Feeling Low

Hi, welcome

I have been diagnosed for 8ish years and yes it’s a struggle, not sure if that’s good news for you sorry, at first it was a complete nightmare, too much to take in, strangely it may have been easier for me as my diagnosis was more severe so fear helped me with motivation.

There is some not terrible news, you will learn which foods to eat, which are a no no, you will discover that exercise does not need to be intense but can be a walk in the countryside or buy a dog if you don’t have one, or if you live in a flat, a really energetic hamster.

The best news is prediabetes is a great time to get yourself healthy and shut the door before the horse bolts, motivation is the most difficult thing to master, you could try searching google images for diabetic complications?

I’m sorry I’m not being helpful, I just feel for you as I remember how tough it is in the early days, you will be fine, you will find your motivation and you may even find this was a good thing because you could be healthier than you would have been without diabetes.

Keep reading the forum, try to draw on others experiences, try not to let it get you down, best of luck.

Denmo1 said:

I have always had a 'bad relationship' with food since my early teens, and was anorexic at one point.

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@Denmo1 Hello, is there any chance you could organise some counselling sessions to help you with this? Maybe ask your GP, orGoogle organisations that support people with a history of or at risk of eating disorders? Don't feel you "ought" to be able to cope alone.

We are here for you. Members of this Forum don't just live in the UK, but all over the world, so there is always someone awake to talk to. But the more backup you can organise the better. Good luck!

Hi Denmo, welcome! I had gestational diabetes followes by borderline prediabetes, but it's now under control (sorry, I'm one of those annoying ones!). It's not always been easy, but I'd love to share some of the things I've found helpful. Sorry if this is just repeating things you've already read.

- A lot of us in this boat find that reducing carbs is key in bringing blood sugars down. So cut out or strictly limit potatoes, pasta, rice and bread. There are some great swaps you can do. For example, there are several good low-carb breads out there. I love Livlife bread, which is available from Waitrose or Co-op if you're in the UK. Other good swaps include celeriac for potato (mashed with creme fraiche or roasted); konjac noodles for pasta (there's a brand called Barenaked noodles that I like); cauliflower rice instead of rice. You increase protein and healthy fats to compensate for the carbs. 'Pairing' carbs with protein and fat can reduce a blood sugar spike. Things like olive oil, nuts, seeds, olives, oily fish, full-fat Greek yoghurt, meat, cheese in moderation etc are great.
- Getting a blood glucose monitor and testing to see which foods you can and can't tolerate is really useful. There are pages on this site with more info. This was really key for me - I discovered that Shredded Wheat sent my blood glucose into double figures, for example!
- Don't feel you can't ever have a treat - maybe just redefine what that looks like. Before being diagnosed, I could happily polish off a whole bag of Haribo (yup, big kid here). Now, a treat is full-fat yoghurt with berries, or a square or two of dark chocolate with a handful of almonds (at least 70% cocoa so the sugar content isn't too high - I like 85% these days).
- Exercise really does help with the blood glucose levels, but as pointed out above, this could just be walking if that suits you. I used to walk up and down the stairs for 15 minutes after my evening meal when I was pregnant!
- If you go low carb, you will probably find any excess weight simply falls off. I actually ended up losing a bit too much and had to work to put some back on!
- I found that getting some good low-carb cookbooks helped - eg the Fast 800 ones (I certainly didn't do the 800 calories a day bit, though!).

It's a really hard thing to get your head around this diagnosis, I know. Take your time, read up about it all here and on the Diet Doctor site, and find out what works best for you. Very best of luck!

Scroll down and you'll see a post by me... you're definitely not alone.

Welcome @Denmo1
I was one of those that went cold turkey, hard and fast... but I was aided by being diagnosed on lockdown day so had no access to food other than what was delivered, a husband who policed me like the gestapo and I had nothing else to do other than research and take long walks...
But I wouldn't recommend that route now, especially not to someone like yourself with prediabetic levels and a history of odd relationship with food.
The good news is you have time on your side and can marshal your resources and support network first.
You can take just one step a time, no need to do it all at once.
The step I missed out was finding out what I currently ate was doing to my body, and by cutting out lots of things I may have thrown out the good with the bad.
You might want to think about getting a monitor to test your bg levels as you eat 'normally' for a few weeks. That way there's no pressure to change or feel guilty, you are just seeing what's going on and collecting data.
Then when you are ready you can start to implement changes, one at a time.
During those first few weeks you can also get your support resources together. That maybe books or videos, a counsellor, friends and family so that you are not doing this alone.
You also stick around on this forum which is the best place ever for help and support BUT you do make sure that if you spot signs of any old patterns returning (that's why I'm a little hesitant to recommend monitoring if it causes too much anxiety) that you get help.

And yes, even though I managed to go low carb hard and fast, I felt down and sad and angry and confused and "why me?". We all do, it's part of being human. Nothing to be ashamed of.

You'll do fine, just take it steady, no rush.

Denmo1 said:

Hi, I found out that I am pre-diabetic a few weeks ago, am trying to get my head around pre-diabetes, diet, exercise, carbs, sugars etc...............
I am feeling so 'low' about it all and can't seem to get myself on track.
I know I have to lose weight and cut out cakes, biscuits, chocolate....................but finding it really hard to do this. I have always had a 'bad relationship' with food since my early teens, and was anorexic at one point.
I feel that it is just me that can't sort myself out, especially when I hear stories from people who just seemed to have cut everything bad out of their diet immediately and have started exercising every day, and have gotten their sugar levels back to normal. (which is great for them, of course)

Is there anyone else who is finding this hard?....
Thanks

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I have a troubled history with food too. I think that people like you and me who have been anorexic usually find it hard work to rebuild a sensible, healthy, grown-up relationship with food and nutrition. For me, finding out about the real-food, low carb way of eating, with plenty of good quality protein and fat and green vegetables and minimal processed rubbish was the thing that finally turned an OK relationship with food into a joyful and engaged relationship with food, and I cannot tell you what a big deal that is for me.
My suggestion would be that you start thinking of your body as a high-performance machine, that needs premium fuel to run well. And it is your job to provide that premium fuel, and avoid the low-grade, low-nutrition rubbish that leads to poor performance. Once you start doing that, and start feeling better and stronger, you might surprise yourself by how easy it becomes. There is so much good information on this site about how you can make real food, low-carb work for you and set you on a path to sustainable good health. Please don't feel overwhelmed: you can do it, and this really could be a turning point for you.