In most areas of my life i'm a moderate. I value the eagerness and keeness of the hard-liners and the enthusiasm of the zealots - i acknowledge that is largely their drive and determination that brings change.
But having said that, i absolutely believe, with equal passion, that the middle road neednt be ignored. I can only use myself as an absolute example, so i'll explain my position.
14 months ago i was a really, very overweight 49 year old idle person who scoffed all the wrong foods in quantity (my food allergy notwithstanding). By sheer chance, i was sent by a gynea consultant at a clinic to ask my GP for a full range of blood tests. My GP, somewhat bemused as i rarely darkened the surgery door, agreed.
And i was diagnosed with diabetes Type 2 and my morning fasting level after several days of really being ultra careful on what i ate,was almost 11. I had raised BP, high cholesterol (but i forget to what level) and was in shock. The nurse at the diabetes clinic at the surgery told me not to fret, to take things one day at a time, to lose weight, to only eat carbs with protein, if at all possible and would i like a meter to test myself once or twice a week?
I turned to the internet, read a great deal and found one or two forums like this one. I began to exercise and to watch carefully what i ate. I still had a very rudimentary understanding of this disease. My GP had decided, after discussion with me, to prescribe no medication for three months, unless the nurse discovered at my weekly visits that i wasnt making improvements.
Three months later and already having lost a fair chunk of weight, my GP offered Metrformin to reduce the DP and address the problem i was having of needing to get up to the toilet several times a night. Reluctantly, i agreed. And you know why i was reluctant? It was because on two forums, there seemed such a flavour of triumph from those who chose to avoid meds and restrict their carb intake drastically. It seemed and it still seems to me, to be a sort of badge of honour to go without something so basic in order to keep levels as close to normal as possible. That is what bothers me, mainly.
I know the GPs are caught between a rock and a hard place where they try to help their patients and please the accountants. I know that many GPs are too idle to bother reading the lastest news and information on diabetes. And i know that most diabetics never find the internet to research their disease. But that doesnt automatically mean those patients are slowly killing themselves. They arent.
So, now i have lost a huge amount of weight, my BP and cholesterol had both reached normal levels by the time the first three months' trial was up. I would love to have that cholesterol test every 6 months but i'm a realistic. There isnt the money. I already receive free medicine, more test strips than the Government would like - but i also buy my own - and excellent care from the GP practice. I know i am one of the fortunate ones.
I think this forum, given that everyone who finds and joins it already displays above average interest in the management of their disease, ought to sometimes remember that there is a middle road and that the tendency to **** off the GPs isnt really as productive as it intends. Putting people who are already worried and insecure into a mindset where they mistrust the doctors isnt helpful. How about pushing the wider message, that one needs to restrict carbs and monitor their effect but also take every available piece of help from the doctors? Including medication. The meds available arent a cure and they arent carte blanche to ignore sensible eating strategies but they are a tool to be used.
Where is the merit in leading a life free of meds and yet fretting over everything eaten? Where is the quality of life in constant worrying about food intake?
My message to anyone recently diagnosed is simple: if you're overweight, diet; If you dont exercise, start it now; reduce your white carb intake to zero if possible and reduce anyway your carb intake; eat those brown carbs with protein if possible; accept medicine if offered; allow yourself treats now and then; be happy you are bright enough to take an active interest in your health! And have fun. Dont worry so much. Dont get hung up on the stories of doom.
14 months on, i am fitter than i have been for more than 20 years. My BP is 110/72. My cholesterol is still within normal limits. My medication is now reduced (albeit on a 3 month trial) and i am aware of my disease and am not complacent. I use my GP and nurse to help me and i make sure they work with me on this, not just tell me what to do.
And i put this relative success story down to this and another forum. It was online that i learnt most of what i know, other than what my GP told me and she went online herself to check out what's the latest being said. Locally too, the hospital consultant for diabetes gathers the GPs together every few months to get feedback on the diabetes patients and to explain how things are at the hospital end.
Lobbying the GPs is a great idea. Insisting they listen and learn from us, the patients, is a very good idea. As is we patients listening to the GPs and following their advice - now and then, eh?
bunty
But having said that, i absolutely believe, with equal passion, that the middle road neednt be ignored. I can only use myself as an absolute example, so i'll explain my position.
14 months ago i was a really, very overweight 49 year old idle person who scoffed all the wrong foods in quantity (my food allergy notwithstanding). By sheer chance, i was sent by a gynea consultant at a clinic to ask my GP for a full range of blood tests. My GP, somewhat bemused as i rarely darkened the surgery door, agreed.
And i was diagnosed with diabetes Type 2 and my morning fasting level after several days of really being ultra careful on what i ate,was almost 11. I had raised BP, high cholesterol (but i forget to what level) and was in shock. The nurse at the diabetes clinic at the surgery told me not to fret, to take things one day at a time, to lose weight, to only eat carbs with protein, if at all possible and would i like a meter to test myself once or twice a week?
I turned to the internet, read a great deal and found one or two forums like this one. I began to exercise and to watch carefully what i ate. I still had a very rudimentary understanding of this disease. My GP had decided, after discussion with me, to prescribe no medication for three months, unless the nurse discovered at my weekly visits that i wasnt making improvements.
Three months later and already having lost a fair chunk of weight, my GP offered Metrformin to reduce the DP and address the problem i was having of needing to get up to the toilet several times a night. Reluctantly, i agreed. And you know why i was reluctant? It was because on two forums, there seemed such a flavour of triumph from those who chose to avoid meds and restrict their carb intake drastically. It seemed and it still seems to me, to be a sort of badge of honour to go without something so basic in order to keep levels as close to normal as possible. That is what bothers me, mainly.
I know the GPs are caught between a rock and a hard place where they try to help their patients and please the accountants. I know that many GPs are too idle to bother reading the lastest news and information on diabetes. And i know that most diabetics never find the internet to research their disease. But that doesnt automatically mean those patients are slowly killing themselves. They arent.
So, now i have lost a huge amount of weight, my BP and cholesterol had both reached normal levels by the time the first three months' trial was up. I would love to have that cholesterol test every 6 months but i'm a realistic. There isnt the money. I already receive free medicine, more test strips than the Government would like - but i also buy my own - and excellent care from the GP practice. I know i am one of the fortunate ones.
I think this forum, given that everyone who finds and joins it already displays above average interest in the management of their disease, ought to sometimes remember that there is a middle road and that the tendency to **** off the GPs isnt really as productive as it intends. Putting people who are already worried and insecure into a mindset where they mistrust the doctors isnt helpful. How about pushing the wider message, that one needs to restrict carbs and monitor their effect but also take every available piece of help from the doctors? Including medication. The meds available arent a cure and they arent carte blanche to ignore sensible eating strategies but they are a tool to be used.
Where is the merit in leading a life free of meds and yet fretting over everything eaten? Where is the quality of life in constant worrying about food intake?
My message to anyone recently diagnosed is simple: if you're overweight, diet; If you dont exercise, start it now; reduce your white carb intake to zero if possible and reduce anyway your carb intake; eat those brown carbs with protein if possible; accept medicine if offered; allow yourself treats now and then; be happy you are bright enough to take an active interest in your health! And have fun. Dont worry so much. Dont get hung up on the stories of doom.
14 months on, i am fitter than i have been for more than 20 years. My BP is 110/72. My cholesterol is still within normal limits. My medication is now reduced (albeit on a 3 month trial) and i am aware of my disease and am not complacent. I use my GP and nurse to help me and i make sure they work with me on this, not just tell me what to do.
And i put this relative success story down to this and another forum. It was online that i learnt most of what i know, other than what my GP told me and she went online herself to check out what's the latest being said. Locally too, the hospital consultant for diabetes gathers the GPs together every few months to get feedback on the diabetes patients and to explain how things are at the hospital end.
Lobbying the GPs is a great idea. Insisting they listen and learn from us, the patients, is a very good idea. As is we patients listening to the GPs and following their advice - now and then, eh?
bunty
