I’m not afraid of needles, but I must admit that I’m a little fearful of the bloodwork I’m scheduled to have in a few weeks.
 

Since I finally found an endo practice that I enjoy (yes, I know I still haven’t blogged about it yet!), they naturally want their own bloodwork. Which is great. And fine with me. It’s just the type of bloodwork that’s being done that’s leaving me a little uneasy.
 

I know it shouldn’t. And, really, I’m not uneasy I’m just kind of … I don’t know… just nervous? anxious? curious?
 

While my diagnosis story is not unique it is out there and does take some explaining, especially to medical professionals. So while explaining how I got from pre-diabetes in February 2005 to type 1 in January 2008 to the new nurse practioner we talked about what kinds of blood tests I had had in the past in regard to determining what type of diabetes I have. The anti-GAD test I had was negative, I told her, but I know that’s not the end-all be-all test to determine type 1 and based on my history (and luck) I’m sure there’s more to this.
 

I keep trying to remember what Dr. A from Mayo said: It doesn’t matter what type of diabetes you have; what matters is that you have the right kind of treatment. I keep trying to remember that, but for some reason, it does matter. I don’t know why, but it does matter.
 

So in a couple weeks I’ll walk into a lab and hand the nurse an order with the following blood tests on it: insulin autoantibody, islet cell antibody and thyroglobolin antibodies among other common d-related blood test requests. I’ll hold my breath and anxiously await the follow up appointment.

**Some preliminary research tonight shows me that these tests can aid in the "differential diagnosis" between latent autoimmune diabetes in adults (LADA) and type 2. I've believed for some time that I have LADA.