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Monitor Arrived - First Test

NikkieDuranie

NikkieDuranie

Well-Known Member
Messages
97
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Insulin
Just completed first test before dinner. I just wanted to work out how to use it and my reading was 15.7 . Will do a test two hours after meal if still awake.
 
NikkieDuranie said:
Just completed first test before dinner. I just wanted to work out how to use it and my reading was 15.7 . Will do a test two hours after meal if still awake.
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Just want to check that you washed and dried your hands carefully beforehand? As food residue on your hands can affect readings. Though it’s early days for you so not to worry. We all started high even with clean hands.
 
Yes washed and dried hands. Hadn’t eaten in 6 hours. Will do again in an hour.
 
One of the nhs theories for not testing is you will get anxious.
Whilst this is a silly reason to stop you understanding your body, it may be easy to judge yourself with your first readings; try not to.
Treat your first few weeks as a baseline and learning: a baseline to show future improvements and learning what food affects your readings most.
And remember this is a marathon not a spring: you won’t improve overnight and you’ll have some days that go better than others.
 
helensaramay said:
One of the nhs theories for not testing is you will get anxious.
Whilst this is a silly reason to stop you understanding your body, it may be easy to judge yourself with your first readings; try not to.
Treat your first few weeks as a baseline and learning: a baseline to show future improvements and learning what food affects your readings most.
And remember this is a marathon not a spring: you won’t improve overnight and you’ll have some days that go better than others.
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Thank you I will. Haven’t had first appointment yet, it’s not till the end of the month, but at least I will start to build a picture.
 
Are you keeping a food diary, including portion size?

Suggest you get mySugr app to record your numbers.
 
NikkieDuranie said:
Just completed first test before dinner. I just wanted to work out how to use it and my reading was 15.7 . Will do a test two hours after meal if still awake.
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15.7 Nikkie wow !!!!!! Still awake?dont u mean still alive?...lol im only joking...im sure that now u have a monitor you will soon see how your bg are coming down with the changes you make with your diet etc ...good luck
 
james11 said:
15.7 Nikkie wow !!!!!! Still awake?dont u mean still alive?...lol im only joking...im sure that now u have a monitor you will soon see how your bg are coming down with the changes you make with your diet etc ...good luck
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Lol just done 2 hours after meal and it’s 20.7...thank goodness I now know though.

I do get lots of horrid symptoms though. I could sleep almost any when. Just can’t stay asleep as then need a pee
 
That is a rise of 5 mmol/l. The idea is to keep it under 2mmol/l. What did you have to eat/drink, and can you see where you may have gone wrong? The idea of testing is to learn, and I know you will learn from this.

Don't get anxious. It is very early days.

Try not to concentrate on the actual levels at this stage - just concentrate on the rise from before to after and work on that. The levels will take care of themselves.
 
Bluetit1802 said:
That is a rise of 5 mmol/l. The idea is to keep it under 2mmol/l. What did you have to eat/drink, and can you see where you may have gone wrong? The idea of testing is to learn, and I know you will learn from this.

Don't get anxious. It is very early days.

Try not to concentrate on the actual levels at this stage - just concentrate on the rise from before to after and work on that. The levels will take care of themselves.
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Lean steak and 80 g new pots (tiny) and red onion salad. To drink just fizzy water

I have started to record food as well so hopefully overtime will get an idea of what’s happening.
 
NikkieDuranie said:
Lean steak and 80 g new pots (tiny) and red onion salad. To drink just fizzy water

I have started to record food as well so hopefully overtime will get an idea of what’s happening.
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Did you work out the total carbs for the meal? That is usually a good place to start. If the food is not in a packet with a nutrition label you can usually find the carb content from a supermarket website such as this (baby new potatoes) https://www.tesco.com/groceries/en-...gclsrc=aw.ds&dclid=COnM04fU1tsCFc_gGwodtGMKWg

It looks like the new pots and the red onion were the problem. You could try this again without the red onion and see what happens. Or miss out/reduce the spuds. Either one (or both) of these could be your nemesis. Also, did you have any thing else, such as tomatoes, a salad dressing or similar? I don't see any fat in that meal either.
 
Hi, as already advised here, take each day at a time and just try to concentrate on the difference between your before and after eating readings. You will soon begin to identify which foods your body is happier with, the mySugr app is great as you can add photos so that will help you adjust or repeat menus as needed.
Things will soon start to fall into place and as you begin to gain confidence in your food choices you will be more relaxed.
We were all where you are and occasionally we get a reading that surprises or shocks us, however, it’s worth remembering that this can happens to people who don’t test too so it’s all relevant, we are just aware because we test.
 
You're getting loads of good advice here. You need to keep in mind that everyone has a different tolerance to all foods.

Your meal would have sent my BG sky high. Tomatoes at this time of year can be very sweet. I can only tolerate one cherry tomato.

Potatoes are a definite no no for me. Onions only in tiny quantities.

Lean steak is not as preferable as one with a good layer of fat. The fat is where you get your energy from
I know you probably want to get your numbers down as fast as possible, but in the early stages you will learn more if you go slowly.

I would try the same meal again, but cut out the potatoes a NB don't see what the difference is.
 
No wonder you are feeling rough @NikkieDuranie. Drink lots of water and see how testing goes tomorrow. Has the level come down again before bed? Also try a walk around the block and see if that has an effect.
 
Just bear in mind that you haven't got an official diagnosis yet so there is a (hopefully small) chance you're T1. If that is the case then the only thing that will make you feel better is insulin. Hopefully the reduction in dietary carbs and the meds will help, but if your readings get worse then you'll need to see a nurse/doctor sooner rather than waiting till the end of the month.
 
Bluetit1802 said:
Did you work out the total carbs for the meal? That is usually a good place to start. If the food is not in a packet with a nutrition label you can usually find the carb content from a supermarket website such as this (baby new potatoes) https://www.tesco.com/groceries/en-...gclsrc=aw.ds&dclid=COnM04fU1tsCFc_gGwodtGMKWg

It looks like the new pots and the red onion were the problem. You could try this again without the red onion and see what happens. Or miss out/reduce the spuds. Either one (or both) of these could be your nemesis. Also, did you have any thing else, such as tomatoes, a salad dressing or similar? I don't see any fat in that meal either.
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Thank you. Gosh now I wouldn’t have known red onion had carbs. I eat loads of onion.

Worked out meal was about 22g of carb. No fats as don’t add to my meals unless it’s part of my meal already.
 
Hi
Thank you for your replies I didn’t test again before bed, however did a fasting one this morning and it’s was 23.

Will keep monitoring and call dr if it stays at these levels.
 
NikkieDuranie said:
Hi
Thank you for your replies I didn’t test again before bed, however did a fasting one this morning and it’s was 23.

Will keep monitoring and call dr if it stays at these levels.
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I am now thinking you do need to see the doctor sooner rather than later, and ask for the T1 tests.

There is an excellent book called Carbs & Cals available from Amazon (also available as an app). It shows all the main common foods in pictures, served up on plates so you can see how much is there. It gives the weight of the food, the carbs, calories, fats, proteins and fibre for each one. It may be a good idea for you to buy a copy (not expensive) and also use the supermarket websites. I found it easier to keep an ongoing list of all the foods I normally eat with the carb amount per 100g next to it.

I just googled "red onion Tesco" and found this

https://www.tesco.com/groceries/en-...gclsrc=aw.ds&dclid=CLiT4bjo19sCFYYg0wodW1MOCw
 
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