Hello. Clarice Type 1.

Hello Clarice

Hi Clarice and welcome to the forum

If you mention the problems that you are experiencing we will try our best to help.

clarbarstar said:

Hidey hi campers! The name's Clarice and I've been type 1 for 9 years, poorly controlled and in constant fear of the future. Whey hey. Looking forward to chatting to all the fellow diabetes peeps

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Hello and welcome to the forum Clarice

RRB

Well, you summed up how many of us feel about the NHS Clarice, so welcome, and your wellbeing starts here. @daisy1 will be along soon with a load of facts and reading to get you started. Glad to have you aboard.

DeejayR said:

Well, you summed up how many of us feel about the NHS Clarice, so welcome, and your wellbeing starts here. @daisy1 will be along soon with a load of facts and reading to get you started. Glad to have you aboard.

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@clarbarstar

Hello Clarice and welcome to the forum

It looks like you need some help now so I'll give you the basic information we give to new members even though you are not newly diagnosed. I hope you will find it helpful to regain some control. Ask all the questions you need to and some members will come along and help.


BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEWLY DIAGNOSED DIABETICS

Diabetes is the general term to describe people who have blood that is sweeter than normal. A number of different types of diabetes exist.

A diagnosis of diabetes tends to be a big shock for most of us. It’s far from the end of the world though and on this forum you’ll find over 130,000 people who are demonstrating this.

On the forum we have found that with the number of new people being diagnosed with diabetes each day, sometimes the NHS is not being able to give all the advice it would perhaps like to deliver - particularly with regards to people with type 2 diabetes.

The role of carbohydrate

Carbohydrates are a factor in diabetes because they ultimately break down into sugar (glucose) within our blood. We then need enough insulin to either convert the blood sugar into energy for our body, or to store the blood sugar as body fat.

If the amount of carbohydrate we take in is more than our body’s own (or injected) insulin can cope with, then our blood sugar will rise.

The bad news

Research indicates that raised blood sugar levels over a period of years can lead to organ damage, commonly referred to as diabetic complications.

The good news

People on the forum here have shown that there is plenty of opportunity to keep blood sugar levels from going too high. It’s a daily task but it’s within our reach and it’s well worth the effort.

Controlling your carbs

The info below is primarily aimed at people with type 2 diabetes, however, it may also be of benefit for other types of diabetes as well.
There are two approaches to controlling your carbs:

• Reduce your carbohydrate intake
• Choose ‘better’ carbohydrates

Reduce your carbohydrates

A large number of people on this forum have chosen to reduce the amount of carbohydrates they eat as they have found this to be an effective way of improving (lowering) their blood sugar levels.

The carbohydrates which tend to have the most pronounced effect on blood sugar levels tend to be starchy carbohydrates such as rice, pasta, bread, potatoes and similar root vegetables, flour based products (pastry, cakes, biscuits, battered food etc) and certain fruits.

Choosing better carbohydrates

Another option is to replace ‘white carbohydrates’ (such as white bread, white rice, white flour etc) with whole grain varieties. The idea behind having whole grain varieties is that the carbohydrates get broken down slower than the white varieties –and these are said to have a lower glycaemic index.
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/food/diabetes-and-whole-grains.html

The low glycaemic index diet is often favoured by healthcare professionals but some people with diabetes find that low GI does not help their blood sugar enough and may wish to cut out these foods altogether.

Read more on carbohydrates and diabetes

Eating what works for you

Different people respond differently to different types of food. What works for one person may not work so well for another. The best way to see which foods are working for you is to test your blood sugar with a glucose meter.

To be able to see what effect a particular type of food or meal has on your blood sugar is to do a test before the meal and then test after the meal. A test 2 hours after the meal gives a good idea of how your body has reacted to the meal.

The blood sugar ranges recommended by NICE are as follows:

Blood glucose ranges for type 2 diabetes

• Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
• 2 hours after meals: under 8.5 mmol/l

Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (adults)

• Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
• 2 hours after meals: under 9 mmol/l

Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (children)

• Before meals: 4 to 8 mmol/l
• 2 hours after meals: under 10 mmol/l

However, those that are able to, may wish to keep blood sugar levels below the NICE after meal targets.

Access to blood glucose test strips

The NICE guidelines suggest that people newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes should be offered:

• structured education to every person and/or their carer at and around the time of diagnosis, with annual reinforcement and review
• self-monitoring of plasma glucose to a person newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes only as an integral part of his or her self-management education

Therefore both structured education and self-monitoring of blood glucose should be offered to people with type 2 diabetes. Read more on getting access to bloodglucose testing supplies.

You may also be interested to read questions to ask at a diabetic clinic

Note: This post has been edited from Sue/Ken's post to include up to date information.

clarbarstar said:

Hi billybadger and noblehead, thanks for the welcome! I have such a big list of qualms and questions that I don't even know where to start! I think first things first is finding a GP in the NHS that gives a ****. I've given up going to my GP, a notification flashes up every few months on their computer, I'm seen by a nurse who tells me that I need to be better because of complications and then off I go. In 9 years I've never had my feet checked and I've had my eyes checked (was well overdue) after phoning around hospitals and waiting to finally get a date. I've been on DAFNE and I am a student dietitian; I know they have bad press on here from some of the forum posts I've seen and I'm not surprised to be honest, the profession evidently needs to up it's game in regards to diabetes. So essentially... I am in no mans land of the NHS, I can't remember the last time I had my HbA1c checked. I have the knowledge but I think the primary reason for my poor control is not being able to sustain motivation or ever seeing a professional to review my care. Hence why I'm on the forum, I've never really had constant contact with people in the same boat and hoping that just not feeling alone with it all is a step in the right direction thanks if you've read this much! I promise future posts won't be this long.

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You need to find that motivation Clara otherwise things will catch-up with you. I would start with your gp, tell them you are struggling with your diabetes control and ask to be referred over to the care of your local hospital diabetes clinic, they are more adapt at dealing with insulin related issues and they hopefully get you on the right path to better control.

It's important to have blood and urine tests done annually as they not only measure your Hba1c but also check for signs of signs of kidney disease amongst others, you also need to have your feet examined regularly, they may do this at the hospital clinic or they will book an appointment with a podiatrist who will do this for you.

Do seek help and don't struggle alone any longer, there's help and support there but you need to make them aware that a problem exists.

I completely agree with Noblehead about getting referred to your local Diabetes Clinic. Mine has been a great support and whilst my GPs practice tried hard, they just don't have the expertise that the clinic has

clarbarstar said:

I've had a major breakthrough in accepting that I have diabetes and always will have it and that breakthrough has happened this week for the first time in 9 years.

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Cool

clarbarstar said:

Thank you peeps! I am still consistently trying to have good control by actually testing my blood and actually thinking about dosage and writing in my diary. I think the key thing for me is that I've had a major breakthrough in accepting that I have diabetes and always will have it and that breakthrough has happened this week for the first time in 9 years. I know I should tell the gp to refer to me
to clinic and I'll do so when I'm ready thanks so much for all being a part of the journey! Xxx

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Hi @clarbarstar

that is a really important breakthru -- acceptance is the major cornerstone for getting on with looking after yourself.
really pleased for you

clarbarstar said:

Thank you peeps! I am still consistently trying to have good control by actually testing my blood and actually thinking about dosage and writing in my diary. I think the key thing for me is that I've had a major breakthrough in accepting that I have diabetes and always will have it and that breakthrough has happened this week for the first time in 9 years. I know I should tell the gp to refer to me
to clinic and I'll do so when I'm ready thanks so much for all being a part of the journey! Xxx

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Excellent Clarice, do keeps us informed on your progress