Firstly with my thyroid gland, and then with my pancreas.  ​

More on this subject here:

http://insulinnation.com

​ ​

/living/trauma-heightens-chances-of-typ

​​

e-1-in-kids/

​​

​Just my thoughts and feelings, im not a medical professional​, but i am someone who knows her body.............................

Davina