[glenntaj]

"SO" stands for significant other.

One more point I should mention about all this: if diabetes or impaired glucose tolerance is being contemplated as a possible cause, a three to five hour glucose tolerance test with concurrent insulin levels should be considered, as merely taking a blood glucose level, or even a HemoglobinA1c, does not catch all "pre-diabetic" glucose intolerant people--or even all diabetics, unless their blood sugars are grossly deviant at all times (not something that all people with these issues experience; some only show abnormal responses to glucose challenge). It is the pattern of responses to glucose challenge over time that is often more indicative of whether a person has a degree of glucose dysregulation--and this is important, as there is increasing evidence that neuropathy can set in well before frank diabetes could be diagnosed under present guidelines (and this is not something even most endocrinologists are taught in med school; most are taught neuropathy is a long-term complication that shows up well into the condition).

See:

http://intl.neurology.org/cgi/content/abstract/60/1/108

http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/c...TRY=1&SRETRY=0

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/q..._uids=16448668

http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/c...07929/ABSTRACT

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/q...d_AbstractPlus

There are a lot more, but you get the idea.

[MelodyL]

I just wanted to add that diabetes can hit anybody at any age. Sometimes if you are on a certain medicine it's possible to get diabetes from that.

12 years ago, while visiting my father in a nursing/rehabilitation facility in Florida, (he was 79).my father kept giving me dollar bills and telling me to go to the coke machine. He kept saying, "I'm always thirsty, I can't get enough coke". I said "how many cokes have you had today, and he must have said 7 or so".

Since I'm diabetic (I have never been thirsty, so go figure), but I knew about my condition, as soon as I got him the coke, he slugged it down and said "man, I'm still thirsty".

I immediately went to the nurse and said "please test my dad's blood sugar, I believe he has diabetes". Since he was there for congestive heart failure, she looked at me and I could see her brain thinking "Oh we have another nut on our hands who thinks she knows everything". She just did it to keep me quiet. His sugar reading was 800. She immediately gave him a shot of insulin.

He had to take 2 shots a day after that. He lived one more year and was quite comfortable. He had been given hospice care at the beginning of being sent to this place. They gave him 9 months to live. Because of his care, he lived 18 more months . I would call him every day (visiting him as often as I could) and on December 23, 1995, I called him at 6 p.m. and he was all excited because my aunts had just dropped off a peach pie. He was very excited and very happy. After a short I love you, he hung up, rode his scooter into his room, got off, sat down in a chair and passed away.

They knew he was dead but he had a pulse. They all went nuts and called the paramedics saying "something is going on, this man has passed away but he still has a pulse". The paramedics did their thing and then said "oh, this man has a pacemaker, that's why he still has a pulse".

My father got one over on them until the end didn't he?? He was the nicest man I ever knew.

So diabetes hits even when you dont' expect it to.

make sure he doesn't have it then you can go on from there.

Melody

[LisaM]

SO means "significant other" and the man who has PN is my "significant other's" father. So, he's basically my father-in-law (or, FIL). I know he's been thru a ZILLION tests for a ZILLION different diseases. I'd "assume" that diabetes was the very first thing they tested him for. I know he's had a bunch of mri's and emg's and doppler's as well...but I'm not sure of the results. I'll have to get more info. We did not see them this weekend. His wife (my MIL) had to be taken back to the hospital this weekend for complications from her back surgery - everything is fine, but he was so exhausted from taking care of her that we didn't want to bother them so we stayed home. I will ask further questions this week.

Thank you all.

[LizaJane]

Do we have a list of these abbreviations somewhere? Maybe they are intuitive to most folk, but I can't believe how I struggled through that one!

Hope your MIL and FIL are stable this week.

[Silverlady]

This is a real problem for a lot of us. The meds cause shortcuts in brain for me and I have a real problem searching out the meanings of the abbreviations. i.e. MIL, FIL, SO, etc.,etc. I actually skip over some posts because they are so time consuming trying to figure out what in the heck people are talking about.

Billye

[LittleMischief]

Originally Posted by LizaJane

Do we have a list of these abbreviations somewhere? Maybe they are intuitive to most folk, but I can't believe how I struggled through that one! ....

Here are a couple of links, some of the abbreviations are specific to the type of forum (e.g., TTC = trying to conceive):

http://www.anapsid.org/internet/smileys.html#abbrev

http://sheknows.com/about/look/90.htm

It took me the longest time to figure out what "YMMV" meant (your mileage may vary = my experience may be different from yours).

Hope these links are helpful to you.

[Silverlady]

Thanks so much Dottye,
Billye

[LittleMischief]

Originally Posted by Silverlady

Thanks so much Dottye,
Billye

You're very welcome, it can make you dizzy, eh?

[MelodyL]

My oh my, you know that technology has reached a new phase of development when you are reading a post and you find out that TTC means trying to conceive and YMMV means your mileage may vary!!

Never in all my life, would I have thought that in a posting, someone would write ttc and ymmv.

What else do we have to learn????


WADOFWHTLA...........WE ARE DUMB OLD FARTS WHO HAVE TO LEARN ABBREVIATIONS!!!!

HAH!!!!

WML--- (With much love) Melody

[dahlek]

Who cares what the FRUITCAKE or FART initials we all use...equals the diversity of YOU ALL vs. YOU GUYS. No big diff. Serious question tho: does "mileage vary" according to age or virtual wear and tear or are the combinations/permuations of the above? Are there STANDARDS? As in judging olympic atheletes or Westminster Dogs? Or other creatures/atheletes? Ultimately-DO WE FREAKING CARE? Think NOT?

I have searched endlessly for PAIN standards or Numbness standards that may be the keys' by which doc's guage us...MOST are ...well, vague! Your mechanic will probably give you a better appraisal of 'that sound' and a hefty estimate than the info you get from a series of tests. Yep, I am becoming cynical; No, not there yet; Am I lucky? yep; Could I be otherwise...you BET ya!

I just every day, every way, hope each of you get as lucky as I have been!

Hugs and fuzzies! - j