Confused

[batgirl2708]

Hello everyone.
I'm hoping some of u can help reset my head lol.
I'm t2d diagnosed September with hba1c of 56 - no meds just diet controlled.
When first diagnosed I came on here and started low carb (and low fat cuz I'm not a skinny Minnie lol) and my sugar was doing well. I also found out that any kind of carb would send blood sugar up to at least 10mmol/l after 2 hours.
DESMOND course did nothing but confuse and scare me more.
I went for a meds review (citalopram) and have had it increased to 30mg. While I was there I mentioned to the diabetic nurse that I don't seem to be able to tolerate any form of carbs to which she had a go at me for testing saying that if I want to I should only test in the mornings. She said that testing 2 hours after would be high as it is when your body is processing the food. But this goes against everything I have read about expected blood levels being under 8.5mmol/l after 2 hours..
She said I should be eating a good diet the same as 'everybody' and shouldn't be cutting out any food groups making sure to get my 5 a day.
So this morning my sugar was 6.2mmol/l and after my breakfast (weetabix) it is 14.3mmol/l... so how the hell is this good for me?
I will be going back to low carb and sticking to the info on here.
I just got bombarded with info and got confused. Just writing this has helped me to see that.

Oh and I'm still stupidly tired please tell me this will disappear?

Thanks for reading my rant lol x

 

[ziggy_w]

Hi @batgirl2708,

So sorry to read about your experience.

The fast rise in blood sugar will probably have caused you to feel tired -- but this will pass.

You have seen for yourself, how your metabolism reacts to carbs. So, measuring your blood sugar levels after meals provides valuable information.

I believe that those of us dealing proactively with diabetes by learning how our body copes with different types of foods are still in the minority, so your nurse might have little experience with this.

My suggestion would be to continue doing what you have been doing -- if it works for you.

 

[Alexandra100]

I also found out that any kind of carb would send blood sugar up to at least 10mmol/l after 2 hours.

It would be worthwhile testing a few times one hour after the start of your meal. I have delayed stomach emptying, so that I see very little rise after one hour but quite a lot after two. (The usual idea is that the bg rises to a peak at c. 1hr30m and should have gone down by two. But obviously if it has hardly even started rising after one, the number at two hours will be equivalent to what other people see at one. ) Having said that, I would want to get those numbers down. Would you like to post an account of what you eat when during a day? Someone might be able to make some helpful comments.

 

[Geordie_P]

She recommends you get your 5 a day, meaning she'd be happy with you eating 2 bananas and apple and some pineapple?
I think there's no need to be confused, just discount her as someone who knows little about T2 diabetes. That may sound harsh, but if your bg is going up to 14.3, you have demonstrable medical evidence that her advice is wrong for you.

 

[Alexandra100]

She recommends you get your 5 a day

Even on an ultra low carb diet surely one can and should consume 5 helpings of vegetables a day. It is recommended that those be 2 of fruit and 3 of vegetables, but that aim often gets lost in translation, especially as the phrase is always FRUIT and vegetables. As vegetables contain more nutrients than fruit, we can consider ourselves super - well nourished. Maybe Batgirl could point this out to the nurse.

 

[BrianTheElder]

Hi @batgirl2708
Well done for sticking with the info here.
One thing that may explain your tiredness is a lack of energy. If you lower your carbs then you need an alternative source of energy, which can only be supplied by fat. No need to go very high fat if you don't want to, but a modest increase would be good to see if it helps. Bacon & eggs, cheese, butter, double cream, nuts, avocados are all good high fat foods.

 

[Caz_B]

Hi, worth remembering that some medical professionals do not know there stuff or have not kept their knowledge up to date x

 

[johnoo]

Years ago a Diabetic Nurse said I should have Porridge for B/Fast as it was slow releasing sugar.She said her husband was Diabetic & this is what he had.
I believed her & followed the advise.
My BS levels went through the roof & it was the same for all other cereal products.
The problem with Diabetics is there is a lot of good intention-ed but bad advise around & not one solution fits all.
Just hope this helps you a little

 

[Resurgam]

From my highest weight a couple of years ago I am down well over 40lb whilst eating far more fatty foods than we are 'supposed' to do in order to be thin - and I put the weight on by eating high carb not high fat - I was on hardly any fat and I felt dreadful.
I was a full blown diabetic at the time, of course, so that might have something to do with it, but on the same low carb high fat diet as I have tried to stick to for over 40 years and am now not going to give up for anyone, I have shrunk out of all the clothes I wore a year ago.

 

[slip]

She said I should be eating a good diet the same as 'everybody' and shouldn't be cutting out any food groups making sure to get my 5 a day.

You're not cutting out food groups, Carbs are not a food group, carbs are in every food group except fats and oils, and besides going LCHF probably increases your veg intake.

 

[Gabrielle_Tai]

You're not cutting out food groups, Carbs are not a food group, carbs are in every food group except fats and oils, and besides going LCHF probably increases your veg intake.

He is right, carbs is not a food group and low carbs mean low carbs not no carbs so it just eating less carbs. So many misunderstand that low carbs mean no sugar and some thinks low carbs mean no carbs. Anyway today is the first time i try low carbs and it reduce my insulin bolus insulin require to a minimum and my 2 hour is just under 7 compare to yesterday that spike to 18. Going low carbs for life.

 

[Alexandra100]

He is right, carbs is not a food group and low carbs mean low carbs not no carbs so it just eating less carbs. So many misunderstand that low carbs mean no sugar and some thinks low carbs mean no carbs. Anyway today is the first time i try low carbs and it reduce my insulin bolus insulin require to a minimum and my 2 hour is just under 7 compare to yesterday that spike to 18. Going low carbs for life.

It sounds as if you might like Dr Bernstein's book "Diabetes Solution" where he explains his "law of small numbers", that is, exactly as you found, if you keep the carbs low you can keep the insulin low too, which is much safer. The book is a real classic but also has an awful lot of reading in it so you might prefer to go to his site and listen to some of his little "Diabetes University" videos, or read some extracts from the book before deciding whether to get it.

http://www.diabetes-book.com