Hello from from the Isle of Lewis

[malcymjc]

Hi everyone
I have an appointment tomorrow with the practice nurse to "discuss recent elevated blood glucose results" I have high blood pressure and cholesterol so the blood tests I thought were the usual liver function tests so was a bit taken aback when the letter arrived inviting me to see the nurse. The results were
Ha1bc 7.6 and fasting glucose 9.7 after an earlier random blood glucose came in at 12.5 which I now understand prompted the further tests.
When I got the letter I decided to do some research so I have been lurking about the forums. I went out and bought a monitor and for the last five days I have been testing before an after food.....wow bread has some effect. My peaks two hours after eating have been between 10.5 and 17.7, morning results have been about 9. But I see that a 30 minute walk with the dog can knock 3 points off a reading getting it down to below 6 a couple of times.
I don't know if I have type 2 but certainly I think I need to control my diet and do more exercise. I am confused by it all and worried about what people have said about differing attitudes and approach by health care professionals. I hope you don't mind me jumping the gun and posting before diagnosis but I suppose I am getting a bit twitchy tonight.
Best wishes
Malcolm

 

[Gezzabelle]

Hi everyone
I have an appointment tomorrow with the practice nurse to "discuss recent elevated blood glucose results" I have high blood pressure and cholesterol so the blood tests I thought were the usual liver function tests so was a bit taken aback when the letter arrived inviting me to see the nurse. The results were
Ha1bc 7.6 and fasting glucose 9.7 after an earlier random blood glucose came in at 12.5 which I now understand prompted the further tests.
When I got the letter I decided to do some research so I have been lurking about the forums. I went out and bought a monitor and for the last five days I have been testing before an after food.....wow bread has some effect. My peaks two hours after eating have been between 10.5 and 17.7, morning results have been about 9. But I see that a 30 minute walk with the dog can knock 3 points off a reading getting it down to below 6 a couple of times.
I don't know if I have type 2 but certainly I think I need to control my diet and do more exercise. I am confused by it all and worried about what people have said about differing attitudes and approach by health care professionals. I hope you don't mind me jumping the gun and posting before diagnosis but I suppose I am getting a bit twitchy tonight.
Best wishes
Malcolm

Hi Malcolm and welcome to the madhouse ...It is perfectly understandable to be a little ''twitchy'' but try not to worry too much...stress is the last thing you need right now. Changing your diet will have a big impact on your numbers....as you have already started to learn what 'spikes' your readings. Cutting down on carbs and all things sweet is a good start. Read labels on anything you buy to see what carb value it has and try to cut out bread, rice, pasta,cakes, potatoes,ready made meals, chocolate/sweets, crisps etc. Everything has an effect on your blood glucose readings so try and find healthy alternatives. If you browse the food and diet sections on here you will get some ideas. Try not to worry too much until you know whats what but also know that there are people here to help you in any way they can

 

[malcymjc]

Thanks Gezzabelle

 

[noblehead]

Hi malcymjc and welcome to the forum.

I'm going to tag @daisy1 as she has some excellent advice that she gives to new members of the forum, hope all goes well tomorrow.

 

[malcymjc]

Thanks Noblehead, whatever outcome is tomorrow it will be fine. I have read so many positive posts on the forums here where people with much higher numbers than me seem to be tackling their diagnosis and taking control of their health in a way that they probably never would have considered prior to being diagnosed. Which is a huge comfort.

 

[Gezzabelle]

Thanks Noblehead, whatever outcome is tomorrow it will be fine. I have read so many positive posts on the forums here where people with much higher numbers than me seem to be tackling their diagnosis and taking control of their health in a way that they probably never would have considered prior to being diagnosed. Which is a huge comfort.

If it's any consolation Malcy I feel better now than I have in years. Changing my diet has not only made me lose weight but has given me a new lease of life....full of energy and no more feeling sluggish and lethargic/tired etc. It takes a while to make the changes needed to your diet but once you get used to it, it becomes second nature to you and it actually feels good to eat proper food instead of diving into junk food and processed food. Good luck for tomorrow

 

[WeeFergus]

Welcome Malcymjc. I hope tomorrow goes well for you. Have you read the thread about the MyDiabetesMyWay website that is available to all those who have diabetes in Scotland? It's definitely worth joining as it keeps track of all your BG, cholesterol, weight and other diabetes related results. It also contains graphs and charts of 'healthy' targets and where you sit in relation to them.

 

[SueB743]

Hi and welcome from me. I know it is a difficult time but you are already taking positive steps. You may be fortunate with your healthcare team, but either way we will be here too helping each other along the way.

You will see from the forum that adjustments are likely to be needed to lifestyle. Many of us take this as an opportunity to make this a change for the better and discover a whole new lease of life, some brilliant forum members and some great new food as well.

Good luck for your appointment tomorrow.

 

[malcymjc]

Hello WeeFergus thanks for the heads up on MyDiabetesMyWay had a quick look and depending on what I am told tomorrow will probably join up.

 

[malcymjc]

Hi SueB743 thanks. I have been lurking around the forum so I realise that there is a lot of positive people here.

 

[daisy1]

@malcymjc

Hello Malcolm and welcome to the forum

Here is the information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful. Ask as many questions as you like and someone will 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 150,000 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.

 

[malcymjc]

Nurse today said although the blood results were in the diabetic range in the absence of frequent peeing and thirst issues (although I did tell her that I wake through the night to drink because of the thirst) it was inconclusive. So she has taken more blood to do another Ha1bc test and a thyroid test. She wasn't happy when I told her that I had been testing my own BG with a home monitor and said that wasn't a very good idea. Oh and I am to avoid drinking red wine as it is very bad for sugar. So no clearer as to what's going on. I think I will go with what the monitor is telling me and alter my carb intake and try and get my post meal BG levels down. Whatever happens it has given me the incentive to have a good look at my diet and lifestyle.