Back from the Valley of the Shadow of Death

One of the joys that long-term diabetics have to look forward to is intestinal trouble. This can be due to one of three things: an infection, a reaction to metformin (one of the drugs that diabetis often take), or autonomic neuropathy. What's that when it's at home? Your innards are, of course, run from nerves. Neuropathy is when the nerves die. The autonomic nervous system is what keeps your stomach, small and large intestines, and probably God only knows what else going.

( Cut for reasons of keeping details from the squeamish... )

I finally called my GP this morning and we discussed my "diagnosis" of autonomic neuropathy. She prescribed something called Lomotil and it seems to (in conjunction with my observation that the symptoms were diminishing) have relieved the diarrhea. I am leaning to the conclusion that the exenatide, which delays emptying of the stomach, might have something to do with this. I shall be getting one more pen but will ask for an urgent appointment at the diabetic clinic when I get back from the US ande ask that they stop the exenatide and start me on insulin. No point in delaying the inevitable now, and since I've now gotten used to injecting myself, there's no difference in injecting lizard spit from injecting insulin.

I ate my first full meal since Sunday this evening. I also slept for 4 hours this afternoon in my bed.

Now to figure out what triggers the condition (it's not present all the time—there seem to be foods that might set it off) and stop eating it.

I've probably lost quite a bit of weight, on the bright side (I suppose there must always be a bright side).

(thanks to am0 for telling me about this a while back; I would never have figured it out on my own)