@mikej1973 First off, I read every post in this thread, so I've heard both yours and other's views.
I believe you have diabetes, also that once we're confirmed through testing over time to have diabetes, we have it for life.
As for your view that testing isn't useful after the first six months or so, here's something to think about...
Our life circumstances, health status, weight, and what and when we eat are constantly changing, also how much insulin we're producing and how insulin resistant our cells are also is changing.
For this reason, I believe it's important for all of us to continue testing. One specialist in diabetes treatment suggested scaling back to three days a week, four times a day, one day on a non-work day, two days on a work day, which I think anyone can afford out of pocket. (For me that cost would be $2.50 a week or $10 a month; my test strips cost 20 cents each).
Only through some level of regular testing will be able to catch dangerous trends and make appropriate adjustments.
I agree with others here that you are an "outlier". I also am an outlier. I'm just on the opposite end of the spectrum. Not fun, and a real set-up for defensiveness because we differ from the main group.
I don't know what percent our of pre-diabetics and type 2 diabetics are helped by the current healthcare system in the US and the UK. However, from everything I've read so far, it doesn't appear be many.
The problem I and others here have with the current healthcare system is that the majority of us, likely 80% - (but I'm pulling that number out of thin air) - are being advised to do the
opposite of what works best for us.
I'm angry, not with you Mike, I'm angry with the current healthcare system's current treatment of pre-diabetics and type 2 diabetics.
The day after I found out my blood glucose levels had been high, and out of control, likely for years, in mid February, I was devastated.
The next day, something wonderful happened.
I came across an article by David Mendosa in which he described he how he normalized his blood glucose levels without medication with guidance from the book Dr. Bernstein's Diabetes Solution. I bought the book, started the LCHF diet, and marveled at how quickly my numbers came down, though it did take a month, and my numbers are still not in the normal, non-diabetic range...yet...which makes me an outlier.
When I was diagnosed and treated for pre-diabetes 10 years ago, I was shown how to use a meter, told to keep my blood glucose under 120 mg/dL, and told later, when I started to eat meat and vegetables only that I would cause brain damage. At that point, I lost all hope, but continued to eat as healthy as possible and I stopped testing.
I was very clear with my healthcare team from the beginning that medication was not an option that I would consider,
yet they withheld information on the LCHF diet from me.
Why?
As a result, my blood glucose steadily and silently climbed for the next 10 years. During those years, it appears that little or no damage was done to my eyes, kidneys, or liver, though not sure about my cardiovascular system which is a bit scary.
How did that meet my healthcare needs?
There's one more point I want to make. As I continued on the LCHF diet, I began reading about the low or no fat, high carb diets for type 2 diabetics. I never was able to find an active online support forum for those folks.
My question for you Mike is have you been able to find an online support forum that supports you as a type 2 diabetic on a high carb diet, where you're
not an outlier?
Edit: I just realized that this discussion was originally posted in the Type 2 area of the forum. One of the challenges with posting on Diabetes.co.uk is that I'm not always sure where to start a new discussion, and I've had at least one discussion I started moved from the Low Carb Diet area to the Type 2 Diabetes area. Perhaps this discussion would fit better in the Low Carb Diet area of the forum, since it's written from a Low Carb Diet perspective.
