Blood Sugar in High 20's and GP not helping, please advise

[scottie1]

I am t2 on insulin, and I find being on insulin is not that bad, yes it does mean you have to eat at regular intervals and you have to remember to do your injections but I'm not on tablet overload, and yes I do watch my carbs but with care you can lose the weight and gain reasonable control of your bs numbers.

Oh, I missed your post, sorry. I'm glad to know you find it okay. How many times a day do you have to inject yourself? Are you following the LCHF diet? How soon did your BG reduce, if it was high to begin with?

Sorry for all the questions.

 

[satindoll]

I inject twice a day, due to other digestive problems I cannot do full LCHF so I do Low Carb Enough Fat, in that I changed my half fat yoghurt to full fat, low fat cheese to full fat, I cook in butter add a knob of butter to veggies, I use double cream in my coffee and a splash of milk in my tea, I so wish I could do full on LCHF, I went to the Diabetic clinic at the hospital in the January and was discharged in the August and my numbers when I started were in the 30s but then of course I was following the NHS diet of carbs carbs and more carbs, so I believe that had I found the LCEF diet sooner I would have seen better numbers sooner, Oh and by the way my weight has dropped by 2st and is now stable within my comfort zone.

 

[scottie1]

I inject twice a day, due to other digestive problems I cannot do full LCHF so I do Low Carb Enough Fat, in that I changed my half fat yoghurt to full fat, low fat cheese to full fat, I cook in butter add a knob of butter to veggies, I use double cream in my coffee and a splash of milk in my tea, I so wish I could do full on LCHF, I went to the Diabetic clinic at the hospital in the January and was discharged in the August and my numbers when I started were in the 30s but then of course I was following the NHS diet of carbs carbs and more carbs, so I believe that had I found the LCEF diet sooner I would have seen better numbers sooner, Oh and by the way my weight has dropped by 2st and is now stable within my comfort zone.

That's a great weight loss, well done. I have a lot more to lose than 2 stone, eek.

I'm so glad your diet is working out for you, I hope it will do the same for me though I'm finding it hard to eat a lot of fat. This is something I need to work look into in more depth as have been advised this will fill me up.

Did you feel that the Diabetic clinic helped at all?

 

[Jude]

The thing is, it needs to be sustainable as well as enjoyable, and you can get sick of cooking separate meals and they may make you feel deprived. There are some great low carb cookbooks on Amazon , sometimes for pennies in the " used" bit . I was surprised to see The Big Book of Low Carb Recipes in a charity shop recently, it looked as if it was someone's unwanted Xmas present , and I would have bought it if I didn't have it already if you like cookbooks rather than website recipes, type low carb recipe books in to Amazons search, and see ...

Shepherds pie can be yours, as can mash if you substitute the potato for cauli mash, which is actually better tasting , in my opinion , creamy and doesn't taste of cauli surprisingly. Meals made in a slow cooker or the oven are tasty, economical , and can be low carb too.

It doesn't have to be awkward or expensive, I buy most of my stuff from Aldi, including the ingredients I use to make my own breakfast granola ( make one batch and it lasts a week- approx 5g per serving ) served with Greek yogurt or Almond milk in my case .

Sweet potatoes - I don't really know how to describe them ! They do taste a little sweetish to me, probably equal to a swede, but I am very sensitive to sweetness having avoided it most of my life .

Signy

Hi Heathenlass,

What ingredients do you put into your breakfast granola and what size portion do you eat?

Thank you.

 

[Jude]

Hi Scottie

Please do not get stressed about the possibility of using insulin - I am type 2 and been on insulin for 5 years. Sadly the past year my sugars have remained high and I am really struggling to make any difference. However, I do wonder if you are starting to eat too late in the day as my sugars carry on going up until I eat - and if so this could be contributing to your numbers not going down. There are many types of insulin, I am on what they call a mixed insulin which I inject before my breakfast and evening meal - you do soon adjust to taking it Scottie, honestly. My long term goal is to get off insulin but at the moment that is only a pipe dream but I am working on it along with my Diabetes Nurse.

I am nearly 10 years since diagnosis now and was on Gliclazide for a while and yes it did affect my weight. I too have much weight to lose but this has been a lifetime problem complicated in recent years with the diabetes. When I first went on insulin my sugars came down very well and stayed that way until about 18 months ago when I started to experience severe stress in my life - benefits issues after 17 years sick and a 37 year old foster daughter who was dying of breast cancer. I am sure these issues have contributed greatly to my sugar numbers, so like you I am trying to hold out hope hoping that one day they will go the right way again. I have my 12 month review on 24th March so will then no how bad my sugars actually are.
We need to support each other on these forums and try not to judge anyone. Thinking of you. Jude x

 

[satindoll]

In one word YES, I was lucky my specialist was a t1 herself so was well up on insulin, but even so they usually have more idea of whats what so if he say to go I suggest you do.
I can't eat a lot of fat either I have IBS and Diverticular disease as well as no gallbladder so large amounts of fat give me the runs, its not the amount of fat that matters its the type so changing from half or low to full fat can make a big difference whilst not increasing the amount eaten,
Please listen to what these lovely people are telling you it is the best advice I can give, they have been there done that and made it through to the other side.

 

[scottie1]

Hi Scottie

Please do not get stressed about the possibility of using insulin - I am type 2 and been on insulin for 5 years. Sadly the past year my sugars have remained high and I am really struggling to make any difference. However, I do wonder if you are starting to eat too late in the day as my sugars carry on going up until I eat - and if so this could be contributing to your numbers not going down. There are many types of insulin, I am on what they call a mixed insulin which I inject before my breakfast and evening meal - you do soon adjust to taking it Scottie, honestly. My long term goal is to get off insulin but at the moment that is only a pipe dream but I am working on it along with my Diabetes Nurse.

I am nearly 10 years since diagnosis now and was on Gliclazide for a while and yes it did affect my weight. I too have much weight to lose but this has been a lifetime problem complicated in recent years with the diabetes. When I first went on insulin my sugars came down very well and stayed that way until about 18 months ago when I started to experience severe stress in my life - benefits issues after 17 years sick and a 37 year old foster daughter who was dying of breast cancer. I am sure these issues have contributed greatly to my sugar numbers, so like you I am trying to hold out hope hoping that one day they will go the right way again. I have my 12 month review on 24th March so will then no how bad my sugars actually are.
We need to support each other on these forums and try not to judge anyone. Thinking of you. Jude x

Hello Jude

I am eating my first meal at approx. 1pm, I wasn't aware that leaving it so late to eat would affect my BG. I am just finding it hard to find something for breakfast. Will have to do more research I think.

I am sorry you have had such a bad time, it certainly dosn't help, does it? ((((Hugs)))) I hope things are better now.

Thank you for your reassuring info about insulin, after doing some Googling, I think I may be better on insulin and that's something I never thought I'd say. When I saw the GP 3 weeks ago, he said if I couldn't get my diabetes controlled then I would have to go on insulin and he didn't want that to happen. Another doctor also suggested it but left it at that..

I do hope your review goes well, will have everything crossed for you x

 

[scottie1]

In one word YES, I was lucky my specialist was a t1 herself so was well up on insulin, but even so they usually have more idea of whats what so if he say to go I suggest you do.
I can't eat a lot of fat either I have IBS and Diverticular disease as well as no gallbladder so large amounts of fat give me the runs, its not the amount of fat that matters its the type so changing from half or low to full fat can make a big difference whilst not increasing the amount eaten,
Please listen to what these lovely people are telling you it is the best advice I can give, they have been there done that and made it through to the other side.

I am listening, taking on board everything everyone is saying. Yes, I may not getting there as fast as I should or others are doing but I am trying and learning new things every day. Thank you for taking the time to post, I am going to ask to be referred to a specialist.

 

[Heathenlass]

@Jude - there are three I regularly use , the first is " Grainless Granola" from Dr. William Davis " Wheat Belly Cookbook " :-

150g raw cashew pieces
115g pumpkin seeds
100gflaked almonds
2tbsp flaxseeds ( linseeds) or chia seeds ( I buy milled golden linseeds from Aldi , or bulk buy chia seeds from Amazon, MUCH cheaper ! Thanks @donnellysdogs for that tip )
75g coconut flakes ( or desiccated coconut )
2tsp ground cinnamon
2 tbsp light olive, coconut, or walnut oil
Sweetner of choice equivalent to 100g of sugar, or to taste. Original recipe uses sugar free hazelnut syrup, but I've been unable to find this

Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas mark 4
In a large bowl, combine all the dry ingredients, then add the sweetner and oil and mix well.
Spread the mixture on a baking tray 1cm deep, and bake for 20 mins or until golden, stirring once .

This recipe serves 8 . A half cup serving of 56g 11g carb or 6.9g made with chia seeds.

Breakfast Nut Mix - ( From Wheat Belly 30 minute Cookbook , same author )

Half cup coconut milk
2tbsp coconut oil ( or butter, my modification )
1tsp vanilla extract
Half tsp almond essence
2 cups sunflower seeds
2 cups pumpkin seeds
1 cup chopped pecans ( or cashews, my modification. I buy broken pecans and cShews, cheaper!)
1 cup flaked almonds
2 cups coconut flakes ( or desiccated coconut, my..yadda yadda )
Sweetener to taste

Preheat oven to same temp as previous recipe.
In a small bowl, combine the coconut milk, oil, and vanilla and almond essences. Set aside.
In a large bowl, combine all the dry ingredients. Stir in the coconut milk mixture.
Spread the mixture on a baking tray and bake for 15 minutes or until lightly browned, stirring once .

60g serving is 6.5g carb
Irritatingly, the above recipe uses cups for measurement . I cup = 120g. The original recipe uses a quarter of a cup of raisins for sweetness, but raisins are little sugar bombs and if used, push the carbs up to 11g carb per 60g serving.


Crunchy Granola ( From Rose Elliot's Vegetarian Low Carb Diet)
85g linseeds
85g ground linseeds
55g desiccated coconut
55g pumpkin seeds
55g flaked almonds
Half tsp ground cinnamon ( optional)

Mix the lot up, and store in a sealed container

55g serving =4.7g carbs .

Don't forget to add any carbs used in milk etc. All need to be stored in an airtight container to keep their crispiness .

Signy

 

[scottie1]

I think a prawn cocktail later this afternoon may have spiked me. It was bought from Asda and I checked the carbs, it was very minimal so I thought I would ok, full fat, shellfish, but my levels have not gone down today as they did yesterday and this was the only extra thing I have eaten today so it looks likely. Think I will make my own from now on.

 

[Kezzer4321]

Hi Scottie, I have found that skipping a meal really makes controlling my bs harder. I eat 3 meals a day and I try to eAt them at the same time everyday when I can... By doing this I have noticed the my liver doesn't seems to play up and dump glucose into my system.
For breakfast because I usually Monday to Friday eat it in the car on they way to work - I make mini crustless quiches in different flavours. I find them really easy to eat cold and on the move.. And my body seems to love them. I make a batch of 4 or 6 at the beginning of the week and have one each morning... At the weekends i have an English breakfast although I like a poached egg instead of fried. You could also try making some low carb muffins and having one of those for breakfast instead...

 

[Clivethedrive]

I think a prawn cocktail later this afternoon may have spiked me. It was bought from Asda and I checked the carbs, it was very minimal so I thought I would ok, full fat, shellfish, but my levels have not gone down today as they did yesterday and this was the only extra thing I have eaten today so it looks likely. Think I will make my own from now on.

Hi scottie, trouble with these ready mades is, they add hidden sweeteners and hydrolysed oils etc that they hide under other names!

 

[satindoll]

I am listening, taking on board everything everyone is saying. Yes, I may not getting there as fast as I should or others are doing but I am trying and learning new things every day. Thank you for taking the time to post, I am going to ask to be referred to a specialist.

Your welcome.
Sometimes it takes a while to kick in then it seems to go like the clappers, the only thing you need to concern yourself with first is getting the numbers down and LCHF/LCEF will help that happen and as the numbers come down so will the weight, maybe a pound here and a pound there, but better slowly as it stays off, I know its frustrating but your numbers are coming down already nothing will make them come down overnight, but they will and you can only go as fast as your body can cope with.

 

[jack412]

Oh and in reference to an earlier post - don't get hung up about possibly needing insulin. There are many other options that your HCP's can try before getting to that stage. I hope you are keeping a record of your BG readings for your doctors appointment ? It is very helpfulfor them to look at and establish patterns and trends. It may be useful to ask to be referred to your local hospital diabetic clinic if you feel you are not getting what you need from your GP.
And, if at any stage you do need to go on insulin, it really, truly isn't the end of the world, There are more than a few Type2's that have, and got on much better as a consequence. Of course, I'm biased towards the positives of insulin as that is all I've ever known, and for myself and other Type 1's it's literally been a lifesaver

Signy

The stats are that 50% of T2 will be on insulin within 6-10 yrs of diagnosis, I'm LCHF and trying to be in the other 50%
http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/bhcv2/bhcarticles.nsf/pages/Diabetes_and_insulin

 

[Clivethedrive]

The stats are that 50% of T2 will be on insulin within 6-10 yrs of diagnosis, I'm LCHF and trying to be in the other 50%
http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/bhcv2/bhcarticles.nsf/pages/Diabetes_and_insulin

Ditto:)

 

[jack412]

I think a prawn cocktail later this afternoon may have spiked me. It was bought from Asda and I checked the carbs, it was very minimal so I thought I would ok, full fat, shellfish, but my levels have not gone down today as they did yesterday and this was the only extra thing I have eaten today so it looks likely. Think I will make my own from now on.

Oh, that's the other thing..T1's know the labels are a guess and are up to 50% out, along with their insulin having a 30% variability of absorption. so at the end of the day, it's a guess and personal trial and error knowledge of the actual product or food that you buy. added sugar ?

 

[Heathenlass]

And long may you both continue ! Preferably permanently

I've always been cynical about those stats, of course it would be likely, given the shocking dietry advice given out to Type2s AND Type 1's come to that !

And don't get me started on the non prescription of meters and strips Talk about self fulfilling prophecies

Signy

 

[Heathenlass]

Oh, that's the other thing..T1's know the labels are a guess and are up to 50% out, along with their insulin having a 30% variability of absorption. so at the end of the day, it's a guess and personal trial and error knowledge of the actual product or food that you buy. added sugar ?

Agreed. The only reasonably safe way ahead is know what's in there, because you put it there, in my opinion.

Signy

 

[scottie1]

Hi Scottie, I have found that skipping a meal really makes controlling my bs harder. I eat 3 meals a day and I try to eAt them at the same time everyday when I can... By doing this I have noticed the my liver doesn't seems to play up and dump glucose into my system.
For breakfast because I usually Monday to Friday eat it in the car on they way to work - I make mini crustless quiches in different flavours. I find them really easy to eat cold and on the move.. And my body seems to love them. I make a batch of 4 or 6 at the beginning of the week and have one each morning... At the weekends i have an English breakfast although I like a poached egg instead of fried. You could also try making some low carb muffins and having one of those for breakfast instead...

Hi Kezza

i shall have to try and eat 3 meals a day then if it will get my results down, really didn't think it would make a difference but now I know.

I have never had quiche or muffins, but am willing to try them. I will hunt some recepies down in the morning. What kind of flavours do you make? I can only think of cheese and onion. I have had a fry up for my tea tonight and last night, don't think I could eat fried eggs on a morning though could manage poached, just no bread. I don't want to risk eating bread as I was eating a lot of it prior to my first postings so am sure that contributed to my very high levels.

 

[satindoll]

I'm LCHF and trying to be in the other 50%

Ditto

Yes guys but I had no choice as I couldn't take the tablets because of my IBS and Diverticular and Gall Bladder problems so it was straight onto insulin for me.