Sounds like a good idea.
Sounds like a good idea.Today 7.7 mmol/l - it is so encouraging to see the numbers dropping every day. Absolutely encouraged to go on being careful about what I eat - the Christmas present of chocolate was received with thanks and passed on to the hopefully non diabetic husband of mine. It seems crazy to deny people the ability to check, but where meter and strips etc are supplied people should be followed up and asked for readings on a regular basis, or for the meter to be returned so that they can be put to good use.
Indeed, Penny wise - pound foolishSo annoying isn't it . One day the medics guidelines will catch up with the lower carb / testing revolution .It will cost them money initially but will save in the long run.
I believe in the low carb / test revolution because it works for me ( nearly 4 years post diagnosis and still diet and activity controlled). For me my monitor is the best investment in my health .
Hello! Newly diagnosed about 5 months ago, (although I have been here before because my husband has had Type 2 for 15 years and we’ve benefitted greatly from the advice on this forum, thank you!)
On the day of my own diagnosis I was told not only that I wouldn’t be given a meter/test strips but that the doctor didn’t want me to test at all. Instead he would be giving me a ‘miracle’ drug (Empagliflozin) that ‘you will love’ because I would lose weight.
Fast forward 5 months and I have indeed lost weight, how much is due to the wonder drug is difficult to assess because I have also completely changed my lifestyle - low carbing and daily treadmill. The doctor on seeing my weight reduction was delighted with himself and the miracle drug and I had to remind him that I’d actually put in quite a lot of work myself! My HBAIC has reduced from 10.6 to 7.3. All going in the right direction except now that my weight has plateaued I really would like to test to see what spikes me. Would I be better eating a potato or a slice of wholemeal bread? How can I possibly know how I react to different foods and exercise when I’m not allowed to test. So on this visit I politely requested to be allowed to test and the response was interesting. At first I was told I don’t need to and when I mentioned NICE guidelines/lifestyle changes he said NICE can say what they like but they don’t have to manage his budget. I asked if this was a financial decision and he said “Yes, of course.” But later he said he would prefer to prescribe the expensive wonder drug at £40 a month (he could have given me a cheaper drug (Glimepiride) but I would have gained 10kg instead of losing it!) This drug is not recommended as a first step apparently but he is prepared to ignore the guidelines if he is passionate about an issue. Finally, when I pushed him on the decision to disallow testing being purely financial he said that was part of it but that every diabetic expert, and all the conferences he attends the consensus is that testing does not lead to better control.
So that’s my question. Is it true that diabetic experts believe that patients kept in the dark do better ultimately? It seems unlikely to me, but I’m open to being proved wrong. I really feel that I need to know what’s happening to my body, not to be obsessive about it but to understand what makes a difference. If I have to fund that myself then so be it but I’m confused after the conversation with my doctor as to the real reason why I shouldn’t do it.
Agree totally. I was told it is just not necessary to test "we don't want you to have the stress of testing - it isn't necessary, " Agree with what you say about testing being the biggest breakthrough - absolutely vital to my mind.Having been told not to test, as I wouldn't understand the results, I bought my own supplies and got on with testing. Some time later, following a change of GP, due to a retirement, I had quite a "robust" conversation about this with my new GP. She was quite honest in saying budget couldn't deal with it, bearing in mind the numbers of T2s these days.
My feedback was that I, and so many others would feel better about things if an honest reason was given rather than a patronising, insulting "you won't understand the results" fib, without not even understanding anything about the patient's background. She agreed. We moved on.
As you know, interpreting test results is a little learning curve to begin with, but once upi have a grip of the basics, it's not rocket science.
I found testing was the single biggest breakthrough in understanding how my body works, and therefore learning what foods I could eat with extreme gusto, and which I really had to leave off, for some time at least.
Good luck with it all moving forward.
Welcome, and well done on your approach. Keep up the good work, we're all on a long road and every step countsI was diagnosed 4 weeks ago and I haven't seen a doctor in 6 months. My Surgery nurse doing my new patient check up decided to do a full blood test and a doctor rang 2 days later asking me to pick up my prescription before the surgery closed. I know T2 patients do not get monitors so I bought one (the cheapest) but it has been absolutely invaluable in highlighting certain things.
My Metformin works and my BG has gone from between 11 and 12 (14.3 once) to between 6.5 and 8.1. I notice on days when I can force myself to walk anywhere it lowers my BG even more. And I have found certain foods that cause my BG to jump very quickly and drop slowly.
Seeing the benefit of what I do is a lot more encouraging than not knowing.
And your mind counts for alot!!Agree totally. I was told it is just not necessary to test "we don't want you to have the stress of testing - it isn't necessary, " Agree with what you say about testing being the biggest breakthrough - absolutely vital to my mind.
I couldnt manage without testing regular.my gp didnt think I really needed to test but my diabetes nurse said I must (she was right and my gp apologised to me)how else are we to know what our bodies are doing? My tests are very high and ive never tested low.my gp is now getting me the help I need (I have eating issues) and I can honestly say hes really had a turn around and even rang me to ask my results today and its saturday,I live in a very small village (not even a shop) and I know my doctor cares.good luck to you xI was diagnosed 4 weeks ago and I haven't seen a doctor in 6 months. My Surgery nurse doing my new patient check up decided to do a full blood test and a doctor rang 2 days later asking me to pick up my prescription before the surgery closed. I know T2 patients do not get monitors so I bought one (the cheapest) but it has been absolutely invaluable in highlighting certain things.
My Metformin works and my BG has gone from between 11 and 12 (14.3 once) to between 6.5 and 8.1. I notice on days when I can force myself to walk anywhere it lowers my BG even more. And I have found certain foods that cause my BG to jump very quickly and drop slowly.
Seeing the benefit of what I do is a lot more encouraging than not knowing.
I have an excellent Doctor who has never denied me test strips nor anything else. I am Type 2 on Insulin and my Doctor asked me "After you test do you adjust your medication in light of the test results". I replies "No". Then he said "Why do you test?" I had no answer.
I have been seeing my average BG levels going down whilst sticking almost rigidly to low carb, then I was caught out and could not find anything to eat and ate two small sweet biscuits and my reading shot up to over 11. I would never have known just how much increase in my BG there is from quite small amounts of carb if not for the meter. With Christmas coming I really might have been tempted to eat more carb dense foods, but now I know I just can't do that and still keep my BG at reasonable readings.
Hello IanD. I think my Doctor was trying to tell me to adjust my Insulin according to my meter readings. To answer some of your questions: I have been Diabetic for about 20 years or more but it took 2 years to convince my previous Doctor that I was Diabetic. I have been on Insulin just over 4 years. I always test my blood before driving and if it is a long journey then every 2 hours on the journey. I keep my BG a little higher than normal when driving any long distance in case I am unable to get food at the 2 hourly intervals.HE should be able to tell you why you test, and when to test. Do you drive - & test before you set out and at hourly intervals while driving? Is hourly frequent enough - only you know how your BG is affected. Do you carry emergency sugar? How long have you been on insulin? And how long T2?
On insulin you have immediate concerns - hypo or hyper - as well as needing to build up a pattern of diet/insulin/BG. You diabetic team (if such an entity exists) will be able then to give specific advice.
Well spotted ! In correspondence with Diabetes UK I did ask if there was a T2 on the staff. Presumably not. A T1 responded:
He did NOT respond to my challenge:
IMO that refusal is disgusting - he has the experience that gives him satisfactory control, but refuses to share it with other T1s. He declines to help the other 91% who are at risk of complications.
My diabetic nurse just told me to go away and eat healthy meals .I got myself a code 3 meter from amazon and have been testing loads it's help me to work out what affects my BG levels.Hello! Newly diagnosed about 5 months ago, (although I have been here before because my husband has had Type 2 for 15 years and we’ve benefitted greatly from the advice on this forum, thank you!)
On the day of my own diagnosis I was told not only that I wouldn’t be given a meter/test strips but that the doctor didn’t want me to test at all. Instead he would be giving me a ‘miracle’ drug (Empagliflozin) that ‘you will love’ because I would lose weight.
Fast forward 5 months and I have indeed lost weight, how much is due to the wonder drug is difficult to assess because I have also completely changed my lifestyle - low carbing and daily treadmill. The doctor on seeing my weight reduction was delighted with himself and the miracle drug and I had to remind him that I’d actually put in quite a lot of work myself! My HBAIC has reduced from 10.6 to 7.3. All going in the right direction except now that my weight has plateaued I really would like to test to see what spikes me. Would I be better eating a potato or a slice of wholemeal bread? How can I possibly know how I react to different foods and exercise when I’m not allowed to test. So on this visit I politely requested to be allowed to test and the response was interesting. At first I was told I don’t need to and when I mentioned NICE guidelines/lifestyle changes he said NICE can say what they like but they don’t have to manage his budget. I asked if this was a financial decision and he said “Yes, of course.” But later he said he would prefer to prescribe the expensive wonder drug at £40 a month (he could have given me a cheaper drug (Glimepiride) but I would have gained 10kg instead of losing it!) This drug is not recommended as a first step apparently but he is prepared to ignore the guidelines if he is passionate about an issue. Finally, when I pushed him on the decision to disallow testing being purely financial he said that was part of it but that every diabetic expert, and all the conferences he attends the consensus is that testing does not lead to better control.
So that’s my question. Is it true that diabetic experts believe that patients kept in the dark do better ultimately? It seems unlikely to me, but I’m open to being proved wrong. I really feel that I need to know what’s happening to my body, not to be obsessive about it but to understand what makes a difference. If I have to fund that myself then so be it but I’m confused after the conversation with my doctor as to the real reason why I shouldn’t do it.
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