6 months on from T2DM diagnosis

[MetabolicJim]

Hello,

I've been lurking on this website a lot since my diagnosis with T2DM in late May with an HBA1C of 58 mmol/mol. I've gathered a lot of useful information from this site and forum so I finally decided to join up.

My latest HBA1C (done privately) was 37 so I am not too stressed about my blood glucose right now but I'm worried whether it will get worse in time (43 years old at the moment). I would say that my main approach to getting my sugar down was intermittent fasting. I started off with 2 24 hour fasts per week for the first couple of weeks and then dialed back to 1 per week. I know a lot of people have had success with low carbs but I can't bring myself to ditch the carbs totally yet.

At diagnosis I had all of metabolic syndrome: obesity, blood pressure of 140/90, high LDL, low HDL, high triglycerides, high liver enzymes and of course high blood sugar (actually I also had low vitamin D and low cortisol). I'm no longer too worried about blood sugar. My blood pressure has slowly drifted down to about 125/80 so I'm less concerned about that. My main remaining worries are my weight, my cholesterol and the liver enzymes. Although these are less bad then at diagnosis, I still have a problem. My doctor wants to put me on statins. I'm basically hiding from him right now, but I'm going to have to address these things sooner or later. What I've been doing so far isn't working.

Jim

 

[MetabolicJim]

Just to give a bit more detail. I quit my job in late 2018 and basically went to bed for 6 months with depression and fatigue. I got out into the garden in the spring and managed to injure myself which led to a visit to the doctor and the blood test. After diagnosis I quickly ordered a blood glucose monitor finger prick thing off amazon (Exactive EQ). My finger prick results were pretty much normal from the get go. That was important because it gave me the confidence not to feel I had to take the Metformin I had been prescribed (my doctor was also trying to give me statins but I've been stalling on that). I did a private HbA1C only 15 days after diagnosis and it was already down to 49. That also gave me confidence the Metformin was unnecessary. Looking back on it I reckon my blood sugar was soaring over the winter and I was probably already on the road to recovery when I saw the doctor. I am glad I got diagnosed though because I had no idea and it means I now know I have to change my ways.

The low vitamin D was a surprise as I had spend a good amount of time in the garden and on hikes, but I guess I covered up too much. I did a good bit of sunbathing in late summer and am supplementing with 25ug of D3 (also K2). I have no idea what is going on with the low cortisol. I feel quite anxious a lot of the time so it doesn't seem to make sense.

 

[Caprock94]

Just to give a bit more detail. I quit my job in late 2018 and basically went to bed for 6 months with depression and fatigue. I got out into the garden in the spring and managed to injure myself which led to a visit to the doctor and the blood test. After diagnosis I quickly ordered a blood glucose monitor finger prick thing off amazon (Exactive EQ). My finger prick results were pretty much normal from the get go. That was important because it gave me the confidence not to feel I had to take the Metformin I had been prescribed (my doctor was also trying to give me statins but I've been stalling on that). I did a private HbA1C only 15 days after diagnosis and it was already down to 49. That also gave me confidence the Metformin was unnecessary. Looking back on it I reckon my blood sugar was soaring over the winter and I was probably already on the road to recovery when I saw the doctor. I am glad I got diagnosed though because I had no idea and it means I now know I have to change my ways.

The low vitamin D was a surprise as I had spend a good amount of time in the garden and on hikes, but I guess I covered up too much. I did a good bit of sunbathing in late summer and am supplementing with 25ug of D3 (also K2). I have no idea what is going on with the low cortisol. I feel quite anxious a lot of the time so it doesn't seem to make sense.

Couple of thoughts. Low vitamin D is very common, not just in diabetics. Also, regarding the liver fat, you will be surprised at how quickly you can get rid of fatty liver and get normal liver blood tests after losing some weight. At least that was the case for me.

 

[Daibell]

Hi and welcome. You don't need to ditch the carbs totally but you do need to keep them down. Perhaps set a target of 150gm/day for starters and see how you go. Once you keep the carbs down the carb hunger rebound will fade but do have enough fats and proteins to keep you feeling full.

 

[Resurgam]

Hba1c is an indicator of average blood glucose - so you might need to reconsider your diet as the years pass - just as the average of 49 and 51 is 50, so is the average of 70 and 30 - your fasting might give you low numbers, but the apparently good average could hide high spikes after carby meals or snacks or 'treats', which are not good at all.

 

[Diakat]

How structured were your finger prick tests? Fasting only or before and following meals?

 

[MetabolicJim]

My finger prick tests were really structured. I had a notebook where I was noting down what I was doing. I did tests like fasted and then +90 mins, +120 mins, +150 mins. Before and after going on my exercise bike. When coming home after drinking. I took 500mg Metformin for a few days and tested during that time. I have to say Metformin made me feel bad and low energy. I don’t know if that goes away if you stick with it. Anyway I went through 50 strips pretty fast. I’m not testing often now.

 

[jjraak]

Hello,

I've been lurking on this website a lot since my diagnosis with T2DM in late May with an HBA1C of 58 mmol/mol. I've gathered a lot of useful information from this site and forum so I finally decided to join up.

My latest HBA1C (done privately) was 37 so I am not too stressed about my blood glucose right now but I'm worried whether it will get worse in time (43 years old at the moment). I would say that my main approach to getting my sugar down was intermittent fasting. I started off with 2 24 hour fasts per week for the first couple of weeks and then dialed back to 1 per week. I know a lot of people have had success with low carbs but I can't bring myself to ditch the carbs totally yet.

At diagnosis I had all of metabolic syndrome: obesity, blood pressure of 140/90, high LDL, low HDL, high triglycerides, high liver enzymes and of course high blood sugar (actually I also had low vitamin D and low cortisol). I'm no longer too worried about blood sugar. My blood pressure has slowly drifted down to about 125/80 so I'm less concerned about that. My main remaining worries are my weight, my cholesterol and the liver enzymes. Although these are less bad then at diagnosis, I still have a problem. My doctor wants to put me on statins. I'm basically hiding from him right now, but I'm going to have to address these things sooner or later. What I've been doing so far isn't working.

Jim

Well I've got to say i am impressed by what you've done so far...Bravo.

and as for what you do next.
well carbs can be hard to say goodbye to.
BUT if it suits you to just cut down, then at the age of 43.
anything you do from here on in..as slowly as it goes, WILL be making a
BIG difference for you over the years,

So cut down as you see fit, even if it's not at the lever others might set, it will STILL be
at a lever that is better then what you did before.

so over time you will be in a better place THEN.. for all the cutting down and re-evaluating of the diet that you HAVE done
then if you just went with the rest of the herd and ate as expected and kept you place on the progressive conveyor belt.

just my two bits.

good luck on your journey
see ya at the bottom of the slope hopefully..

 

[ringi]

Stopping the drink along with advoiding anything that contains suger (including natural suger) will greatly help with removing fat from the liver. Both fruitose and alcohol are converted by the liver into fat, often some of that fat remains on the liver.

As well as your weakly 24hr fasts, try to have at least 12 hours (idealy closer to 16) each day when you don't or have any drinks other then water, black coffee or tea.

 

[MetabolicJim]

Sorry to bump my own thread again, but after all my confident posts I thought I’d better record that I’ve fallen off the wagon. Went kind of crazy eating today - including something like half a loaf of bread!! I also ate some jam - first time in ages. Was feeling foggy and was making mistakes. Just checked my blood sugar: 8.1 mmol/L. Wonder what it was like earlier. Going to have to test more regularly now.