Newbie

sarahdennis87

Active Member
Messages
25
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Pump
Hi everyone!
I’m new here, Sarah, I’m 31. I’ve been type 1 for almost 16 years. I have a beautiful 3 year old daughter and an amazing husband. I’ve just recently been diagnosed with Pancreatic Insufficiency, it’s hard to manage. I currently used the Omnipod to control my diabetes along with the Libre (funded since April 2018) and I’ve just got news today I’ve received funding for Dexcom due to no hypo awareness and trying to conceive.
So hello and that’s me :)
 

Pipp

Moderator
Staff Member
Messages
10,622
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Hello and welcome @sarahdennis87 .
Have you seen the info for new members from @daisy1 yet? She will post soon now she has been tagged. Have a read, ask questions.
Best wishes to you.
 

therower

Well-Known Member
Messages
3,922
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
@sarahdennis87 . Welcome to the forum.
Great news about the Dexcom. I use the G4 and I find it a great piece of kit. Hope you get on with it.
 

daisy1

Legend
Messages
26,457
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Dislikes
Cruelty towards animals.
@sarahdennis87
Hello Sarah and welcome to the Forum :) Here is the Basic Information we give to new members and I hope you will find it interesting and helpful.

BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEW MEMBERS

Diabetes is the general term to describe people who have blood that is sweeter than normal. A number of different types of diabetes exist.

A diagnosis of diabetes tends to be a big shock for most of us. It’s far from the end of the world though and on this forum you'll find well over 235,000 people who are demonstrating this.

On the forum we have found that with the number of new people being diagnosed with diabetes each day, sometimes the NHS is not being able to give all the advice it would perhaps like to deliver - particularly with regards to people with type 2 diabetes.

The role of carbohydrate

Carbohydrates are a factor in diabetes because they ultimately break down into sugar (glucose) within our blood. We then need enough insulin to either convert the blood sugar into energy for our body, or to store the blood sugar as body fat.

If the amount of carbohydrate we take in is more than our body’s own (or injected) insulin can cope with, then our blood sugar will rise.

The bad news

Research indicates that raised blood sugar levels over a period of years can lead to organ damage, commonly referred to as diabetic complications.

The good news

People on the forum here have shown that there is plenty of opportunity to keep blood sugar levels from going too high. It’s a daily task but it’s within our reach and it’s well worth the effort.

Controlling your carbs

The info below is primarily aimed at people with type 2 diabetes, however, it may also be of benefit for other types of diabetes as well.

There are two approaches to controlling your carbs:
  • Reduce your carbohydrate intake
  • Choose ‘better’ carbohydrates
Reduce your carbohydrates

A large number of people on this forum have chosen to reduce the amount of carbohydrates they eat as they have found this to be an effective way of improving (lowering) their blood sugar levels.

The carbohydrates which tend to have the most pronounced effect on blood sugar levels tend to be starchy carbohydrates such as rice, pasta, bread, potatoes and similar root vegetables, flour based products (pastry, cakes, biscuits, battered food etc) and certain fruits.

Choosing better carbohydrates

The low glycaemic index diet is often favoured by healthcare professionals but some people with diabetes find that low GI does not help their blood sugar enough and may wish to cut out these foods altogether.

Read more on carbohydrates and diabetes.

Over 145,000 people have taken part in the Low Carb Program - a 10 week structured education course that is helping people lose weight and reduce medication dependency by explaining the science behind carbs, insulin and GI.

Eating what works for you

Different people respond differently to different types of food. What works for one person may not work so well for another. The best way to see which foods are working for you is to test your blood sugar with a glucose meter.

To be able to see what effect a particular type of food or meal has on your blood sugar is to do a test before the meal and then test after the meal. A test 2 hours after the meal gives a good idea of how your body has reacted to the meal.

The blood sugar ranges recommended by NICE are as follows:

Blood glucose ranges for type 2 diabetes
  • Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
  • 2 hours after meals: under 8.5 mmol/l
Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (adults)
  • Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
  • 2 hours after meals: under 9 mmol/l
Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (children)
  • Before meals: 4 to 8 mmol/l
  • 2 hours after meals: under 10 mmol/l
However, those that are able to, may wish to keep blood sugar levels below the NICE after meal targets.

Access to blood glucose test strips

The NICE guidelines suggest that people newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes should be offered:
  • structured education to every person and/or their carer at and around the time of diagnosis, with annual reinforcement and review
  • self-monitoring of plasma glucose to a person newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes only as an integral part of his or her self-management education

Therefore both structured education and self-monitoring of blood glucose should be offered to people with type 2 diabetes. Read more on getting access to blood glucose testing supplies.

You may also be interested to read questions to ask at a diabetic clinic.

Note: This post has been edited from Sue/Ken's post to include up to date information.
Take part in Diabetes.co.uk digital education programs and improve your understanding. Most of these are free.

  • Low Carb Program - it's made front-page news of the New Scientist and The Times. Developed with 20,000 people with type 2 diabetes; 96% of people who take part recommend it... find out why

  • Hypo Program - improve your understanding of hypos. There's a version for people with diabetes, parents/guardians of children with type 1, children with type 1 diabetes, teachers and HCPs.
 

Juicyj

Expert
Retired Moderator
Messages
9,018
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Pump
Dislikes
Hypos, rude people, ignorance and grey days.
Hello and welcome @sarahdennis87 Good news about the Dexcom, it's incredibly kit for alerting against highs/lows, although make sure you set a good range to work to and not too tight as otherwise you'll find the alert goes off quite alot, i've been using around 4 months now and have had quite a few wake up calls during the night so saved myself going low quite a few times now, it's definitely helped improve my HbA1c though so been brilliant :) Let us know how you get on ?
 

sarahdennis87

Active Member
Messages
25
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Pump
Hello and welcome @sarahdennis87 Good news about the Dexcom, it's incredibly kit for alerting against highs/lows, although make sure you set a good range to work to and not too tight as otherwise you'll find the alert goes off quite alot, i've been using around 4 months now and have had quite a few wake up calls during the night so saved myself going low quite a few times now, it's definitely helped improve my HbA1c though so been brilliant :) Let us know how you get on ?

Thank you. I’ve been using the Libre since April last year and my hba1c has improved dramatically since. From 94 to 51 (December 31st!) just need to get it that tad bit lower. But in my whole (almost) 16 years as a insulin junkie, my control had never been so good. Even during pregnancy!!
 

Juicyj

Expert
Retired Moderator
Messages
9,018
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Pump
Dislikes
Hypos, rude people, ignorance and grey days.
That's a brilliant improvement @sarahdennis87 :) Just goes to show how much these tools can improve our chances, I self fund the G6 and couldn't do without it now, it's helped me exercise more as I have the confidence to do so and not worry about what my BG levels are doing.