I had a mini stroke this Jan.(2009) I am 30 yrs. old and living with type 1 for 25yrs. I was wondering if anyone else has had this happen to them?
First of all I am so sorry that you have had this happen. I have also had type 1 for 26 years and my daughter is 7 and has had it for 2 yrs. As a nurse I see all sorts of complications from Type 1. I haven't experienced this myself but we are all capable of this happening to us. How has your control been over the years? Have you also seen a cardiologist? At this point you should be getting to one at least once a year to be sure your cardiac vessels are clear. A stroke is a "brain attack" that is how we teach now- similar processes follow with your other vessels. Plaque breaks off and travels in your vessels until it lodges itself or a vessel is just occluded from plaque buildup. High blood sugars add sticky plaque to our vessels everyday in addition to a poor diet high in bad fats. Are you on blood thinners now? Know this community is here for you and I hope you are back to the pre- Transient Ischemic Attack levels of functioning.
I have been through a ton of testing since Jan, when it happened. I have had a MRI of the brain, they found a lesion in the left posterior white matter. I was then sent on to a neurologist she ordered a doppler of my carotid, bloodwork (15 tubes of blood taken), she saw something on the doppler she wanted to take a closer look at so I had an MRA of my neck done, then EKG, 2D Echo cardiogram and 24 hour holter monitor (a 24 hr heart test for those who may not of heard of this before),another MRA was done on my brain after the neurologist still needed a closer look, she thought that I may have had a blockage in my left carotid. Well I was relieved to find out there is no blockage. I guess my carotid is larger on my left side than on my right (probably born that way) I have never had any type of test that would've recognized this until now. I only have 1 left over symptom numbness in my left arm, the neurologist doesn't believe it was related to the TIA so I am having some test done on 4/8/09 to check for the cause. I have to have EMG, NCS/NCV and routine EEG she wants to check for nerve damage, pinched nerves, carpal tunnel or something about a seizure disorder also. I'm not on any meds except for a daily 81mg aspirin. No I haven't seen a cardiologist. As far as being under control I'm working on that when I was younger I did better than I am as an adult. In my adult life I have had more time, years without medical insurance than with it. Currently I am enrolled in a state insurance program because I lost my job and insurance a few months ago. So when I should have been taking 3 shots I only took 1 because I couldn't afford the insulin. I went probably 3 years without testing my BG. I know I may have cause damage but what was I to do. During these time I called the American Diabetes Association to see if they had any financial program I might be qualify for. They told me they are there for awareness and prevention only. I said for all the years since I was a kid I sold "Gift of Hope" christmas merchandise, I think some of that money should be set aside to help T1 diabetics get through tough times. I understand that money is supposed to go for research but there should be program for temporary free financial help, that's my opinion. Anyways I am now on 4 shots daily and my A1C has come down from a 9.6 to an 8.2, I am moving in the right direction. Mostly because we now have an Endo in my town without traveling 2 hours away. I exercise (turbo jam, treadmill, punching bag and wii fit) and don't eat too much junk, I know my limits for sugar intake before it will affect me. Lastly to change my future I am going to being starting school this Sept. for LPN, I feel it will benefit me and my diabetes may inturn help me to help others. Also to make sure I can always have medical insurance. Thank you for your post and I appreciate that we have a great place to meet others just like us, it means alot to me.
I went to the doctors today. They did not find the cause of my numbness in my left arm. The tests ( to check for nerve damage, pinched nerves and seizures) I mentioned above, came back good. I have to return to the neurologist in 3 months for a check up. I have to be free of "stroke like" symptoms and my numbness stay the same or get better before she'll release me. Hopefully I am out of the "Mini Stroke" danger zone for a very long time.
oh m&m - you have been through the ringer, and you're so young. Hope all is well now, sounds like you are moving in the right direction. Good luck with school. I constantly think about going back to school but it never seems to be the "right" time. I also worry about my daughter - what will she do when she turns 18 - she will no longer have health insurance and private insurance is sooo expensive, if they would even cover her, especially with a pre-existing condition. I know she still have several years left but I have worried about that frequently. My boyfriend (also my baby-daddy - lol) also has type 1 and he has been without insurance for years - and although he takes his insulin and medication - thank God for patient assistance programs for the medications - I worry that he doesn't get the proper medical care and I know it will catch up to him.
I've been thinking that I should post what exactly happened to me during my mini stroke so others can recognize the symptoms. One thing I will suggest is if you feel any of these things, get to a hospital ASAP. I didn't and I regret it.
It started off as numbness in my right arm, I didn't think too much of it because if I'm low I will go numb sometimes. So then my right leg went numb I had my boyfriend go get my blood kit so I could test, I was 142. Then the numbness moved into my upper lip and I checked my bs again 145. I had a headache but it wasn't real bad yet. I was trying to tell my boyfriend what I was feeling and nothing I said made any sense it was like I was confused in a way. The numbness was still going on and all of the sudden it was gone, just like that. So my bf told me I needed to go to the hospital but I refused. So I went home and I got an awful headache and had some serious nausea by this time. I checked my bs again 143. My mom then tried to get me to go the hospital but again I refused. The whole thing happened between 20 and 30 minutes and it was gone. I woke up the next day feeling fine and called my PCP they ordered an MRI. Needless to say the doctor said I should've gone to the ER and if I ever experience this again I have to go no excuses. Please go to hospital if you exerience this I can not stress this enough.
I hope this info. is helpful to you.
Hello. I wanted to post how my appointment with my neurologist went today. I went for a post- mini stroke check up. As you have read above I have numbness left over from my mini stroke and it is present daily. Over the past few months I have had a few days where my arm was numb from the time I get up in the morning to when I go to sleep at night. I guess you could say it has gotten a little bit worse since my last visit. Today I told the doctor that the numbness seemed to be a little more intense then in the past. She asked if I had neck pain, I don't and if I have pain in my left arm, again I don't. So now I have to have 2 more (c spine and head) MRI's done in a few weeks to see if 1. I had another mini stroke and did not feel it this time or 2. If I have some type of damage in my neck, they didn't do the MRI on my neck the first time around. I'm hoping they find the reason because it (numbness) is annoying the heck out of me. So the saga continues... I will update after I get my results back from the tests.
I haven't had a mini stroke but my grandfather has. I've had a seisure though from my sugar being too low. My grandfather had one because his sugar was way too high. He didn't really take care of himself though. His sugar was so high that his meter couldn't even read it.
Update: My insurance company DENIED for me to have my MRI's done. I can have my doctor resubmit the request or file a complaint to try to get the decision reversed. The Ins. Co. is claiming that these are not medically neccessary right now. My question is why not, my doctor is trying to find a medical reason for my arm being numb following the mini stroke. I was disappointed in their decision. Hopefully soon I can have them done, my fingers are crossed.
I have had no luck with the MRI approval to date as of 9/25/09.
With insurance companies, it all comes down to how it is coded. There are usually several different ways to code things for approval. Ask your doc how it has been coded thus far and then call the insurance company and ask what coding they think is neccessary. Sometimes you get the answer right away and can have the doc change the code. I have had some experience with this while working for a pharmaceutical company and taking care of my mom who had brain cancer. Most people just send a letter to appeal, but i have always gotten better results with a phone call. Good Luck!
I thought that I would post my current status- post mini stroke. It has been a year and a half since my TIA, time has passed so quickly. Tomorrow (July 19) I am going for a check up with my neurologist. I am hoping that I may be able to finally have the 2 MRIs that were denied last July. I will let you guys know what happens. Wish me luck ; )
Are you still having arm numbness? Is it any better or worse?
I hope you get a clean bill of health tomorrow! Let us know how it goes.
Sarah,
Yes, I still have numbness in my left arm. Some days are better/worse than others.
Thanks, I will let you know what happens.
Tina
Wow, I really hope they can figure it out -- that's a long time to deal with numbness. I hope you're right handed. :P
It's been a long time since my grad school neuro classes, but I don't understand why arm numbness couldn't be caused by the TIA? It just seems weird that coincidentally, it would start right after.
I better go off to bed now, but I'll look on here for your update tomorrow.
It could be unrelated to Type 1. There was an article in our paper recently about how common strokes are in young people
and how to recognize them. I think it said that stroke is a leading cause of death in babies and children even.
[quote user="Sarah"]
I hope you're right handed. :P
[/quote]LOL, I am right handed. I can use and feel my hand it is just tingly feeling majority of the time.
My Doctor scheduled me for an MRI of my brain next week so I have to wait and see what happens.
I will update as soon as I can.
Everything came back good, no changes.
I like to eat Laffy Taffy (2 = 15g). Not only do they taste yummy, you get 2 ridiculously stupid (but totally giggle worthy) jokes on each wrapper.
I enjoy Laffy Taffy.
I always have glucose tablets or peanut butter crackers, but I'm liking C's Laffy Taffy idea!! :) I don't ever eat cookies or anything like that because they take a longer to raise your blood sugar, and when it finally does work, it raises it way too high....not fun!
I eat babies.
But if there are none of those around I will chew on some glucose tablets
[quote user="Pat"]
I eat babies.
[/quote]You are SO weird.