Trying to return to discipline

[jim1951]

Hello, I haven't been on here for 5 years and don't know where time goes?

I need to take hold of myself and get my type 2 back under control as I am not doing myself any favours.

I will over the coming days update my readings at the bottom of the post.

But to cut a long story short was officially labelled type 2 in 2014 although had been prediabetic for a dozen years or so before that.
My HBA1C readings over the last 8 years or so have been 46/54/53/45/51/54/56/48/50/54.

These have been achieved with no hard control and obviously they would be lower with extreme effort, but I have been relatively happy with them. Just like my 12 years of pre diabetes they have not risen rapidly.

Just like most people, I have picked up various health issues over the years. The two giving me the most problems at the moment are fibromyalgia and arthritic knee joints aggravated by injuries over the last 12 months.

I have had trouble sleeping for a number of years and a good night would be no more than 4 hours broken sleep. I would rather not talk about the bad nights! But my sleep has been declining over the last 6 months beneath the 4 hours.

All this has made me thoroughly miserable and sensible eating has declined to be replaced by comfort eating.

The upshot of all of this is my HBA1C reading just received of 73.

I am unsure how much of that increase from 54 to 73 in 9 months is due to other health issues, eating for comfort or lack of sleep. I have read that if you don't get sufficient sleep then you will see increases in readings.

I am not trying to look for excuses for poor eating habits but just trying to understand the other drivers in this conundrum.

The first stage to getting things under control is bearing my soul on this forum!

 

[jpscloud]

Welcome back @jim1951! After a little initial success I also went off and spent a few years in the wilderness. I think that happens a lot - the main thing is, you're back in the right place now.

 

[JoKalsbeek]

Hello, I haven't been on here for 5 years and don't know where time goes?

I need to take hold of myself and get my type 2 back under control as I am not doing myself any favours.

I will over the coming days update my readings at the bottom of the post.

But to cut a long story short was officially labelled type 2 in 2014 although had been prediabetic for a dozen years or so before that.
My HBA1C readings over the last 8 years or so have been 46/54/53/45/51/54/56/48/50/54.

These have been achieved with no hard control and obviously they would be lower with extreme effort, but I have been relatively happy with them. Just like my 12 years of pre diabetes they have not risen rapidly.

Just like most people, I have picked up various health issues over the years. The two giving me the most problems at the moment are fibromyalgia and arthritic knee joints aggravated by injuries over the last 12 months.

I have had trouble sleeping for a number of years and a good night would be no more than 4 hours broken sleep. I would rather not talk about the bad nights! But my sleep has been declining over the last 6 months beneath the 4 hours.

All this has made me thoroughly miserable and sensible eating has declined to be replaced by comfort eating.

The upshot of all of this is my HBA1C reading just received of 73.

I am unsure how much of that increase from 54 to 73 in 9 months is due to other health issues, eating for comfort or lack of sleep. I have read that if you don't get sufficient sleep then you will see increases in readings.

I am not trying to look for excuses for poor eating habits but just trying to understand the other drivers in this conundrum.

The first stage to getting things under control is bearing my soul on this forum!

Congrats on the First Step, especially since they're usually the hardest. Flare ups, bad sleep, pain, comfort/stress-eating etc, they all will up your blood sugars. Just tackle one thing at a time. Try managing food first, as that's most likely the easiest one to get a little control over, maybe help sleep along a little with CBD oil (which also helps my own inflamed joints, so who knows it might soothe yours too), you know... One step, one day, at a time. You don't have to get everything absolutely 100% right in a weeks' time eh.

Anyway, welcome back and nice to meet you.
Jo

 

[jim1951]

Congrats on the First Step, especially since they're usually the hardest. Flare ups, bad sleep, pain, comfort/stress-eating etc, they all will up your blood sugars. Just tackle one thing at a time. Try managing food first, as that's most likely the easiest one to get a little control over, maybe help sleep along a little with CBD oil (which also helps my own inflamed joints, so who knows it might soothe yours too), you know... One step, one day, at a time. You don't have to get everything absolutely 100% right in a weeks' time eh.

Anyway, welcome back and nice to meet you.
Jo

thanks for the welcome Jo!

 

[Norfolkmell]

You're in the right place, you'll get nothing but support here from people who have had lapses. I have several! I try to be good and organised but then a bag full of medical conditions including fibromyalgia, polymalagia, chronic pain, arthritis rheumatoid and osteo to name a few play up and willpower and inability to move easily makes chocolate my best friend for a day or two. Add in insomnia and IBS and being mostly wheelchair bound I'm amazed when I do manage to stick to my LCHF 95% of the time and continue to loose weight steadily 8 stone and still going and hbA1c steady apart from a blip in November. Every time I fall off the wagon I try to forget it and not beat myself up and get back on track. I'm not very LC between 80-100 carbs a day which gives me more flexibility I do have the odd very LC day but that's usually when I'm confined to bed.
So welcome back we are all rooting for you!

 

[JenniferW]

Hello, I haven't been on here for 5 years ... But to cut a long story short was officially labelled type 2 in 2014 although had been prediabetic for a dozen years or so before that. My HBA1C readings over the last 8 years or so have been 46/54/53/45/51/54/56/48/50/54. ...

Thanks for spelling out that out. There's a lot in your 'story' that's much the same as mine. At the end of last year my HbA1c was 51 and the nurse started to talk about medication - which I've not had so far. That really made me work at it and I did carb counting with an app for 3 months, watching everything every day, and got it down to my lowest since they started to test me at the pre-diabetic stage. I'm sure the next HbA1c won't be as low, but I can't believe how much change is already starting to feel normal and I feel my whole appraoch has really changed. But this is almost 5 years after my T2 diagnosis!

 

[Suercc]

Well done for squaring up to things and taking the first step. I did well for three years until I lost my dad recently and spent three months eating total rubbish and gaining a stone and high HbA1c figures not seen since diagnosis. I have been back on the straight and narrow for a month. I have lost five pounds and the blood sugars are coming down. We can do this !!

 

[Norfolkmell]

Thanks for spelling out that out. There's a lot in your 'story' that's much the same as mine. At the end of last year my HbA1c was 51 and the nurse started to talk about medication - which I've not had so far. That really made me work at it and I did carb counting with an app for 3 months, watching everything every day, and got it down to my lowest since they started to test me at the pre-diabetic stage. I'm sure the next HbA1c won't be as low, but I can't believe how much change is already starting to feel normal and I feel my whole appraoch has really changed. But this is almost 5 years after my T2 diagnosis!

Three and half years since mine, some of us are tortoises and some the hare, I'm a tortoise definitely! You can do this and every one here is rooting for you, everyone has hiccups, life getting in the way, stress, infection you just have a start a new day afresh and you'll get there.

 

[sixhills]

I have been dithering on the edge of taking control since I first heard about low carbs but this post was like looking in a mirror. Complacency with the slow 'progress' of my diabetes meant that I kept thinking that I could do it when I wanted to. Since my husband became seriously ill very quickly last November I really knew that it isn't just about me. I miss working when my arthritic knees are too painful to stand (I am a funeral celebrant) and if I don't lose some of my 19stones then I will never get surgery. So, thank you jim1951 for holding that mirror up for me.

 

[ianf0ster]

It's (almost) never too late to start taking back control of our Blood Glucose levels, even after retinopathy, neuropathy or amputation.

I'm comparatively new, but I can't see me getting completely off the wagon - my sight and my toes/legs are far too important to me!

 

[Goonergal]

Welcome back!