Flu/COVID recovery for diabetics is harder but the good news is…Because you’re a diabetic does not necessarily mean that you are at a higher risk to get COVID.
The higher risk comes from the fact that you may develop more severe symptoms or complications.
Why are there more complications with COVID when you’re a diabetic?
If you have diabetes, the first risk you run is viral inflammations which will always cause your sugar to rise.
You cannot help this. It happens to everyone.
The main difference between a diabetic and a nondiabetic is that your already high sugars overload your cells and organs causing them not to function properly.
This means that you will not be able to control your sugars when sick with infections which can do even more damage.
Should I take Paxlovid for a FLU/COVID Recovery for Diabetics?
Paxlovid is an oral antiviral treatment that is given to you because of your high risk of hospitalization, as a diabetic.
It attacks the virus immediately, keeping you safe and keeping the virus from getting out of hand.
As a diabetic, you are considered high risk and therefore the FDA and the research have said that your physician should look into giving you Paxlovid to reduce the severity of the COVID infection.
One of the things you want to encourage your doctor to do is to order a COVID and flu test for you.
You cannot guess which you have. You have to know for sure so you can monitor your sugars, and use appropriate treatments to get over it quicker than most.
The normal signs and symptoms of COVID
For all of us, whether we are diabetics or not there are several common symptoms that you want to explain to your doctor.
Be very clear about which of these symptoms are bothering you the most so they can make a correct treatment plan for you.
- Fever or chills
- Cough
- Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
- Fatigue
- Muscle or body aches
- Headache
- New loss of taste or smell
- Sore throat
- Congestion or runny nose
- Nausea or vomiting
- Diarrhea
FLU/COVID recovery for diabetics means do not miss this one mistake!
When you call your doctor to ask for a COVID test and whether you should get Paxlovid or be very clear about telling them that you are a diabetic.
NOTE: In practice, we commonly asked that our patients have the message read back to them to make sure that the call center is taking down the message correctly.
Many times I have seen a message saying, “the patient’s sugars are running high.” The doctor then wants to prescribe a stronger medication to the pharmacy or a higher regimen of the medication they’re already on without talking to you.
What no one told the doctor is that you actually have an infection that is making your sugars high and therefore that’s what you wanted to talk to them about.
This is why it is critical not to have this information left out of your message so make sure the call center includes exactly why you are calling.
And make sure they read the message back to you. As a patient advocate, I have seen huge mistakes in the message.
4 Things that you need to tell your doctor about
1 – You should have available for your doctor your sugar readings.
This is one of the first things any physician will look at when you have COVID. They do this to make sure you’re not going into a sugar spike. This will land you in the hospital.
2 – Be sure to get COVID and FLU tests to confirm or rule out that you have these infections. You do not need to be treated for something you do not have. But worse, see my FREE Quick & Easy FLU/COVID Recovery Guide about the long-term effects of these medications on your sugars.
3 – Make sure the doctor sends your PAXLOVID to the cheapest pharmacy in your area.
4 – See this one secret you must do when you return to your doctor for your next diabetic checkup after having COVID or the flu. This is important because you could be misdiagnosed or be given the wrong treatment plan because of the effects of COVID. Grab a FREE copy of the Quick & Easy FLU/COVID Recovery Guide here.
And remember, the sooner you are over the FLU or COVID, the better your chances are of not having those long-term after effects.