I have suffered with extreme fatigue for past couple of years and recently got diagnosed about 2 month ago with t2 diabetes.every morning i wake up with a sore head and shattered, i am very over weight and the nurse and i chose to hold off taking medication to control diabetes instead i am to lose weight .i feel as though im walking about in a daze all the time , im desperate for a bit of direction.im.really not sure what to eat or what i can do to help with fatigue. is anyone else in the same situation.thanks
-
Guest, the forum is undergoing some upgrades and so the usual themes will be unavailable for a few days. In the meantime, you can use the forum like normal. We'd love to know what you think about the forum! Take the 2025 Survey »
Extreme fatigue t2
- Thread starter Bellboy76
- Start Date
Hi and welcome to the forums.
High blood glucose can make your brain a bit 'foggy' - don't worry you'll get back to normal.
What have you been told about diet? What are your glucose levels like, are you self testing?
@Rachox @JoKalsbeek are a couple of forum members who can help you with good advice.
Last edited:
Marie 2
Well-Known Member
Get a blood glucose meter so you can start testing and finding out what your blood levels levels are at. You want to at least start testing when you first get up, before you eat and 2-3 hours after you eat and before you go to bed. That way you can tell how you are doing and how and what food is affecting your blood glucose levels. It will be the best investment you can make. High blood sugar levels will commonly make you tired.
JoKalsbeek
Expert
Hi @Bellboy76 ,
Far as food and testing goes (and yeah, before you ask, testing is important), you might want to have a read here: https://josekalsbeek.blogspot.com/2019/11/the-nutritional-thingy.html It's everything I wish I'd been told when diagnosed in a bit of a nut shell. Losing weight to "fix" diabetes is putting the cat before the horse. You want to tackle your blood sugars, and when you do that, the weight loss will follow. You'll always be a T2, but you can be a well controlled one and get back into the non-diabetic range (and thus, complication-free). I know the fatigue you mention intimately, as well as the brain fog, and here's a bit of hope: Change the way you eat, get your blood glucose under control, and you'll get entirely back on track. Like someone's plugged in the charger and turned on the light. And you'll have to keep your pants up after a while because they'll have a tendency to drop off of you.
It will get better. Learn about T2, read the info in the provided link, implement it, and you'll see a bit of a miracle happen. If you want more info, try Dr. Jason Fung's The Diabetes Code (or his youtube vids), dietdoctor.com or this forum's website, diabetes.co.uk. But really. You'll feel like you've gotten your life back.
Good luck,
Jo
Didnt realise i had to test that often but will start doing that
MetabolicJim
Well-Known Member
Hello Bellboy, Is 76 your birth year? If so then we are the same age. I got diagnosed with an HbA1c of 58/57 in May of 2019. At my 3 month check up I’d got that down to 39 through diet and exercise (but mainly diet). I was also suffering from fatigue which is what made me reply. I think you’ve made a good decision holding off on the medication - I guess that means your HbA1c is not hugely diabetic?
The main advice you’ll get round here is to get a blood glucose meter and to cut back on carbohydrates. The meter is so you can monitor what your blood sugar is doing and see how you respond to different food. You need to really cut back on sugar which means reading food labels. You also need to cut down on refined carbohydrates.
Not everyone here does fasting but I find fasting helpful. I skip breakfast and lunch one day a week and just follow up with a light dinner. It can be tough though so not for everyone.
If you make the changes to your diet your blood sugar can come down fast. That can lead to temporary blurry vision. In my case my blood pressure also came down rapidly which made me feel dizzy standing up on occasion.
The main advice you’ll get round here is to get a blood glucose meter and to cut back on carbohydrates. The meter is so you can monitor what your blood sugar is doing and see how you respond to different food. You need to really cut back on sugar which means reading food labels. You also need to cut down on refined carbohydrates.
Not everyone here does fasting but I find fasting helpful. I skip breakfast and lunch one day a week and just follow up with a light dinner. It can be tough though so not for everyone.
If you make the changes to your diet your blood sugar can come down fast. That can lead to temporary blurry vision. In my case my blood pressure also came down rapidly which made me feel dizzy standing up on occasion.
Hi @Bellboy76 and welcome to the forum!
Here’s a link to info for newbies:
https://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/threads/basic-information-for-newly-diagnosed-diabetics.17088/
and another useful website is Diet Dr, here’s a link to their page about low carb eating:
https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb
Here’s a link to info for newbies:
https://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/threads/basic-information-for-newly-diagnosed-diabetics.17088/
and another useful website is Diet Dr, here’s a link to their page about low carb eating:
https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb
MetabolicJim
Well-Known Member
About the fatigue there are couple of things that might help but they are not standard advice round here. First I would recommend getting a postal blood test to check your vitamin D level. Vitamin D supplements are dead cheap so if you are low it’s an easy fix. I have found it took me many months of daily supplementation to raise my level of vitamin D.
The other thing worth trying is electrolytes but not just plain table salt. I am taking a magnesium supplement at the moment. You might also consider ‘high 5 zero’ (uncaffeinated) tablets. You could pick up some bottles of San Pellegrino sparkling water next time you are at the supermarket. Another thing you could try is bone broth. Do you feel hungry for salt at all?
The other thing worth trying is electrolytes but not just plain table salt. I am taking a magnesium supplement at the moment. You might also consider ‘high 5 zero’ (uncaffeinated) tablets. You could pick up some bottles of San Pellegrino sparkling water next time you are at the supermarket. Another thing you could try is bone broth. Do you feel hungry for salt at all?
My diets not great , obviously i have cut down in the crisps , sweets etc., i tend to eat a lot of sandwiches , cheese meat etc when i have main meals theres always potatoes with steak , mince chicken , we eat a lot of butcher meat for dinners usually
xfieldok
Well-Known Member
Yes, sandwiches and potatoes have to go. It's hard at first, carbs are addictive. It is easier once you get past the addiction. It took me around 4 weeks. Taking a reading before you eat and 2 hours after, hoping for a rise of no more than 2mmol really educates you to the effect your food has on you.
I went keto which is stricter than lchf at 20g carbs per day.
Keep a food diary. I used mysugr app to record food and readings and found it really motivating.
Stick with us, you will be ok.
I went keto which is stricter than lchf at 20g carbs per day.
Keep a food diary. I used mysugr app to record food and readings and found it really motivating.
Stick with us, you will be ok.
Hi and welcome. Yes do test but personally I wouldn't bother so much with the breakfast test as it can be affected by the liver dumping glucose overnight. You must reduce the carbs and have enough fats and proteins to keep you feeling full. Be careful with any NHS diet guidance as it's driven by PHE (yes that PHE!) and they haven't a clue. Those BS figures aren't too bad but the right diet and exercise would help a lot. You may be offered Metformin tablets which will help a little bit and many of us take.
Yes born 76 , the nurse just sent me away with a booklet and to come and see her in 3 months and check my levels through diet and weight. I checked my levels this morning about 5.30 am and was 9.7 i thought i might skip breakfast see if my levels come down .i just took blood again there and before lunch (no carbs) and was 7.3 so i will check in 2hrs and see how the levels are
Yes i know about the nhs guidelines there a bit hit and miss
Thanks
JoKalsbeek
Expert
Yay for meats. Just have more of those, and above ground veggies, to make up for the lack of spuds. Celeriac is supposed to be a good replacement for them if you miss them, but I find that cauliflower rice is versatile enough got my tastes. As for crisps, miss those? Pork scratchings! Much better. (I like mine with mayo). Or have some cubes of really good, hard, aged cheese... Maybe with some olives for good measure. You can turn a sandwich into a salad easily. Just toss whatever you want into a salad. (No croutons tho'. No sweet dressing either. Mayo's fine, vinegar and olive oil too. But really. I still go to Subway's.... Just get the salad. Not to mention McD's. Just have massive burgers and tell them to hold the bun. Much jucier without that sponge anyway.
) Mainly it's just a search for alternatives. And if you, like a friend of mine keeps claiming "can't live without bread", there are low carb varieties out there (LivLife for instance), or you could make your own keto mug bread. Cheese, chicken, steaks, all fine. You could have cheese roll-ups, etc... There's enough alternatives out there that are far, far from bland. (Otherwise I wouldn't've kept this up for going on four years now.)