Afternoon from West Sussex

Claire_Terry

Member
Messages
14
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Afternoon all,

I am Claire, 29 from West Sussex and I have been recently diagnosed with Type 2 Diabeties on 01/05/2015. I am taking Metformin 2000mg a day.

After feeling unwell for a period of years, I am feeling positive and motivated, to be back feeling my old self, with the medication, diet, exercise, life style changes and support from fellow diabetic members.

Much love x
 
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daisy1

Legend
Messages
26,457
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Dislikes
Cruelty towards animals.
@Claire_Terry

Hello Claire and welcome to the forum :)

I lived in West Sussex for a short while. You seem to be doing very well now. To help you, here is the information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful. Ask as many questions as you like and someone will be able to 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 over 140,000 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-and-whole-grains.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 bloodglucose 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.
 
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chris270181

Well-Known Member
Messages
67
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Diet only
Welcome there's loads of information and knowledgeable folk on her..

I'm not one of the knowledgeable ones though lol
 

Claire_Terry

Member
Messages
14
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Thanks you both for your comments.

Having the support makes me positive as when I first got diagnosed I felt a little sorry for myself but I have to stay positive as I need to be in control.

The worst things is being so tired and having no energy.
 

kateincornwall

Well-Known Member
Messages
645
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Dislikes
People who lie , animal cruelty , boredom and pineapple !
Hello and welcome from me too , hope you enjoy this forum, so much information , help and support :)
 
Messages
18,448
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
Dislikes
Bullies, Liars, Trolls and dishonest cruel people
Afternoon all,

I am Claire, 29 from West Sussex and I have been recently diagnosed with Type 2 Diabeties on 01/05/2015. I am taking Metformin 2000mg a day.

After feeling unwell for a period of years, I am feeling positive and motivated, to be back feeling my old self, with the medication, diet, exercise, life style changes and support from fellow diabetic members.

Much love x

Hello and welcome

Best wishes RRB:)
 

Tm6t7

Well-Known Member
Messages
78
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Hi and welcome to unfortunately a ever growing club. Good to see you're positive about it...me too :)
Have a good look around and ask questions :)
 

sanguine

Well-Known Member
Messages
3,340
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Dislikes
Intolerance, career politicians, reality TV and so-called celebrity culture, mobile phones in the quiet carriage.
Hi @Claire_Terry , welcome! :)

Have a good read around, including the items in my sig below, and ask any questions.
 

urbanracer

Expert
Retired Moderator
Messages
5,186
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
Dislikes
Not being able to eat as many chocolate digestives as I used to.
Hi Claire and welcome to the forums even if you'd rather not be here.

Myself and @June_C are also in your area - just a stone throw from the smelly seaweed!

Good luck getting your diabetes under control.
 

Claire_Terry

Member
Messages
14
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Thank you all for your messages and kind words.

I have been browsing the forum, there is just so much to read.

@urbanracer it's nice to meet locals
 

SueB743

Well-Known Member
Messages
376
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Welcome, like you I am new to all this but confident the support and help if the forum will be the starts of a whole new me. The advice on here is fab. Good luck
 

Patricia21

Well-Known Member
Messages
1,764
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Dislikes
Animal crualty
Hello and welcome.
We are all here for each other,and there is lots of support.
All the best.
 

JAY1JAY1

Well-Known Member
Messages
623
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Dislikes
Diabetes
Hi glad your taking it so well , positive is the best way to be , we will try to help if you need it . JJ
 

Claire_Terry

Member
Messages
14
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Thank you

I would rather be positive, stay focused and I have all the support from everyone on this forum which I have only joined today, everyone is so friendly and caring.

Feeling the love
 
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Ski fit

Member
Messages
14
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Insulin
Hey Claire, nice to hear you're so positive! Stick with the healthy diet and exercise. T2 myself but inject too, if I had the option of controlling it with tablets, good diet and exercise alone I would!!
 

sanguine

Well-Known Member
Messages
3,340
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Dislikes
Intolerance, career politicians, reality TV and so-called celebrity culture, mobile phones in the quiet carriage.
Hi @Ski fit , why don't you have that option?
 

Ski fit

Member
Messages
14
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Insulin
Because I already eat carefully and exercise a lot but still need to inject, particularly long acting overnight. When I exercise hard during the day then I don't take any insulin at breakfast or lunch. I do for dinner but there's not much exercise in the evening!.
 

sanguine

Well-Known Member
Messages
3,340
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Dislikes
Intolerance, career politicians, reality TV and so-called celebrity culture, mobile phones in the quiet carriage.
Pardon me for asking, but when you say 'eat carefully' what exactly do you eat typically?
 

Ski fit

Member
Messages
14
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Insulin
Sanguine, porridge every morning, perhaps a tuna or chicken salad lunchtime and fish perhaps for dinner with new potatoes/mash. That sort of thing. Occasionally eat a bit of junk food too, not a saint!
I just try and avoid too any carbs, sweets and biscuits. Less so if I'm exercising soon afterwards.
 

sanguine

Well-Known Member
Messages
3,340
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Dislikes
Intolerance, career politicians, reality TV and so-called celebrity culture, mobile phones in the quiet carriage.
OK thanks, personally I wouldn't be having the porridge or potatoes, but I'm not you :)
 
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