Hello to all

[mat5014]

Hi there,
Now where do i start?. well i was diagnosed in summer 1997 as type 2 after being placed on steroids for a lung condition (sarcadosis) and was told i had S.I.D (steroid induced diabetes) and promptly went into denial, i had watched my dad suffer from type 1 and eventually succumb in 1996 to its effects ( kidney failure, blindness etc) but still i denied i had anything like this, i didnt have hypo's, i didnt have eye problems or no leg problems.

My working life has been the railways since i was 16 (i am 40 now) when i got diabetes i was a train driver so tablets and medical check up's i could continue ok, but after a couple of years i was told tablets are not working i need to go on insulin, i refused because of my job.

i stopped driving trains in 2001 and have moved into the safety training side ( training track workers etc) which is still classed "safety critical", god knows how i got through safety medicals but i did (must add i did tell them about diabetes) once again up till now refusing all advice to go on insulins and fortunately have had sympathtic G.P'S who continue to prescribe tablets with high blood glucose.
Now in 2010 all this gung ho attitude and ignorance has now hit the buffers ( no pun intended! :lol: )
i Have retinopathy, maculopathy and at moment off work with neuropathy with readings of 17.5 and last HBA1c-13.3%.
it has now left me at the last chance saloon. reluctantly my diabetic consultant has set up for me to go on liraglutide with the view it will not work and insulin is only way forward for me.
Please understand i have only run the other way from insulin because of the work i have been involved for nearly 25 years.
Now im 40 i really need to get this under control but i personally feel i am taking a very scary path and what employer repercussins there is going to be.
well if you read till the end i hope you didnt drop off to sleep!
all the best to everyone on this excellent informative site.

mat

 

[catherinecherub]

Hi mat5014,
Looks like your post got overlooked yesterday. Would like to say a warm welcome to the forum.
Don't know much about train driving and all that but will say that there is a thread on the Diabetes Medication and Drugs Board about Liraglutide, (Victoza) and if you read through it you will see people's experiences of it.
Perhaps we could help with some diet information? Tell us what you normally eat and there may be some changes that you can make to get you better control.

Hope you will ask as many questions as you need to, nothing considered silly here.

Catherine.

 

[cugila]

I see you are maxed out on many anti Diabetic Med's which leads me to think that maybe you need to look at a few things to help you get better control of your Diabetes. Here is some information which Sue and I regularly hand out to newly diagnosed and I think that it might help you better understand things.

As Catherine says there is a growing thread about VICTOZA (Liraglutide) in the Diabetic Medication and Drug's section. Have a read through that for some tips. As with any anti-Diabetic drug it will not work on it's own and some changes have to be made to your lifestyle otherwise it is just a waste of an expensive drug. Here is the link to the latest post there:

viewtopic.php?f=26&t=9281&p=152970#p152970

Here is the advice we usually give to newly diagnosed diabetics. We hope that these few ideas gained through experience help you to gain control and give you some understanding of Diabetes. This forum doesn't always follow the recommended dietary advice, you have to work out what works for you as we are all different.

It's not just 'sugars' you need to avoid, diabetes is an inability to process glucose properly. Carbohydrate converts, in the body, to glucose. So it makes sense to reduce the amount of carbohydrate that you eat which includes sugars.

The main carbs to avoid OR reduce are the complex or starchy carbohydrates such as bread, potatoes, pasta, rice, starchy root veg and also any flour based products. The starchy carbs all convert 100% to glucose in the body and raise the blood sugar levels significantly.

If you are on Insulin you may find that reducing the carb intake also means that you can reduce your dose of insulin. This can help you to keep weight gain down as Insulin tends to make you put on weight and eventually cause insulin resistance. This should be done slowly so as not to cause hypos.

The way to find out how different foods affect you is to do regular daily testing and keep a food diary for a couple of weeks. If you test just before eating, then two hours after eating, you will see the effect of certain foods on your blood glucose levels. Some foods, which are slow acting carbohydrates, are absorbed more slowly so you may need to test three or even four hours later to see the effect that these have on your blood glucose levels.

Buy yourself a carb counter book (you can get these on-line) and you will be able to work out how much carbs you are eating, when you test, the reading two hours after should be roughly the same as the before eating reading, if it is then that meal was fine, if it isn’t then you need to check what you have eaten and think about reducing the portion size of carbs.

When you are buying products check the total carbohydrate content, this includes the sugar content. Do not just go by the amount of sugar on the packaging as this is misleading to a diabetic.

As for a tester, try asking the nurse/doctor and explain that you want to be proactive in managing your own diabetes and therefore need to test so that you can see just how foods affect your blood sugar levels. Hopefully this will work! Sometimes they are not keen to give Type 2’s the strips on prescription, (in the UK) but you can but try!!
If you are an Insulin user in theory you should have no problem getting test strips.

The latest 2010 NICE guidelines for Bg levels are as follows:
Fasting (waking).......between 4 - 7 mmol/l........(Type 1 & 2)
2 hrs after meals......no more than 8.5 mmol/l.....( Type 2)

2hrs after meals....... no more than 9 mmol/l ......(Type 1)

If you are able to keep the post meal numbers lower, so much the better.

It also helps if you can do 30 minutes moderate exercise a day. It doesn't have to be strenuous.

The above is just general advice and it is recommended that you discuss with your HCP before making any changes. You can also ask questions on the forum on anything that is not clear.

Ken / Sue.

 

[mat5014]

well went to see diabetic nurse this morning.
injected for the first time..did i squirm when i looked at needle (only tiny but it looked 15ft long lol)
checked bloods earlier and down to 9.8 already!
i will keep you posted.

mat