Type 2's: What was your fasting blood glucose in a morning?

[AndBreathe]

4.3 for me this morning, having retired on 3.8. That's in my range, but probably a bit of a liver dump going on there. My liver knows how to look after me.

Well, I did the garden centre yesterday and achieved my objective of running my OH's errand. Miraculously, I came away without having spent any more money! I thought that was an impossibility. I guess most of the outlets seem to be in transition modes from summer goods, and preparing for Christmas. Yes, Christmas! The life sized motorised camel, in the nativity scene just didn't do it for me in September! Needless to say OH was "impressed" by the photos I sent him. (He's no fan of Christmas.)

But, one very positive thing is the garden centre's food retail outlets are expanding. There is now some exquisite food available there, and I was kicking myself that the freezers are full for now. I can tell we'll be out there once OH is back, and buying some lovely things. I'm really starting to look forward to the wanderer's return. We're both fine with the time we have apart. It allows us to pay attention to our personal, selfish indulgences for a while, but I like being together even more.





And, I have a few jobs need doing.



Play nicely boys and girls.

 

[poshtotty]

Congratulations Diana - I was wondering where you'd travelled by land and sea, now I understand! I think you're entitled to a bit of a treat, lovely name by the way.

Thank you! Yes we used to live on the Isle of Man in the late 80's/early 90's when my then husband was offered a job in the finance sector, before transferring to work for the Manx Government. Its a beautiful island to visit, but not too easy to live on permanently. as it so isolated, especially in the winter. We only managed 5 years. My youngest daughter was born here so would have automatic residency if she wanted to return . My eldest returned through choice about 5 years ago and had to obtain a work permit but hasn't looked back and now has the prettiest cottage in the country, with horses, motorbikes and quad bikes! (no wonder my fasting bloods are high!) I love visiting as we still have friends here too, but its not an easy journey to make from the south coast. Worth it though!

Thanks everyone for your kind wishes. @AndBreathe runs a tight ship, doesn't she? Next ice-cream with my next grandchild..?!!

 

[cold ethyl]

Congratulations @dianagrace lovely name.

5.2 this morning. Was 4.9 at bedtime when I had a cheese portion and a slice cold chicken as a snack so not to much difference there.

 

[AndBreathe]

Yesterday (all fairly typical)
fasting 5.5
before lunch 5.5
after lunch 6.7
before tea 4.9
after tea 6.3
bedtime 5.4
4am 5.8
8-50am 5.8

This is why I was a bit disappointed with my HbA1c yesterday, which equates to an average of 7.4mmol/l. On that sort of average I should have been seeing a lot of numbers in the 8's or 9's and I haven't! (an odd one or two 1hr after a meal, but not lots, and when I have it has usually dropped again by 2hrs.) I think my red blood cells live forever and I still have some very old glucose in my blood stream. Lol

Whilst my numbers are a bit lower than yours, my HbA1c and the numbers I see when testing aren't the closest of matches. After the first post-diagnostic HbA1c, I've reconciled to myself to that position. It's significantly imperfect, I agree, but how much time can you afford to wrestle with something you're perhaps unlikely to solve. As I have said before, I would love to try a CGM for a short while. I am watching the new Abbott solution with interest, and may invest, with a view to using a couple of sensors between HbA1cs - especially as they space further apart.

 

[Bluetit1802]

Whilst my numbers are a bit lower than yours, my HbA1c and the numbers I see when testing aren't the closest of matches. After the first post-diagnostic HbA1c, I've reconciled to myself to that position. It's significantly imperfect, I agree, but how much time can you afford to wrestle with something you're perhaps unlikely to solve. As I have said before, I would love to try a CGM for a short while. I am watching the new Abbott solution with interest, and may invest, with a view to using a couple of sensors between HbA1cs - especially as they space further apart.

I've reconciled myself to the fact it is what it is and I can't do a thing about it. I'm happy to be in the pre-diabetic range for now with what @Brunneria termed my sustainable comfortable diet!

 

[alliebee]

Many congratulation Diana. Loved reading your posts.

 

[sanguine]

I love visiting as we still have friends here too, but its not an easy journey to make from the south coast. Worth it though!

Flybe from Southampton or Exeter not an option?

 

[sanguine]

I've reconciled myself to the fact it is what it is and I can't do a thing about it. I'm happy to be in the pre-diabetic range for now with what @Brunneria termed my sustainable comfortable diet!

We'll see what mine is next week - blood tests on Monday. Not holding out for much if it's heavily influenced by the previous two weeks, but all you can do is accept what it is and that HbA1c is only an indirect measurement of a longer term blood glucose 'average'. As T2s we shouldn't really be going OTT on this if we are doing all the right things from a diet and lifestyle point of view - even though we all do of course periodically! CGMs for T2s might satisfy the curiosity of us committed geeky members but it ain't gonna happen.

 

[poshtotty]

Flybe from Southampton or Exeter not an option?

Southampton used to be when they flew direct but Flybe now make us change at Manchester so a 1 hour flight becomes 4 hours with change of planes. I don't have the patience since discovering Staverton Airport Its a 2+ hour drive for Glos, I can park my car for free, no queues, minimal security, and a 45 min hop in a 19 seater turboprop with Citywing!
This time we needed a car because of requests from daughter to bring furniture etc!

 

[douglas99]

There have been a couple of interesting posts here. @AndBreathe and @Bluetit1802
I've found the opposite to yourselves. I do record lows, and highs on my own testing, and it correlates very well to my HbA1c, which is in a similar range to yours.
I do vary the testing times to catch the worst of the spikes, as far as I can, based on the foods though.
Capillary blood can normally read higher than venous blood, which again ties in to my observations on exercise to 'flush out' the old blood and lower my capillary readings. I've never seen anything suggesting HbA1c could be higher than capillary readings would suggest it should be, apart from possibly higher readings you aren't catching?
I realise you're not on meds, whereas I still am for the time being, but I can't see that affecting the correlation of the two measurements.

 

[AndBreathe]

We'll see what mine is next week - blood tests on Monday. Not holding out for much if it's heavily influenced by the previous two weeks, but all you can do is accept what it is and that HbA1c is only an indirect measurement of a longer term blood glucose 'average'. As T2s we shouldn't really be going OTT on this if we are doing all the right things from a diet and lifestyle point of view - even though we all do of course periodically! CGMs for T2s might satisfy the curiosity of us committed geeky members but it ain't gonna happen.

I wasn't suggesting for a moment that there would be any sponsoring by the public purse. Had my surgery had a CGM I could have borrowed, I would have fully expected any sensors to be paid for, by me, by way of a private prescription, if necessary. My GP is very open to private prescriptions where a request falls outside normal prescribing criteria. Indeed we have these a couple of times a year, in order to keep our ocean cruising first aid kit up to date.

 

[AndBreathe]

There have been a couple of interesting posts here. @AndBreathe and @Bluetit1802
I've found the opposite to yourselves. I do record lows, and highs on my own testing, and it correlates very well to my HbA1c, which is in a similar range to yours.
I do vary the testing times to catch the worst of the spikes, as far as I can, based on the foods though.
Capillary blood can normally read higher than venous blood, which again ties in to my observations on exercise to 'flush out' the old blood and lower my capillary readings. I've never seen anything suggesting HbA1c could be higher than capillary readings would suggest it should be, apart from possibly higher readings you aren't catching?
I realise you're not on meds, whereas I still am for the time being, but I can't see that affecting the correlation of the two measurements.

I won't speak for @Bluetit1802 , but if not in my most recent reference I have certainly suggested in the past I must be experiencing higher levels I am not seeing in my local testing. I test pretty diligently, although I tend not to routines test around lunchtime, and I don't fudge my records. When I do though, I'm not seeing anything there, or on the couple of occasions I have done a full 24 hours of hourly testing; including during the night. My current 7, 14, 30 and 90 day averages are 4.1, 4.2, 4.2 and 4.2 respectively, which also covers a period with a batch of strips testing consistently higher than expected, plus any instances where I have felt the need to retest.

When I came back to UK, I bought some home HbA1c tests, which have been interesting, and record slightly higher than the NHS venous blood tests recorded in my signature, but, having done 4 now, they are all tightly clustered, again, as I might expect.

I'm now reconciled that this is just how it is for me, and that any spikes I am having are unlikely to be doing me too much harm, with venous HbA1c reducing, post diagnosis, to 37, 34 and 32 respectively. I doubt I will reduce any further, but obviously, I'd like to keep things nice and low, if I can.

 

[douglas99]

I won't speak for @Bluetit1802 , but if not in my most recent reference I have certainly suggested in the past I must be experiencing higher levels I am not seeing in my local testing. I test pretty diligently, although I tend not to routines test around lunchtime, and I don't fudge my records. When I do though, I'm not seeing anything there, or on the couple of occasions I have done a full 24 hours of hourly testing; including during the night. My current 7, 14, 30 and 90 day averages are 4.1, 4.2, 4.2 and 4.2 respectively, which also covers a period with a batch of strips testing consistently higher than expected, plus any instances where I have felt the need to retest.

When I came back to UK, I bought some home HbA1c tests, which have been interesting, and record slightly higher than the NHS venous blood tests recorded in my signature, but, having done 4 now, they are all tightly clustered, again, as I might expect.

I'm now reconciled that this is just how it is for me, and that any spikes I am having are unlikely to be doing me too much harm, with venous HbA1c reducing, post diagnosis, to 37, 34 and 32 respectively. I doubt I will reduce any further, but obviously, I'd like to keep things nice and low, if I can.

My average is higher than to be expected, with my HbA1c of 34, I should be looking at an average of just below 6.
I normally only test for the spikes though, so it's very skewed on my meter.
But allowing for that, and the way my BS measurement can change down dramatically after a bit of exercise, I tend to think my HbA1c is a reasonable reflection of the real figures.

 

[greyposter]

Over slept today and didn't awake until 10am.Fasting blood was5.1.

 

[sanguine]

I wasn't suggesting for a moment that there would be any sponsoring by the public purse. Had my surgery had a CGM I could have borrowed, I would have fully expected any sensors to be paid for, by me, by way of a private prescription, if necessary. My GP is very open to private prescriptions where a request falls outside normal prescribing criteria. Indeed we have these a couple of times a year, in order to keep our ocean cruising first aid kit up to date.

Of course, and I wasn't suggesting otherwise - apologies if it wasn't clear. I was being a bit flippant really, my default position is to act in accordance with my forum name!

 

[AndBreathe]

Of course, and I wasn't suggesting otherwise - apologies if it wasn't clear. I was being a bit flippant really, my default position is to act in accordance with my forum name!

No problem. I didn't think you particularly suggested it. I was just clarifying my position for anyone who might think differently. When we consider the alternatives, I sometimes find our growing "entitled" culture to be quite unsavoury. Needs and wants being different and all that.

 

[Sallybear]

17.9 this morning.

20.8 currently

Boiled eggs for breakfast with a cup of coffee, no sugar.
Vegetable soup (homemade low carb) for lunch.

What is actually happening to me??

Had another blood test today, going for results on Friday.

80mg Gliclazide twice a day
Bydureon Injections once a week

 

[sanguine]

17.9 this morning.

20.8 currently

Boiled eggs for breakfast with a cup of coffee, no sugar.
Vegetable soup (homemade low carb) for lunch.

What is actually happening to me??

Had another blood test today, going for results on Friday.

80mg Gliclazide twice a day
Bydureon Injections once a week

Hi Sallybear, that doesn't seem right. Are you actually LADA rather than T2?

 

[Bluetit1802]

We'll see what mine is next week - blood tests on Monday. Not holding out for much if it's heavily influenced by the previous two weeks, but all you can do is accept what it is and that HbA1c is only an indirect measurement of a longer term blood glucose 'average'. As T2s we shouldn't really be going OTT on this if we are doing all the right things from a diet and lifestyle point of view - even though we all do of course periodically! CGMs for T2s might satisfy the curiosity of us committed geeky members but it ain't gonna happen.

Good luck with your tests Rod.

 

[Debmcgee]

17.9 this morning.

20.8 currently

Boiled eggs for breakfast with a cup of coffee, no sugar.
Vegetable soup (homemade low carb) for lunch.

What is actually happening to me??

Had another blood test today, going for results on Friday.

80mg Gliclazide twice a day
Bydureon Injections once a week

Check the total carbs in your soup - you'd be surprised how they can creep up with soup!

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