• Guest - w'd love to know what you think about the forum! Take the 2025 Survey »

Going overboard for Xmas.

T

topbins

Member
Messages
7
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Hey, I lay awake after I've had few mince pies and 6 chocolate biscuits. I lost 17 kg in the last year but my HB1AC test was 50 so still a bit high. I take 4 metformins and one statin a day and a 1 empaglifzon a day. I have been eating so well, and feel I've messed up. Am I being unreasonable? I'm 30 and can't even have a blow out at Xmas.

I just want to put diabetes in remission.
 
Well....I'm sure we'd all like to have a steely determination to succeed at absolutely everything in life .

And realistically T2D, is just one part of our lives to try to manage, as best we can.

But it would be an odd human who didn't have moments of weakness.

And Christmas IS probably the hardest time for many of us.

It's often said, it's a marathon, not a sprint .

So celebrate the many successes, rather than depress yourself with the occasional failure.

Because, Tomorrow, when it comes, you can pick yourself up & learn from those moments as you begin building your next successful streak .

MERRY CHRISTMAS .
 
Last edited:
I have had problems with Christmas for a very long time. Even when I did weight watchers! Before my pre diabetes and diabetes days. To be quite honest have never been able to have a blow out. I think I am rather horrible company at Christmas. Used to work at Christmas and it was good for me as never had to face all the food etc. We ate well and when I look at the ads on TV have never bought a box or tin of sweets. Mind you was bought them at work!
It really is a very tough time of year.
Gets better after Christmas and start all over again.
Merry Christmas. Tomorrow another day....
 

Big question is, did you enjoy it? If I’m going to wander off piste then I want it to be for something I’ll enjoy and appreciate rather than eating something just because it’s there.

But whatever the motivation, in the grand scheme of things a one-off like that won’t make a great deal of difference. Draw a line and move on and perhaps try and find something indulgent you can enjoy which suits your health goals.
 

What should I eat at Christmas?

"What should I eat at Christmas?" We get this question all the time. Most people are expecting us to give them a food list or a meal plan, but here’s the thing - there is no one plan that suits everyone. You get to decide what works for you, as what works for you may not work for someone else.
www.rlmedicine.com
This blog from some Australian doctors contains some very good tips on how to manage, and not to feel guilty!
Me, I try to cope by having just a little of what I shouldn't, and yet 2 small pieces of homemade birthday cake yesterday sent me to bed hours later with massive indigestion. My body is telling me I don't like even when my tongue and my head say I do
 
Amazing encouraging information, with amazing encouraging links leading off it. SO valuable, relevant and down to earth. Thank you so very much for posting it - that will give support to so many!
 
It's done now, so hopefully back on track soon?

The first year I planned ahead, I found some great lower carb recipes here and on other blogs, and developed some myself.
As a result both birthdays, buffets at other's homes and Christmas food (most of which I loved) all had substitutes that tasted good.

So for next year - make mince pies with ground almond pastry, fill with a mix of home dried cranberries (bought around thanksgiving when they first come into shops in the UK), a little cooking apple, loads of spices, a squirt of lemon juice and erythritol. (I mix this a couple of days in advance so the flavours mix, then store in the fridge). Have them with double cream or real egg custard made with half milk and half cream?
Get in some 85% or 90% dark chocolate, melt it carefully then flavour as wanted (I sometimes mix mine with warmed double cream and a little sweetener) - you can use a real orange extract or make chocolate covered marzipan or if you have time make some keto biscuits and cover them with 90% chocolate.

The https://alldayidreamaboutfood.com/ site has loads of sweets, cake and biscuits recipes - not all of which require fancy ingredients.
 
It's Christmas and Easter I really struggle with. I'm a food addict in all fairness but I have really tried this year, since the eye screening said I was showing signs of retnothreapy.
 
Hey I did enjoy it at the time yes. I've been really strict since June. I've stopped drinking and stopped mainly heaving sugary stuff. It was fox biscuits which was bought for us as an Xmas gift.

But before I went to bed, I ate 4 more chocolates from the tin. Not quite sure why I did it. From June I was 17 stone and 7 pounds. I am now 15 stone and 4 pounds. I was still eating Kebabs on a weekly basis from the takeaway. I wouldn't say I have been dieting but I've been exercising daily, with the school run. As my wife now has a job. I am a male and also afro Carribbean so I know some of it is from family.

Both parents of mine are diabetic although type 1. And both sets of grandparents were diabetic. But I haven't helped with my food addiction. I used to eat 4-5 bars of chocolate a night. And those huge bag of crisps all to myself. Or I'd order on deliveroo and order ice cream.

The eye screening was a major wake up call, plus I have three children 6 and under.

I was disappointed that I had lost two stone in weight and my hba1 test was not under the 48 to get off one of my tablets. It was 50, last year it was 55. So I guess progress has been made.

I guess given up the kebabs would be a start to get under or at 48.

My birthday is also on Friday coming up and I've begged the wife not to bake me a cake.

So to answer the question I did enjoy the chocolates but I always think 'will I live long enough, to see my children grow up' it's strange.

Sorry for the essay.
 
Happy Birthday for Friday
 
I made my own custard yesterday without sugar and hopefully low carb. Half almond milk, cream (guessed amount of cream), 2 eggs and a little stevia and vanilla essence. Its a little runny but will do with my sugar free jelly and whipped double cream later
 
topbins said:
I guess given up the kebabs would be a start to get under or at 48.
Click to expand...
Just have it without the bread - let’s face it, that’s the least tasty part. It’s a pretty decent option then.

Antje77 said:
Why not ask her if she would like to try her hand at a low carb cake?
That way you can have your birthday cake without it causing high blood glucose.
Click to expand...
@topbins this is a good low carb cake - it‘s a Nigella Lawson recipe which was designed using almond flour (ground almonds are just as good), so the only substitute needed is a sweetener instead of sugar. I’m not a baker and this was the first low carb I ever made and it turned out great! I’ve listed erythritol as the sweetener, but you can use others too - beware of Xylitol if you have pets as it’s poisonous to them.

topbins said:
But I haven't helped with my food addiction
Click to expand...

Check out this site for help with that - the book of the same name by Jen Unwin is highly recommended: https://forkintheroad.co.uk/


 
Thank you to everyone for their advice. Much appreciated.

I went on a long walk earlier, and then after treated myself to fox biscuits. I shouldn't of but it's Christmas I guess
I'm just hoping this will pass in the new year and I will get back to my old self the last 6 months. I've literally turned down all sugars.

I hope that it's Christmas that I won't pay the price. I guess I do have anixety everytime I eat sweet or savory stuff I like.

After the biscuits I feel guilty BUT they were so good that it was a present after all
maybe I'm just trying to justify eating the biscuits when it's not good for my blood sugar.
 
hello and welcome @topbins

Many of us type 2s find Christmas and other significant days difficult. I would describe myself as a carboholic as I haven't met a carb I didn't like (slight exaggeration only).

My first Christmas we changed what we ate and had a seafood lunch with lobster- not an extravagance I can justify often. This meant that the food I would identify as my 'treat' was basically no carbs'.

The other thing I would say is that carb addiction is real for me. The fewer carbs I eat the less tempting are those around me and the easier it is to have none. I find moderation (at least with carbs) difficult- not so much with other things.

So my thoughts are you need to decide when Christmas ends and you go back to your now usual way of eating. The danger can be celebrating New Year and then....

I would second @Outlier and suggest that Christmas ends now and you go back to your usual way of eating. The sooner you get back to it the easier it will be in my experience. My husband is back to work so this morning I was on the treadmill. My lifestyle was badly effected by work and illness this year- my back to it starts today rather than New Year. I am still on leave from work so hoping to use that extra capacity to help my body get back to where it should be. I do not like exercise at all so I find it very easy to make excuses not to do it.

Good luck and welcome
 
I can associate with this so much! I had hba1c of 111 in October. DN wanted to increase meds immediately but I persuaded her to give me the chance to lower it myself. Deal is if hba1c isn't in 50s at start of January then I've to increase meds. I've been doing so well and the fear has kept me going. My readings were mostly in the 7 or 8 range every day.......then Christmas happened! I tested on Christmas night and was 18.8. I was so very disappointed in myself and angry at sabotaging all my efforts. In hindsight it wasn't worth it and I'm now dreading the impact it will have on my hba1c and the consequences. I did have a throat infection in middle of December too which also increased my readings but I had no control over that.
I've come back to the forum tonight to renew my motivation and reading this thread reminds me that we are all human and can fall off the wagon ( I told myself that it was a controlled stepping off the wagon - who am I kidding!) It's good to know that I'm not alone. Plus there's lots of good advice here. Thank you so much.
 
I made a custard that worked out better than the Ambrosia on our family trifle...400g of double cream, 2teaspoons vanilla essence, 2 Tablespoon of stevia sugar, 6 egg yolks, 2 tablespoons of butter, 1/2 tsp of xanthan gum.

Beat the sugar and eggs to form a pale cream. Heat the cream, and vanilla to barely simmering. Slowly whisk hot cream mix into egg mix, return to heat whisking all the time. Careful it does not curdle!... If it does, take off the heat and whizz with a stick blender and it will go perfectly smooth again. When it coats the back of a spoon take off the heat and whisk in the butter and xanthan gum... serve hot or chill. I found this perfect for trifle as it is nice and thick and sets even thicker if chilled!
I tried mixing home made low carb biscuits with "no sugar jelly" for a trifle, but it tasted very chemically... so made another one with jelly and raspberries only, leaving out the cookies, topped with the low carb custard and some aerated cream, decorated with almond slivers and grated 90% chocolate. The second one was delicious and did not taste chemically at all.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Menu
Log in
Register
Cookies are required to use this site. You must accept them to continue using the site. Learn More.…