Lost within bad news

[FantomPoet]

Hi All

I have been diagnosed as Type 2 in the middle of July, and seem to be
being hit by bad news and lack of information constantly for the last month
or so.

My HbA1c came in at 9.7% on diagnosis along with hypertension. The Bp
seems to be now under control (130/60) and my Morning Fasting sugar is now 5.5 - 6.2. (15.8 at first medical)
Cholesterol is 5.0 at diagnosis. I have lost 14Kg since then, so now 106Kg (Keeping Carbs <50g most days < 25g)

I had a retinopathy scan and was told there is some slight background retinopathy and not to worry
but now I have just returned from holiday to find I am booked in for laser on Thursday morning!
Has anyone had experience of the Oxford Eye Hospital?

The Diabetic Nurse gave me advice not to test and that I could eat anything I want in moderation
and that Diabetes does not stop you doing anything.

I feel at my wits end and on the verge of crying ALL the time is this normal?
(It's not normal for me who I though was a strong butch bloke)

I have diabetes training to go to on Saturday if I am not too bad after the laser on Thursday.

I appreciate that the diagnosis may well have saved my life / sight as this stemmed from
a work medical and I had not had any thoughts towards diabetes. The fear and anxiety I
am experiencing is not something I have ever come close to before.

Writting this little rant has made me feel a little better.

I thank God I found this site otherwise I would be in a very dark place with no flashlight.

 

[mrsknitty]

Hi Fantompoet,

Hello and welcome! You have definitely come to the right place for advice and support. it actually sounds like you are doing really well already in terms of making changes and getting to grips with it. I am sorry to hear you are feeling so low though, it is a big shock and you are not alone in feeling a bit down about it.

Please do post as much as you need to and also have a search around the forum for previous posts as there is a wealth of information here.

Good luck with your laser treatment and I hope you start to feel a bit better soon xxx

 

[Squire Fulwood]

I would love to know what it was that you were eating that gave you such numbers at diagnosis because your current numbers are such that I am jealous. You must have been eating French bread dipped in wheat flour beer.

No need to get tearful I assure you. One day you'll be on here telling us you are bored with pills and glucose meters.

It was a good thing that you found out about this and appear to be able to control it.

 

[izzzi]

Hi, Welcome to the forum.

At least the treatment response for your eyes has been quick.
You will be with the best at Oxford Eye Hospital. ( the Laser op does not take long )

You also seem to have control of this sudden news, I would not call It bad news, just news that may have been explained more professorially and the diagnosis picked up at a little sooner.

Good luck and all the best.

Roy.

 

[FantomPoet]

My diet has not changed a great deal apart from I definately have Breakfast
now as I used to skip it along with many lunches. What has changed is that
the sugary fizzy drinks which were never far from my hands have gone to
be replaced by the 'Zero' version and water.

Funnily enough French Bread was something I did enjoy....but no more!

I bought my own meter before the diagnosis and have used it to nock on the head
anything which really spikes my levels, I think I now eat more Tuna than a Dolphin.

Yes the news could have been explained better, I phoned the GP to see if she had
more information and she asked me what they were going to do! She has been good
though and looked at my food diary and didn't moan that I have started to low carb
I guess with so much weight to lose she will accept any method at the moment.

 

[daisy1]

Hi FantomPoet and welcome to the forum

Here is some information, which we give to new members, which should be helpful to you. Carry on asking questions and there will always be someone who can help.



BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEWLY DIAGNOSED DIABETICS

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 30,000 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

Another option is to replace ‘white carbohydrates’ (such as white bread, white rice, white flour etc) with whole grain varieties. The idea behind having whole grain varieties is that the carbohydrates get broken down slower than the white varieties –and these are said to have a lower glycaemic index.
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/food/diabetes ... rains.html

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

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.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Please sign our e-petition for free testing for all type 2's; here's the link:
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/petition/

Do get your friends and colleagues to sign as well.

 

[hallii]

Hi All


The Diabetic Nurse gave me advice not to test and that I could eat anything I want in moderation
and that Diabetes does not stop you doing anything.

I feel at my wits end and on the verge of crying ALL the time is this normal?
(It's not normal for me who I though was a strong butch bloke)

You might ask the diabetic nurse how you should find out what foods affect your BGs without testing, they all give out that advice,
it is standard NHS training and it is wrong. You need to test so you can find out what you can and can't eat. You might stop testing in, say, six months as you will know what you can eat by then.

Diabetes does not stop you doing most things, but there are some things that you shouldn't do. Like run a marathon, (not unless the doc says OK). Go bungee jumping or free fall parachuting.

As regards being at your wits end etc. I have put my laymans hat on and done a diagnosis ( you should see your doctor and explain how you feel for a proper diagnosis) I think you are depressed, I know the symptoms and it is easily treated. You should not feel that way and you will find once it is treated everything else becomes so much easier.


H

 

[Squire Fulwood]

The Diabetic Nurse gave me advice not to test and that I could eat anything I want in moderation
and that Diabetes does not stop you doing anything.

Unbelievable. It makes you wonder what was the purpose of diagnosing you then.

 

[Daibell]

Hi. As you may have gathered taking control of the diabetes and not letting it control you is so important. Largely ignore the DN as she is pushing out the usual NHS nonsense. You do need to test as you are already aware and it is not as simple as eating anything in moderation as the normal 'healthy' diet is not the best diet for diabetics but you are already on the right road. It is true that to a large extent you can lead a normal life so don't worry. I hope the laser treatment goes well.

 

[hanadr]

I would agree with that diabetes nurse on one point.
Diabetes doesn't have to stop you doing anything, however if you lose your sight or your feet:that tends to be a bit limiting. Hence I'd say TEST keep BG around 5 and you'll be fit and well
Hana

 

[FantomPoet]

Thank you all for your support and advice its been
fantastic to vent a little. I held back from posting for
a few weeks but its fantastic to get a little off my chest.

I am so glad I found you folks

 

[wendle]

hiya fantompoet,

i felt exactly like you did when i was first diagnosed but unlike you, i went off the rails n didnt bother controlling myself. sorted my head out now though. sounds like youre doing good, keep it up! good luck with the laser business. im sure you will be fine.

wendle x

 

[ShyGirl]

Yes it's normal to feel overwhelmed , sad and teary.

Forget what the nurse told you about being able to eat anything without testing.
It's not her feet , hands and eyes at risk

Good luck with Thursday.

 

[FantomPoet]

Well I am back from the Oxford Eye Hospital this morning.

I must say they have been fantastic. Walking in I was expecting to be wisked into a room
for my own Star Wars episode screening. Instead I had a great nurse spend a good deal of time explaining
things to me while testing my vision and preparing me for a Fundus Fluorescein Angiography (FFA).

So I signed up the permision slip for the tests and went through many different machines taking
readings, photos etc with dye passing through to make the images clearer.

I chatted with the technician who took all the images etc and he said that they would not
dream of creating a treatment for a new patient without all these tests
which comfoted me somewhat.

The bottom line was that yes I have background retinopathy but laser was not needed this visit.
It is something that news about having background retinopathy is good news.

Two consultants spoke to me about the results and said that they may have to laser me in the
next year but it was a case of wait and see and to return in three months. They highlighted that
my sudden drop in Blood Glucose may have an effect on the retinopathy.

They also seem to be of the opinion that a blanket bombing of the retina was not necessarily needed
and that as I am type 2 with (now) good control I may just get away with it.

There is certainly in there opinion a very different outlook between type 2 and type 1 diabetic patients.
(With good control)

Oxford seems to treat you very much as an intelligent person and was such a different experience to what
I had been expecting / dreading. The senior consultant seemed very up on Diabetes as well which is comforting.
(Even nodded agreement about low carbing...I guess thats as close you are going to get to an actual agreement
within the NHS).

Well I am bleary eyed and everything is bright at the moment so I am going to have a kip or at least get off
this machine and staring at the screen.

So I now have a normal eye test tomorrow so that I can get my glasses ordered as three weeks ago it was
decided I needed some but we agreed to ensure my BG was stable prior to actually ordering lenses.

Thank you all for your previous posts this thread allowed me to vent a little and get back into some form of comfort zone
prior to the appointment. One of you PM'd me but as a newbie I dont have access to private messages yet so I am not
conciously ignoring you.

Thank you all for the welcome to the forum I will certainly now 'hang around'

 

[daisy1]

Hi FantomPoet
As you have now posted 5 times you will be able to read your PMs now and write them too.

 

[GraceK]

Hi All

I have been diagnosed as Type 2 in the middle of July, and seem to be
being hit by bad news and lack of information constantly for the last month
or so.

The Diabetic Nurse gave me advice not to test and that I could eat anything I want in moderation
and that Diabetes does not stop you doing anything.

I feel at my wits end and on the verge of crying ALL the time is this normal?
(It's not normal for me who I though was a strong butch bloke)

I thank God I found this site otherwise I would be in a very dark place with no flashlight.

Firstly, I'm newly diagnosed myself but I'm 59 years old and I'm also a medical secretary. I've heard many casual and flippant remarks made by clinicians towards patients and I've also been on the receiving end of them myself. It's YOUR diabetes involved here. If your DN is diabetic herself and her diabetes doesn't stop her doing anything - well done her!!! But YOURS may be a different experience especially if it's been undiagnosed for a long time.

As far as I'm concerned the malnourishment because our bodies cells aren't receiving energy from food leads to chronic exhaustion and chronic exhaustion has certainly prevented me from doing LOTS of things for the past 20 years, so I'd say your DN is talking out of her ****. I've been crying for years through EXHAUSTION not depression and it's a horrible situation when you don't understand why your body behaves in a certain way or what you can do to put it right. I'm learning as I go along and I've found this forum to be a mine of sensible information and opinions. Let's face it - WE are the only ones who really know how diabetes affects us and in the early stages of management I think deserve a better service from the NHS and their so called 'experts'. It's not a clinicians job to make flippant remarks, it's a clinicians job to LISTEN CAREFULLY to the patient.

I'd suggest you check out this site for Low Carb High Fat diet tips and perhaps Google it. That method of eating seems to have helped a lot of people on here and I started it a few days ago and am feeling the benefits already, small steps but definite ones.

Hope that helps.

PS - Who says you have to be a strong butch bloke - let it all out and have a good cry and don't analyse yourself - JUST DO IT - you'll feel better for it.

 

[FantomPoet]

Thanks Daisy1