Another newbie. Type 2.

[LastCaress1972]

Hi forum!

I'm 43yrs old, male, and was yesterday diagnosed as having Type 2 Diabetes following a blood test taken after I'd gone to the doc's with "slightly tingly feet". He said blood sugar levels were over twice what they should be and that my vitamin D levels wre "shockingly low". He told me he was referring me to something /someone called "Desmond" (not the barber, surely?) and then to give him a sample of urine, to which he said, "Yep, definitely sugar in there" before going to talk to someone out in the corridor. He did some response tests on my feet/toes (I still have feeling in all of them, just this accompanying low-level tingly buzz, like pins and needles that have all-but gone) then handed me a Microdot+ meter. He wrote out a prescription for (checks) 30 x Pro D3 10,000 IU (take three times per week) and a repeat prescription for Simvistatin 40mg (1 per night), Glucophage 500mg (1 per day for one week, then 2 per day for 1 week, then 3 per day going forward), 100 Microdot+ lancets and 100 Microdot+ strips. Then he sent me to the nurse to get a flu jab and a blood sugar testing form, which shows when the nurse wants me to test and record my blood sugar levels for the next fortnight, when I have another appointment with her.

It's not the diabetes that's scaring me. It's not the exercise that I'm going to have to get to - I know I need to exercise, I'm choosing to see this as just a terrific incentive in that regard - and it's not even the foodstuffs, in and of themselves; broccoli? Pumpkon seeds? Wholemeal bread instead of evil white bread? Lovely! But the associated hoopla with getting these things right - that's scaring me. By the time I'd finished at the doc's and the chemist's yesterday it was lunchtime. What to have from our as-yet-undiabetisized (is that a word? It is now!) larder? I hesitantly went with: A tomato. And a black coffee, no sugar. I always have milk and two sugars but, well, you know. So, since I'm a big fan of westerns I decided to pretend I was an improbable and taciturn 19th-century gunfighter, for whom black-no-sugar would've been the coffee presentation of choice. Helped me get it down and keep it down, anyways. Yee bloody ha. Later on I tried one of the many flavoured teas I've got in store (I buy them to be windswept and interesting but, in truth, they're all a bit revolting, aren't they?). Mint flavoured green tea. No sugar. Harder to keep down than the coffee tbh, but I might be able to develop a taste for them. Maybe. But later, the wife and I shared a tin of sardines in mango & peppercorn sauce. It was lovely, but tasted to me to be made entirely of sugar. I had to bin it.

Is this how it is now? Am I going to panic about everything I try? Is my wife? She went downstairs this morning to make us a coffee and bring it back up to bed. She came upstairs crying. Why? She wanted to make me a spot of breakfast too; nothing fancy, just to surprise me with a couple of slices of toast, or a bowl of cornflakes or something. But in starting to make the breakfast, she became frozen up with not knowing what to make for the best; in the end, she didn't dare make anything. She also didn't make herself anything in case it came across as "rubbing my nose in it". I cried too then. Because I love her, you know?

I don't even know why I'm writing any of this. I've forgotten what my point was. Maybe I just needed to write it, and that was the point. Oh well.

Anyway: Howdy, everyone. I've only had a cursory glance around the site but it seems nice. I'd like to stick around for a while, if I may.

 

[Squire Fulwood]

It all seems to be a bit bleak at the moment but, believe me it gets better. You will find alternative foods that you will like as much as the stuff you used to eat. In fact, one very good ploy is to look for a meal that you can put on your personal menu and strike off one of the diabetes hostile ones. Do this a few times and you have cracked it. You won't do it all on the first day.

You and your wife can have bacon and eggs for breakfast tomorrow.

In the meantime it's becoming a tradition that we call up @daisy1 who has a list of things to do to get you started.

 

[Daphne917]

Hi @LastCaress1972 welcome to the forum. You're post eloquently spells out what most of us feel when first diagnosed! I'm tagging @daisy1 who has a lot of information for newly diagnosed diabetics. In the meantime have a look around the forum and ask questions if you're unsure about anything - we're a friendly bunch with varying degrees of experience re treatment and diet etc so one of us should have the answer!!

 

[Arab Horse]

Hi @LastCaress1972 and welcome. Do stick around as you will meet lots of other in the same boat, not necessarily the ship mates you would choose but we will mostly be eating the same as you so no need for different rations for the crew members!

I was diagnosed just under 18 months ago; HbA1c twice what it should be, glucose three times what it should be and urine packed with glucose. I had no symptoms, only went for my free NHS health check and they couldn't believe I had no symptoms. Being a biochemist I knew the dire consequences of staying as I was so big life changes.

You will be doing a lot of reading; on here, on the internet,and crucially on the labels of every food you eat. You say "Wholemeal bread instead of evil white bread? Lovely!" Sadly no. I ate granary bread, thought it was healthy, that is a "No No" for me as I am very carb intolerant.

" He told me he was referring me to something /someone called "Desmond". Desmond is the diabetic education program and you will be given a lot of advice which is out of date and, having taken it all on board, I wasted months getting nowhere until I came on her and researched on the internet and found that I could eat virtually no carbs at all. I was also looking at the front of the label and seeing that the sugar content was low. When I realised that was not what we diabetics should look at I started turning the pack over and reading the TOTAL CARBS and found that most of the things I thought I could eat were forbidden.

My husband eats and drinks exactly what he wants so we eat separately. My diet was always better than his but clearly I have the genes for diabetes and presumably he doesn't although he refuses to go for his free medical so he may have it and the first we will know is when he has a catastrophic health event!

It is great that your wife is so supportive and eating with you will be good for her too. You will find out how much carbohydrate you can eat by constantly checking your glucose.

I now have an omelette for breakfast every day with onion, garlic, cheese and tomato, hated it at first but OK with it now. The rest of my meals are meat or fish with a salad or vegetables; no starchy veg such as potatoes, carrots, parsnips etc. The only thing I have the same as I did before diagnosis is my grapefruit every morning and strong black coffee, everything else has changed. You and your wife could still eat together with her having the potatoes/rice/pasta/bread and you having your pumpkin seeds!

I do have bad days when I eat some carbs and I know that my glucose will be high but generally I try to stick to my boring diet while I watch my husband scoff all the things I want!!!

Do read up about the Newcastle diet as there are great success stories of people who have reversed their diabetes by doing it, particularly if you are overweight. I was average weight and now have a BMI verging on the "dangerously underweight" but since dropping to 7 stone (from 8 and 3/4) I have remained stable.

Good luck and ask everyone on here for any advice you need.

 

[Dean2015]

Best advise I could give you is to down load the carbs and cals app it dose cost a couple of quid but belive me it well worth it

Good luck
Dean

 

[DeejayR]

Well done, that was a great first post, and got a load of stuff off your chest. I really do feel for you and your poor wife. Take it easy and read through the info heading your way and I assure you this can be the start of something good. There's no reason why you can't take control of your new life and even enjoy it. I'm having a great time thanks to the lovely people on here.
One step at a time.

 

[Pinkorchid]

Hi and welcome yes it is a shock being told you have T2 but it really is something you can control. Don't start cutting out all foods straight away start with the sugar stuff and just take things a day at a time and get used to the new medication. The food advice here is not the official advice the NHS gives so it will be up to you what you do. We are all different and everyone has to find the way that suits them best and you will find that way for yourself

 

[daisy1]

@LastCaress1972

Hello and welcome to the forum We have all felt what you are going through and sympathise with you and your wife but things will only get better from now on as you learn how to look after yourself. And yes, you will find things that you can both eat with pleasure. Here is the information which we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful. It will give you a lot of information on diets, especially on how to reduce carbs. Ask as many questions as you want 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 150,000 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

LOW CARB PROGRAM:
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/low carb program


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.