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blood sugars fluctuating

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ral6100

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1
Hi,
I have been type 2 since August 2010 and have had great difficulty maintaining low sugar levels.
I test regularly as I drive and have been told to test before I drive and then every 2hrs while driving but cannot seem to get my level below 10 although a friend who is T1 has levels like 5.5
I am lost as what to do as all my Dr wants to do is change tablets and he put me on Semaglutide to help loose weight a while ago and I finished up in A & E with stomach and side pains and Dr I saw knew it was the Semaglutide as he had had the same problem so stopped taking them.
Now at my whits end as to where to go from here
I am taking Gliclazide 80mg 2 x twice a day and Metformin 1g TWO a day plus other meds.
I have Long Covid and have no energy and this week has been the worst week yet with blood sugars up to 20
Any ideas greatly appreciated
 
What are you eating? Do you eat any of the following: breakfast cereals, bread, pasta, rice, potatoes, bananas, fruit juice?
 
Back in 2010 Type 2 diabetes was almost universally considered to be incurable and progressive.
Since the several methods have been shown to reverse T2D in various studies. But note that BG monitoring is essential since you are on Gliclazide (as it would be if on Insulin).

The main one that this Forum is focussed on is a Low Carb way of eating (no calorie restrictions, just cutting down on carbohydrates. Low Carb is considered anything less than 130gms of carbs per day down to 20gms - below that is called Keto.

Alternatives are:
Intermittent Fasting (anything from skipping meals to the 5 2 method of Dr Michael Moseley, to eating on alternate days.
Ultra Low Calories diet (circa 800 KCal per day) for 8 to 12 weeks (beyond that may start to become dangerous). This is commonly called a Newcastle Diet because the research behind it (the DIRECT study) was done in Newcastle.

Have you @ral6100 tried any of those?
 
ral6100 said:
Hi,
I have been type 2 since August 2010 and have had great difficulty maintaining low sugar levels.
I test regularly as I drive and have been told to test before I drive and then every 2hrs while driving but cannot seem to get my level below 10 although a friend who is T1 has levels like 5.5
I am lost as what to do as all my Dr wants to do is change tablets and he put me on Semaglutide to help loose weight a while ago and I finished up in A & E with stomach and side pains and Dr I saw knew it was the Semaglutide as he had had the same problem so stopped taking them.
Now at my whits end as to where to go from here
I am taking Gliclazide 80mg 2 x twice a day and Metformin 1g TWO a day plus other meds.
I have Long Covid and have no energy and this week has been the worst week yet with blood sugars up to 20
Any ideas greatly appreciated
Click to expand...
That sounds very disheartening. I don't know what you do or what is right for you but i can only say what i have found works for me. I too am on metformin 750mg X2 slow release. I have been doing a 16/8 fast (which i built up to slowly over about a week, first 8/16, 10/14, 12/12, 14/10, 16/8 so i start eating at 12 noon and finish at 8pm. i break the fast with a salad first (so getting the fibre in first, apparently this is good to do and i found it effective), then eat the protein i want and even some carbs like rice/potatoes etc.

I rarely have bread but still have a piece of toast every few days as a treat. I have stopped having sugary snacks between meals ( this was the hardest because i always felt like sweet after a meal) but once the habit was broken it has become slightly easier to say no. if i have pasta i precook it and then let it cool and reheat it for the meal. It does appear to have an impact on not spiking blood sugar as high.
On Saturday i treat it as my do hat i want day or cheat day. i don't go crazy but allow a dessert those days and have a bacon and egg breakfast. I know there is mixed feeling about cheat days but i find that it works really well for me to know i can have basically what i want on saturday.

I have found i have been less hungry due to this combination but have also found my blood sugar levels have stayed at a good level (highest after a meal has been 8.9 and then between 5-6.5 other times, I am hoping the average will lower as time goes on as i have found i am also losing weight finally. I know it's gonna be a long gradual haul but i feel better already after 3 weeks.

I have been monitoring my blood sugar throughout the day about 30 mins after food, then 2 hours, then 4 hours etc.. to see what they do in reaction to the food I consumed. I also check before i start eating. this has helped tweak what i am having but can also be a bit unpredictable sometimes. When i get a higher reading that doesn't seem to be shifting i have been getting up and moving for increments of 5 mins..so 5 mins, check, then another 5 mins, etc...I find this can help bring the blood sugar down. typically i put on music i like and just move to it :D, I'm glad the neighbours can't see me haha.
 
No eating pattern is wrong, as long as it works for YOU, it may not work for me, but hey I've got my own personal pattern, which many others might frown at. BUT at this moment in time it's working for me. The figure after a meal that is most important is 2 hours. If your 8.9 was earlier than that then don't sweat it.
 
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