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Chicken and Egg!!

P

Pinnig

Active Member
Messages
42
Location
Scotland
Hi,

I was diagnosed yesterday with type 2. I hadn't felt great in months and after several visits to my GP he ran some blood tests and my blood sugar level came back as 11.7. I had a fasting test on Friday and the results yesterday were 12.2 fasting and 17.8 two hours after the glucose drink.

Only now can I reflect back and relate my various symptoms of not feeling great to diabetes and whilst I'm relieved to know what's wrong I think I'm still a bit stunned by the diagnosis. I don't think I'll be the first to feel that way?!?

I had another blood test to check my HbAc1 levels and I've to have 3 or 4 appointments with the diabetic nurse at my practice. Until I get my appointment through my GP has said to do nothing much. He's not sure I'll need medication straight away and I should wait till I see the nurse before makedly changing my diet or embarking on an exercise regime.

I don't feel that great and as each day wears on feel really very tired, bit of a headache and slightly sick.

It's possible it will be sometime next week before I see the nurse. Would anyone have any advice before then? Should I try eating differently and starting to exercise. Right now I'm struggling to see where i'll find the energy but I'm supposing it's a chicken and egg scenario??
 
Hi pinnig.
Welcome to the forum. Have a good look around and ask what you want.

It is a shock to the system, but Diabetes is controllable and can be a turning point in your life. The fact that things as they were are going to have to change has to sink in. Then determination not to let this take over is the next step. It does get better, I can assure you.

I think you are going to have to take a long hard look at your diet in the first instance. There are many types of diet regime which may or may not suit you. You will get much conflicting advice. You are going to have to decide what is best for you after hearing that advice. I could give you mine, it suits me very well and has allowed me to control my Diabetes to the extent that I am now running Bg numbers in the 5 -6's each day. Prior to coming here they were in the 10's. a big difference and it is getting better all the time. It may not suit you. There is no standard diet - we are all different.
Any excercise has to be a good thing, especially if you need to lose weight ? ?

Get yourself a meter and some test strips, see if you can get the strips prescribed. You are going to need one. That's enough for now, don't want to give you too much info. Just gets lost in a fog.

Ken.
 
Thanks Ken. Your reply is much appreciated. From all I've read so far the rights and wrongs in diet do seem to be very personalised. I do need to lose weight and have dropped a lot of weight since Christmas. I now understand that this has been part of the undiagnosed diabetes and embarking on a more controlled healthy regime is probably first on my list. What have you found that works for you? I could use a starting point.

I have looked at web sites that sell meters and wondered if I should buy one. Are the strips universal or are they unique to each meter?

I think these are two things I could usefully start to get my head around.

Thanks again
 
Hi.

Glad to help. I first came here and looked at low carbs/high fat.
As I also had a history of heart problems I didn't like the idea of high fat. I wanted to remain low fat, low salt, low sugar.

I then looked at low GI. Found a site http://www.glycaemicindex.com which had lists of foods with GI values and carb s as well. Decided that this sounded the way forward for me. I listed all the lower Gi foods I could eat and then filtered out anything with a high carb content, so I have reduced carbs and GI. Just added all that to what is listed above. Works great. Have lost 3 stone in just over 4 months and Bg levels are lowering all the time.

You can buy a meter at any good chemists and as a Diabetic you should have the VAT removed.
The strips are individual to the specific meters. Do try and get the strips prescribed, tell your GP that you are trying to get control and need to know what your levels are after foods etc.

Hope that helps ?

Ken.
 
Great web site. Thanks. I think i'll try to construct some meals around the low GI foods and see how I get on. Cheers.

I'd like to test regularly to see if I can get my blood sugars down through diet and also to see what foods have what effect. I'm happy to buy the machine and it seems relatively inexpensive and a one off purchase. The strips, conversely, seem very expensive so I will ask if I can have them on prescription. Is it a given that my GP practice will one, expect me to self test and two, will agree to prescribe the strips?

Apologies, it seems I have questions after question!
 
Will your GP expect you to self test ? That is the $ 64,000 question ? He might, then again he might not. Same goes with the prescribing of strips. Some GP's are more concerned with costs than others. It is also down to the local PCT as to what they want GP's to do.

My Gp in the West Mids is a gem. He prescribes anything I ask for so I get 100 strips whenever I need them. He is in a minority unfortunately. You will just have to ask and try and argue your case. You know it makes sense, however money talks !!

Good luck. Don't worry about the questions, that's what we are here for. To help.

Ken.
 
Welcome. I had very similar vague and non-specific symptoms before I was diagnosed too. I started changes by removing anything with added sugar from my diet and then looked around for an alrternative way of dealing with it because I didn't like what the NHS was telling me. I have explored the glycaemic index diet but have opted for lower carbs. My blood sugars have reduced considerably.

As far as getting a meter goes, this was one of the most important steps I took. I got my meter (Accu0chek Aviva) for free from the manufacturer, Roche, when I rang their customer services. Lots of clinics give them away for free (as they get them from the manufacturere for free). The money is in the strips, the ones for my meter are £25.50 a throw in Boots :shock: :shock: :shock: i think some of the other meters have cheaper strips if you re funding them yourself. I have bought some strips off eBay and my GP has written me a prescription for some too, but I'm not sure how often he will be doing that as us T2s dont need to test, apparently, although no one has yet questioned my request for another prescription for strips on Monday.
 
Pinnig and Spiral
Normal retailers sell all strips at about £25 for a pack of 50. there's not a lot of diffrence. I go to Ebay, whee I get them for something like a quarter of that. ( check out the seller firest though) there are also the "New" non meterstrips Glucoflex-R which are much cheaper. I gget officially 3 packs( Freestyle mini) per year from the GP PCT rules. I'm going to see him next week, so I'll try for some glucoflex-R. I'll volunteer to be the guinea pig.
 
That would be great hanadr. Hope you succeed!

I've just called my GP practice to see when my first appointment will be with the diabetic clinic. I go on holiday on 6 July and my GP gave me the impression that I'd have 3/4 sessions with a nurse and that they would take place before then. I'm told by the receptionist that it's unlikely I'll have any appointments before then and it will be several weeks before my I see anyone. I can phone tomorrow again and speak to someone else if I'm not happy with that!

My blood glucose levels were worryingly high (well, I'm worried!) and I thought I might have been seen relatively quickly to enhance my understanding of diabetes and start, with their guidance, to bring things under control.

Is is usual to have to wait weeks to see someone for the first time?
 
Sometimes it is, sometimes it isn't.

However, I'm not good at not doing something. I had a battery (well 3 actually, but they took loads of fingerfuls for a whole host of other tests) of blood tests before I got a diagnosis. But I'd already started some changes before then by cutting out anything with added sugar and adding fresh and raw. It is your health and you don't need your GPs permission to improve your diet. I made changes that resulted in me losing 7 kilos between diagnosis and my secng appointment 5 weeks later and reducing my fasting numbers considerably. I felt a lot better for that. You need to get your numbers down asap!
 
Is is usual to have to wait weeks to see someone for the first time?
Click to expand...

It doesn't seem to be unusual. Panic not, I'd say, at least for the first couple of weeks. In fact, if you do your homework, chances are you'll know what they're really saying when they say it :)

I've been on my Desmond this week - it doesn't fill you with hope, frankly, but more of that next week when it'll be too late to kick me off it!

Think of it as a cross between "When education goes bad" and "Road Crash TV"!
 
When I was diagnosed I had to wait for a month before I saw anybody. Don't think it made a great deal of difference though. Still got sorted in the end. What's a few weeks between friends ?

D.
 
Hi there
I waited about 2 months for my first referral to the diabetic clinic, no one seemed to think this was unusual the only thing was that i was put on metformin right away and slowly this was increased to 4 a day which i am not coping with. after reading through the forum i am going to the doctor on Tuesday to see if i can try the slow release one. fingers crossed, I am also going to try my arm at getting some strips for home testing as they are very expensive to buy
 
Hi to all and thanks for you replies. Your posts reassured me that the wait was not unusual and my GP surgery called me this morning. The doc hadn't passed the request for the appointments to be set up to the clinic staff (I know they are 2 doors away down the corridor but hey ho). Anyway. I have my first appointment next Friday with another the following Friday. I go on holiday for three weeks and see the dietician the week after I get back followed by another clinic appointment the week after that.

It's going like a fair!!

I'm going to buy a meter today so I can monitor before the first appointment and see if they will prescribe the strips.

It's my first big supermarket shop since diagnosis. Will certainly make for a different shopping experience as i stop and think carefully before I throw all my usual purchases into the trolley!

Thanks again for all of your replies. This forum provides a fantastic range of support and advice.
 
good that you've got your head round it, but...

Don't hold your breath about getting anything prescribed, and don't change too much too soon.

Little steps lead to big changes, allegedly!
 
Hi Janie here I was diagnoised a few weeks ago as well - still not very happy and tired but geting there. Think you need to keep on at your docs to get an appointment with the nurse.
The nurse at my docs actually called me on a Saturday and told me to come in on the Monday, since then I've had my eye test through and foot examine and I'm also got another appointment booked with the nurse for blood test and results in August.

People seem to experience different levels of response dependant on were you live, guess I'm lucky - my suggestino is just keep on pushing.
 
Hi Janie,

I was diagnosed by company nurse on 27th April......

30th April GP confirmed - blood tests at local hospital confirmed my poor blood results.
14th May "new Diabetics" appointment with GP "chronic disease" specialist and practice diabetes nurse. Put on 2 x metformin and referred to PCT diabetic clininc
5th June - Meeting with PCT dietitian and diabetes nurse
8th June - Retina photographs at a local "approved" optician
9th June - Commenced 6 week X-pert patient course
17th June - Joined Local Diabetes Support Group
30th June - Interim HBA1C test (I nagged for this)
15th July - Leg and foot testing at local hospital
14th August - First 3 monthly review at GP

Also joined Diabetes UK - Lots of excellent publications and contacts from them, but need to apply your personal filters to some of their dietary "advice"....

Others tba....

Steve
 
Hi
went to the doctors today and changed to slow release metformin and believe it or not got prescribed the strips for my monitor no questions asked. just hope the new metformin works
Rosemary
 
Hi folks,

I have tried over the last four or five days to start to make changes in my diet. Lots of fish, chicken, vegetables and salads, carefully reading the labels on products to see what's really in them! I've avoided bread, potatoes, pasta etc. Haven't been brave enough yet to see what they do to me!

I also bought a meter (half price in Boots) to see what food works for me and what doesn't. I'm delighted to say that I've actually managed to get some fasting readings in single figures and some of the extreme fatigue I experienced after eating has reduced. My 2 hour figures are down too. I know that I've a long way to go, I'm still over the normal range but I feel really buoyed that even after a four or five days a sensible eating regime is having an effect.

I have my first appointment with the diabetic clinic at my practice on Friday with a further appointment the week after. I still don't know if I'll be prescribed anything but I feel much more confident that I can get on top of this.

Numbers form a great part of my working life. I never thought I'd get excited about them in terms of my health but so far so good!
 
Hello again. I thought i'd post an update.

I had my first appointment on Friday with the parctice sister who secialises in diabetes. I spent half an hour with her and found her very helpful and fairly pragmatic. The finality of the diagnosis hit home when I was asked to sign a form so that I am entered on the Health Board's diabetic register - so the practice gets the right funding for my care. I got a very large pack of information and appointments are being booked for an eye test and with the podiatrist.

My hb1ac came back as 8.5 and we discussed how I'd been feeling both in terms of my mental health in coming to terms with the diagnosis and my physical health since my bg levels had been running quite high. I've altered my diet in the last 10 days and cut out bread, potatoes, pasta and rice. Lots of fish, some meat, cheese, plenty of salads and steamed vegetables have taken their place. I feel an improvement already and less fatigued.

I was given a meter and told that the lancets and strips would be prescribed on a repeat prescription - I didn't even have to ask and I'm delighted that my numbers seem to be coming down - all in single figures although I know i've still a way to go.

The practice sister discussed my forthcoming appointment with the dietician. She showed me the interim advice in the pack on diet and that the advice would be to eat a very starchy diet. She is of the view that this makes no sense and may be likely to make weight loss difficut and keep my bg levels high. Her appraoch was that the dietary advice was just that - advice - i can make up my own mind and she would support a low carb approach. I think she'd have some issue if i chose junk food and beer right enough!!!

Still no decision on medication. I see her again next week and we'll discuss that again then. She said that the NHS standard advice in my circamstances is to medicate immediately but as i'd reported feeling a little better with dietary adjustments she'd wait till I had a weeks worth of readings and look at this again. I'm fairly sure that I will be prescribed something but I was very pleased to feel involved in the decision making process.

I know from many of the postings that experiences with GP practices have been mixed so I thought I'd tell my story as so far so good!
:)
 
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