New

[RDG]

I've just joined because my doctor told be that I had DB2 yesterday and prescribed me Metformin 500mg. I'm 50 years old and have read up on line previously and have read threads on here. My gut instinct is to tackle it without taking Metformin. I've done it before ie change my lifestyle - diet and exercise to lose weight (without diabetes) - and i'm sure that I can do it again. I don't have my readings. Does anybody have any advice that they can give me?

 

[Tony337]

Good morning
I can welcome you to the forum and wish you well but can't give advice on type 2 as I'm type 1 however diet, exercise and losing weight is a great starting point.

All the best

Tony

 

[badcat]

I've just joined because my doctor told be that I had DB2 yesterday and prescribed me Metformin 500mg. I'm 50 years old and have read up on line previously and have read threads on here. My gut instinct is to tackle it without taking Metformin. I've done it before ie change my lifestyle - diet and exercise to lose weight (without diabetes) - and i'm sure that I can do it again. I don't have my readings. Does anybody have any advice that they can give me?

Get yourself a blood glucose meter (the nhs wont provide one) and use it in a scientific way to find out what impact individual foods have on your sugars ( test before eating and again 2 hrs later)
Some people buy the code free meter but I had problems ordering off amazon ( never arrived) I have got the Tee2 meter (free from spirit healthcare) as a back up to my main meter and it seems to perform very well. Strips for both are £7-8 for 50

 

[heh]

Hello.

Firstly I would ask the doctor for your blood test results. Does your practice have a diabetes nurse? Did he offer you one of the free education courses that happen around the country, or a foot check or eye screening?

 

[perry1960]

Hi RDG welcome to the forum.
Lots of friendly knowledgeable folk on here that are only to happy to answer any questions/concerns you may have on your journey with T2 diabetes just ask away

 

[Christina0308]

Hi and welcome..

 

[Sam50]

I've just joined because my doctor told be that I had DB2 yesterday and prescribed me Metformin 500mg. I'm 50 years old and have read up on line previously and have read threads on here. My gut instinct is to tackle it without taking Metformin. I've done it before ie change my lifestyle - diet and exercise to lose weight (without diabetes) - and i'm sure that I can do it again. I don't have my readings. Does anybody have any advice that they can give me?

hi and welcome to the forum Hubby was diagnosed about 6 weeks ago and also prescribed Metformin. He too is keen to tackle the condition with diet and exercise ( having previously followed the Atkins diet for weight loss) So far he has managed to halve his blood sugar level and lost about half a stone by following a low carb diet. Still a way to go but an encouraging start. Definitely buy yourself a blood glucose meter so that you can keep an eye on things.

Many people experience a 'liver dump' of glucose to their system early in the morning so your fasting blood glucose may be higher than you'd like to begin with. Also we have found that high levels of cortisol (stress hormone) can also skew results so something to also be aware of. Good luck-lots of helpful people on here x

 

[Prem51]

Hi @RDG and welcome to the forum. You should find out what your HbA1c (blood sugar) test readings were, so you know where you are starting from. GP surgeries were supposed to have online access to your medical records and tests from Aprip 2016, though some still don't. If yours does you will be able to get your results there.
If not call into or ring the surgery and ask if receptionist can give you the results, or better still if you can get a printout of results, which will give you not just your blood sugars, but other useful information such as your cholesterol levels.

 

[RDG]

Get yourself a blood glucose meter (the nhs wont provide one) and use it in a scientific way to find out what impact individual foods have on your sugars ( test before eating and again 2 hrs later)
Some people buy the code free meter but I had problems ordering off amazon ( never arrived) I have got the Tee2 meter (free from spirit healthcare) as a back up to my main meter and it seems to perform very well. Strips for both are £7-8 for 50

thank you Badcat - i was already planning on doing this

 

[RDG]

Hello.

Firstly I would ask the doctor for your blood test results. Does your practice have a diabetes nurse? Did he offer you one of the free education courses that happen around the country, or a foot check or eye screening?

I will do. I gave a second blood test on the day of the appointment. There wasn't much on offer apart from tablets.

 

[RDG]

Hi RDG welcome to the forum.
Lots of friendly knowledgeable folk on here that are only to happy to answer any questions/concerns you may have on your journey with T2 diabetes just ask away

thank you

 

[RDG]

Hi and welcome..

hi

 

[RDG]

hi and welcome to the forum Hubby was diagnosed about 6 weeks ago and also prescribed Metformin. He too is keen to tackle the condition with diet and exercise ( having previously followed the Atkins diet for weight loss) So far he has managed to halve his blood sugar level and lost about half a stone by following a low carb diet. Still a way to go but an encouraging start. Definitely buy yourself a blood glucose meter so that you can keep an eye on things.

Many people experience a 'liver dump' of glucose to their system early in the morning so your fasting blood glucose may be higher than you'd like to begin with. Also we have found that high levels of cortisol (stress hormone) can also skew results so something to also be aware of. Good luck-lots of helpful people on here x

I think that my stress levels have been quite high over the past 3/4 months. I'm trying to tackle it but it's difficult with the way how things are.

 

[RDG]

Hi @RDG and welcome to the forum. You should find out what your HbA1c (blood sugar) test readings were, so you know where you are starting from. GP surgeries were supposed to have online access to your medical records and tests from Aprip 2016, though some still don't. If yours does you will be able to get your results there.
If not call into or ring the surgery and ask if receptionist can give you the results, or better still if you can get a printout of results, which will give you not just your blood sugars, but other useful information such as your cholesterol levels.

i'm off on Monday and will call in to collect my results. thank you

 

[Jaylee]

I've just joined because my doctor told be that I had DB2 yesterday and prescribed me Metformin 500mg. I'm 50 years old and have read up on line previously and have read threads on here. My gut instinct is to tackle it without taking Metformin. I've done it before ie change my lifestyle - diet and exercise to lose weight (without diabetes) - and i'm sure that I can do it again. I don't have my readings. Does anybody have any advice that they can give me?

Hi @RDG ,

Welcome to the forum!
I'll tag in @daisy1
@AM1874 is also a sensible fellow!

Get a BS meter. Seriously! It's the only way to gauge what's going on "under the bonnet" on a daily basis...

Wishing you the best of luck!

 

[Rachox]

i'm off on Monday and will call in to collect my results. thank you

Make sure they don't try to charge you! Some Drs/receptionists try! Ask to get registered for on line access to your results while you're there. I got my last result on line the day after the blood was drawn

 

[AM1874]

Hi @RDG .. and welcome
You have certainly made a good move coming here. Since joining this forum, the folks here have given me so much info, advice and support that I am now much more confident about the journey ahead. So ask your questions and be assured that you will receive the answers that you need. It can all seem uphill to start with but, in my experience, it gets easier .. very quickly.

You have already made a positive start in dealing with your diagnosis .. but the key point to take on board is that managing and controlling your diabetes (or pre-diabetes) through exercise, diet and testing your Blood Glucose seems to be the best way forward for many people. For me, committing to an LCHF (Low Carb High Fat) lifestyle at less than 30g carbs a day and testing 3-5 times a day seems to be working and you'll find that there is a wealth of info, relevant advice and positive support about LCHF on the forum ..

I see that @Jaylee has already tagged @daisy1 for you and I suggest that you read up on the Low Carb Program in the information that she will soon be sending you. You might also find the discussion on the Low Carb Diet forum helpful .. and the following Diet Doctor websites which will gi rbs in 60 Seconds

It is important that you get yourself a test meter and, for this, the following websites might help:
https://homehealth-uk.com/product-category/blood-glucose/
for the SD Codefree meter, which costs £12.98 or:
http://spirit-healthcare.co.uk/product/tee2-blood-glucose-meter/
who distribute the TEE 2 meter, which is free.
I have both which I alternate for comparative purposes and I have never found any significant difference between them.

Unless you are prescribed test strips by your doctor (unlikely), the costs of testing comes down to the ongoing charges for test strips and lancets. Make sure that you tick the appropriate box on the on-line order form and you won't pay VAT on your meter or strips.
For the SD Codefree, the strips are £7.69 for a pack of 50 and there are discount codes available for bulk purchases:
5 packs x 50 use code: 264086 .. cost is £38.45
10 packs x 50 use code: 975833 .. cost is £76.90
For the TEE 2, the strips are £7.75 for a pack of 50 .. but there are no discount codes currently available

I'm testing 3-5 times a day which works out at around £10 to £12 per month for either of the two packages above but, more importantly, I now know what my BG levels are .. and I can now manage them

Hope this helps

 

[RDG]

thank you

Hi @RDG .. and welcome
You have certainly made a good move coming here. Since joining this forum, the folks here have given me so much info, advice and support that I am now much more confident about the journey ahead. So ask your questions and be assured that you will receive the answers that you need. It can all seem uphill to start with but, in my experience, it gets easier .. very quickly.

You have already made a positive start in dealing with your diagnosis .. but the key point to take on board is that managing and controlling your diabetes (or pre-diabetes) through exercise, diet and testing your Blood Glucose seems to be the best way forward for many people. For me, committing to an LCHF (Low Carb High Fat) lifestyle at less than 30g carbs a day and testing 3-5 times a day seems to be working and you'll find that there is a wealth of info, relevant advice and positive support about LCHF on the forum ..

I see that @Jaylee has already tagged @daisy1 for you and I suggest that you read up on the Low Carb Program in the information that she will soon be sending you. You might also find the discussion on the Low Carb Diet forum helpful .. and the following Diet Doctor websites which will gi rbs in 60 Seconds

It is important that you get yourself a test meter and, for this, the following websites might help:
https://homehealth-uk.com/product-category/blood-glucose/
for the SD Codefree meter, which costs £12.98 or:
http://spirit-healthcare.co.uk/product/tee2-blood-glucose-meter/
who distribute the TEE 2 meter, which is free.
I have both which I alternate for comparative purposes and I have never found any significant difference between them.

Unless you are prescribed test strips by your doctor (unlikely), the costs of testing comes down to the ongoing charges for test strips and lancets. Make sure that you tick the appropriate box on the on-line order form and you won't pay VAT on your meter or strips.
For the SD Codefree, the strips are £7.69 for a pack of 50 and there are discount codes available for bulk purchases:
5 packs x 50 use code: 264086 .. cost is £38.45
10 packs x 50 use code: 975833 .. cost is £76.90
For the TEE 2, the strips are £7.75 for a pack of 50 .. but there are no discount codes currently available

I'm testing 3-5 times a day which works out at around £10 to £12 per month for either of the two packages above but, more importantly, I now know what my BG levels are .. and I can now manage them

Hope this helps

 

[Robinredbreast]

Hello and welcome to the forum @RDG

 

[RDG]

Is there any advice on eating porridge and kidney beans?