Hi all, looks like i'm a type 2 diabetic, never knew about it and only discovered by chance, we were on a holiday in the 3rd week of June, I fell ill with a horrible gastro bug and ended up visiting the local hospital, they did a BS which was 11.98 and said I could well be diabetic, I did another BS test when I got home which was 12.5 so booked myself in to the docs. At this point I just think 'sugar!' and have to cut it out! so while waiting for more bloods I cut down on as much as possible, bear in mind i'm not a health kind of guy, although i'm on my feet all day at work etc I don't exercise and eat pretty much what I want.
So a couple of weeks later I get more bloods back which are 9.2 and booked to see the DN, by this time i've cut out about 80-100g of sugar per day, I used to drink alot of full sugar fizzy and chocolate was my main vice, so I stopped all that and the sweety cakes etc, I saw the DN early July and she asked me to do the Hba1c test at the end of July, by now i've also read a little bit and started exercising, I bought a treadmill and use it daily, without fail, not a huge amount but 20-25 mins powerwalking to get the heart going and a good sweat. I've always been a bit heavy, last time I got on the scales last year I was almost 18st, after 5/6 weeks of my new regime I weighed in at 16st 9lb and my clothes are getting baggy!
So I had the Hba1c done a couple of weeks back and saw the DN on Friday, my level was 59 (7.5), she is going to use that as a base line and said I should be looking to get it down into the low 50s for the diabetes to be diet controlled. I will do another test in 3 months nad see then, I don't think this test tells the true story as i'd only been on the lifestyle change for 5-6 weeks so if the test takes 12 weeks or so into account then hopefully the next one will be better.
To be honest I don't think its shocked me entirely, i'd not felt right for a good year at least, I had much increased thirst, going to the toilet 15-20 times a day etc, very moody at times and very lethargic and fatigued some days, I can feel some of this getting better already.
So, after that initial test I knew I had to do something, change is not my strong point, but i'm coping well so far, i've cut out as much sugar as possible, no more choc/cakes/fizzy etc, sweeteners instead of sugar, drinking lots of water now, i've incorporated the daily treadmill exercise into my routines, I do this without fail every day now and enjoy it alot, I can feel myself having to push myself harder and faster to get me going at the same heart rates etc which is good. I've not looked much at carbs, thats the next big thing i'll look at, i've kind of kept to the same meals, although have ditched alot of processed stuff, my portion sizes are not big, just average as they always are, but I do like pasta and rice meals which i'll need to look at. My aim until now is to get comfy with the changes i've done so far.
The DN did say about not having a BS monitor but noticed lots of folks here have one, is it worth having one?
So, the next test is end of October, hopefully i'll keep heading in the right direction and can keep it controlled with my diet and lifestyle changes, in all honesty i'm looking at it in a kind of positive light as it's given me the kick up the backside that I need really and i'm not going to complain about it even though i've only just turned 37, things could always be alot worse, our little boy has a genetic life limiting condition, menkes disease, which leaves him severely disabled and needing 24 hour care, what he has to go through in life is just unthinkable to most and me having diabetes is certainly nothing to be down or complain about.
Apologies if i've gone on a bit!
So a couple of weeks later I get more bloods back which are 9.2 and booked to see the DN, by this time i've cut out about 80-100g of sugar per day, I used to drink alot of full sugar fizzy and chocolate was my main vice, so I stopped all that and the sweety cakes etc, I saw the DN early July and she asked me to do the Hba1c test at the end of July, by now i've also read a little bit and started exercising, I bought a treadmill and use it daily, without fail, not a huge amount but 20-25 mins powerwalking to get the heart going and a good sweat. I've always been a bit heavy, last time I got on the scales last year I was almost 18st, after 5/6 weeks of my new regime I weighed in at 16st 9lb and my clothes are getting baggy!
So I had the Hba1c done a couple of weeks back and saw the DN on Friday, my level was 59 (7.5), she is going to use that as a base line and said I should be looking to get it down into the low 50s for the diabetes to be diet controlled. I will do another test in 3 months nad see then, I don't think this test tells the true story as i'd only been on the lifestyle change for 5-6 weeks so if the test takes 12 weeks or so into account then hopefully the next one will be better.
To be honest I don't think its shocked me entirely, i'd not felt right for a good year at least, I had much increased thirst, going to the toilet 15-20 times a day etc, very moody at times and very lethargic and fatigued some days, I can feel some of this getting better already.
So, after that initial test I knew I had to do something, change is not my strong point, but i'm coping well so far, i've cut out as much sugar as possible, no more choc/cakes/fizzy etc, sweeteners instead of sugar, drinking lots of water now, i've incorporated the daily treadmill exercise into my routines, I do this without fail every day now and enjoy it alot, I can feel myself having to push myself harder and faster to get me going at the same heart rates etc which is good. I've not looked much at carbs, thats the next big thing i'll look at, i've kind of kept to the same meals, although have ditched alot of processed stuff, my portion sizes are not big, just average as they always are, but I do like pasta and rice meals which i'll need to look at. My aim until now is to get comfy with the changes i've done so far.
The DN did say about not having a BS monitor but noticed lots of folks here have one, is it worth having one?
So, the next test is end of October, hopefully i'll keep heading in the right direction and can keep it controlled with my diet and lifestyle changes, in all honesty i'm looking at it in a kind of positive light as it's given me the kick up the backside that I need really and i'm not going to complain about it even though i've only just turned 37, things could always be alot worse, our little boy has a genetic life limiting condition, menkes disease, which leaves him severely disabled and needing 24 hour care, what he has to go through in life is just unthinkable to most and me having diabetes is certainly nothing to be down or complain about.
Apologies if i've gone on a bit!
