My body serves me breakfast

[Pearlethan]

I was diagnosed with Type 2 last year November and was prescribed metformin. After recovering from the shock and mourning the loss of chocolate cake, I threw myself at the enemy ... too much (wrong) food. First sugar then, slowly, bad carbs. As I was waving goodbye, I noticed other things leaving too ... Cravings and kilograms. By January, I never had BG readings above 6, even morning readings. Then I got a bad bout of gastro and was hospitalized, with only a cocktail of saline and antibiotics to "eat". My BG readings were then between 4.5 and 5.5. When I got home, I decided to stop the metformin and only eat when my BG drops below 5 and then only a small portion of wholesome food. To my surprise it worked ... 2 hours after eating my BG was between 5 and 5.5! The mornings were a challenge with the dawn effect. But I interpreted this as "no need for breakfast, liver already sorted it out". By 10am, the BG is saying "feed me" so I eat a little. Then again at about 2pm and finally 6pm. My pre-bedtime reading tonight is 4.5. No metformin! Can it be that easy? That eating be triggered by BG reading and not time? I suppose as I get to a "normal" weight, the triggers will become more frequent. I haven't discussed what I'm doing with my Dr yet. What do you all think, should I continue?

 

[4ratbags]

If it suits you go for it.

 

[buddyscott]

Yes you can!

 

[Donnadoobie]

I think if I waited for my Blood sugar to go under 5 I would never eat!

 

[Pearlethan]

@Donnadoobie, sorry it can't work for you too. I suspect 3 days of essentially fasting in the hospital helped pull down the BG dramatically. As I slowly return to normal requirements for eating, the levels may climb again. Anyhow, for now it's nice to not be pharmaceutically dependent

 

[andcol]

You have a low baseline. My baseline is between 4.8 and 5.2 and I will stay there all day long if I do not eat. Small amounts and often works but is not a very social way to live if you have family. BTW those days in hospital would have caused your liver to use all the stored fats as energy so you have cleared out your system (so to speak). By continuing the way you are and losing weight you are removing the visceral fat and therefore helping to kick start your body back to normal.

All I will add is be careful. It is easy to get into a cycle of I do not need to eat because I am not hungry and the more you get into the starvation cycle the less hungry you feel. Just keep an eye on how much you are eating and ensure you get enough protein so you do not get muscle wastage

 

[Pearlethan]

Ok thanks for the good advice Andrew. I guess I'm just tired of the energy it takes to manage this disease and want it to go away. Will eat a little more

 

[AndBreathe]

Ok thanks for the good advice Andrew. I guess I'm just tired of the energy it takes to manage this disease and want it to go away. Will eat a little more

The sad reality is, every person manages their lives every day. Some don't get their balances right; which could be those whose management is subconscious and nutritionally random, and for some of us (absolutely not all), that's how and why we ended up here. Maybe managing our busy lives with too many missed meals, food on the hoof and prioritising other things over the fuel for our bodies.

Others manage to micro-nutrient level, which I, personally, would find exhausting, so I try to ensure I vary my diet quite a lot.

Whether we are trying to lose, maintain or even gain weight, that's best achieved somewhat mindfully. I've always enjoyed food, and with an OH who is a former restaurateur, have had some fabulous culinary experiences. On my diagnosis, we had a few OSMs (OSM - Oh s^&* moments) where we thought the (culinary) good times had come to an end, but the reality is those good times have just changed a bit.

Having got my diabetes into a decent place, I can eat more, both in terms of calories and carbs, than I could during my journey to a decent HbA1c, but I have chosen not to push the envelope, as I personally, don't want to go back round that diabetic revolving door. After all, I have no way of knowing if I'd be able to jump out again in the right place. That doesn't mean for one moment that I live a miserable life. I don't. I've just got used to our new way of eating and living, and we have found loads of new and different flavour and food combinations that I know I wouldn't have bothered to try if I hadn't been looking for alternatives.

For most people, who manage to get their diabetes to a good place, reverting to how they ate and lived before increases the potential to return to their diagnostic state. There usually have to be some sustained change. Exactly what those changes are will differ per person.

 

[buddyscott]

For most people, who manage to get their diabetes to a good place, reverting to how they ate and lived before increases the potential to return to their diagnostic state. There usually have to be some sustained change. Exactly what those changes are will differ per person.

Amen!