Type 2 newbie

[Wazza33]

Hi all,

I've been living with diabetes for just over a week and a half. Initial readings were 19.6 these have been reduced by taking 2 Glicglazied (sp) initially, I'm now having readings of 5.2 regularly on a reduced dose of one Glicglazied and two metphormine. As advised by my doctor. They want me off the Glicglazied soon as I'm responding well to Metphormine.

I'm 33 years old, 15st 6lbs and 5ft 11" I intend to lose two stone. I've joined the gym and have begun a cleaner style of living reducing alcohol to almost nothing and cutting out the take always and eating a balanced diet. My question is, will the oral tablets eventually fail and will I end up on injections in later life?


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[Squire Fulwood]

Re: Type 2 newbie

My question is, will the oral tablets eventually fail and will I end up on injections in later life?

The NHS says that diabetes is a progressive disease by which they mean that it gets worse with time and you end up on injections or whatever. An opinion often expressed on this forum is that if you follow NHS advice (or lack of advice) then things will surely get worse.

However, there are a lot of knowledgeable people contributing to this forum who don't agree with the NHS advice in some respects and as a result have stabilised their condition. There are even one or two who claim that they have been cured but they probably mean that they are exercising very good control.

No, you needn't end up on injections in later life but you have to pay attention to your condition and put a bit of work in.

 

[Wazza33]

Re: Type 2 newbie

Thank you for your considerate and thought out post. I am really determined to get this under control as I should have prior to diagnosis. I am comfortable and enjoy exercise at the gym and have improved my diet ten fold already. The key thing my dietician has told me is to still try and live your life. You only get one. This diagnosis has complicated things but I still intend to enjoy it other wise what's the point.

Onwards and upwards I suppose.


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[Salihu]

Re: Type 2 newbie

Pls. What is Glicglazied that you use to bring down the level of your diabetes

 

[badcat]

Re: Type 2 newbie

Agree with Squire F above
I was diagnosed 17 years ago and managed to get diabetes well controlled (habit1c of around 6.5%) by testing foods to work out what I could and couldn't safely eat
Last year things went awry ( pancreas giving up the ghost apparently) and h ba1c went up to over 8% - I was directed toward stronger drugs and told it was only a matter of time before I would be injecting - I declined the advice and decided to try V low carb instead - my last 2 hba1c's have been in the normal range (5.8%) and my meds reduced by half so no its not inevitable that you end up on insulin and / or with complications

 

[pav]

Re: Type 2 newbie

Pls. What is Glicglazied that you use to bring down the level of your diabetes

Glicalazide is one of the next medicines that one is given after metformin can't control your BS levels enough. Its taken in conjunction with metformin and other medications, its strength or weakness depending on how you look at it, gliclazide can cause hypo's, and as such you need to test your BS regularly.

 

[badcat]

Re: Type 2 newbie

Glic works by stimulating the pancreas to produce more insulin regardless of How much / little you've eaten which is why it can cause hypos

 

[Daibell]

Re: Type 2 newbie

HI. You are probably overweight and hence insulin resistant. Your prospects are good long-term if you can get your weight down into the normal BMI range. Metformin will help the most with Gliclazide less important longer-term once your body starts to use your insulin efficiently. With a good BMI you can expect your blood sugar to become near normal as long as you reduce the amount you eat and keep the carbs low, say below 150gm/day. I'm afraid diabetics can't have the 'normal' balanced diet as we don't process carbs correctly so these must be reduced. Hopefully your medical team won't do a common NHS thing and suggest you have a normal balanced diet. Do this and you may end-up on insulin long-term. Some of us, e.g. me, have had to go onto insulin but in my case that's because I have a failing pancreas not thru being overweight but you should respond well.

 

[Neil Walters]

Re: Type 2 newbie

As has been said get control of your diet is the key but the most dramatic impact will be if you can control your weight and do some light but regular exercise.

A low carb diet whilst not yet official NICE guidance does seem anecdotally for many of us to work very well.

From my own perspective, all of these things will work but only if you know what is and is not working and the only real solution to that is regular testing before and two hours after each meal.


Diagnosed Type II 1998 1 x 80 mg Gliclazide, 4 x 500mg Metformin and 1 x 100mg Sitagliptin - HbA1c - 48 mmol/mol

 

[beano1000]

Re: Type 2 newbie

Hi, me too. Last six weeks told have type 2.
I'm similar size to you but 42 and diabetes runs down my fathers side of family. I am coping with dietary changes and have had to add a few new holes to my belt. My grandmother lived to a ripe old age without the need for needles but was very stringent with her diet (stick thin). My father is a healthy man who takes tablets but there is no sign that he will need needles, albeit he was diagnosed in his 60's.

So I believe that if we make the fairly draconian changes to our diet, we can avoid insulin. My main concern over this is how much I will be able to party/drink on those twice(?) :lol: yearly occasions when I want to let my hair down (how many slimline tonics and gin!)