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Type 2 How can I help myself better?

Peter1959

Member
Messages
6
Type of diabetes
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Sorry to be a pain, as most of the people on this forum seem to be managing their condition well. I am T2, diagnosed 7 years ago. I changed my diet, got fit and lost a lot of weight. Even though some of the weight went back on over the next couple of years, my cholesterol level remained around 4 and my sugar level was down to about 5.5. I thought I had cracked it. For the last nine months or so, however, I have stopped taking my Metformin and have resorted to the chocolate which was my downfall in the first place.
I KNOW I must find the strength within myself to be more self-disciplined. Forgive me if this sounds self-pitying. There is no self-pity, just anger at myself. How stupid can I be? I think the problem is that I cannot really see the damage that my sugar intake is causing. I simply must change.
The purpose of this thread is to ask if anybody else has weakened in the past and what they did about it. Any contributions gratefully received and many thanks in advance. I am off to the gym this evening and will try not to visit the supermarket opposite when I leave - or only to get a carton of their excellent soup for dinner. Best wishes, Peter
 
heyy Peter

I suffer with the same thing of eating the wrong thing at times, but then my body reminds me that it cannot handle the sugar and i get sick and cannot manage the next few days , its important to remember that this journey is not an easy one and people expect you to "have a grip" on it the longer you have it , but when these days occur I tell myself that its okay and that i can do better tomorrow , also a quarter of a lemon helps my sugar when i eat something sugary haha . dont be hard on yourself , this time in your life ,you need to accept and love your body for what it can do. all the best Zarah
 
hey Peter1959 you are only human, but good that you yourself do want to change your not contructive behaviour.. you just start taking your metformin again and begin to get your BG down again..
 
Thanks, Zarah and Freema, much appreciated. The metformin starts again tomorrow, gym tonight!
 
Hello @Peter1959 . Welcome. I will tag @daisy who will post you some excellent information. I think it is very easy to slide off our restricted diets as strength is required to adhere to them. I spent 3 months this summerwith my head in the sand while eating anything and everything. The determination to get back into my diet and exercise regime was a big rise in my habc1 , the Doctor wanting to increase my medication and memories of the suffering of my mother who had awful problems caused by uncontrolled blood sugar. I've been back on track for about 6 weeks now.
 
Thanks, mo53. I take no solace in the fact that others fall off the wagon, but I am encouraged and strengthened by the fact that you are now back on track. Well done and thanks for your encouragement.
 
@Peter1959 do you mind if I ask what chocolate you eat? You see I rarely ate chocolate in the past, perhaps 3 or 4 times a year. But now its 3 or 4 times a week. The difference is it is no longer CDM but Lindt 90% and just 2 squares max
 
I am terrible, carrying on as I used to. Now I get burning hot feet and restless legs as my nerves are affected. It's the slippery slope. I try to mentally relate sugar to pain, and set treats on only certain occasions as part of a balanced diet. I continually fail, but keep trying again and again. I don't want to be amputated or die for a bit of sugar
. I fully understand how you feel, but we must help each other to be strong. Give yourself a little love.xx
 
walnut_face said:
@Peter1959 do you mind if I ask what chocolate you eat? You see I rarely ate chocolate in the past, perhaps 3 or 4 times a year. But now its 3 or 4 times a week. The difference is it is no longer CDM but Lindt 90% and just 2 squares max
Click to expand...

And that high % cocoa dark chocolate is actually good for us according to some research. So I try to have a little very day, but just a little...

@Peter1959 My very powerful incentive to keep on the wagon is the fear of losing my eyesight and use of my hands. But I also enjoy and prefer my LCHF diet which really helps, and though I have minor blips I've kept to it for nearly 3 years now. When I weigh up the option of my sight or carbs - carbs lose out hands down every time.

Robbity
 
I not only fell off the wagon, I took a swan dive into a crocodile pit. 11 years ago when I was diagnosed I thought I had cracked it too and in fact my doctor told me I no longer had diabetes. I believed him. I had a series of deaths close to me and my son was hurt badly in a car accident as well as other stressful things and I just stopped testing and watching my diet. When my other autoimmune issues worsened dramatically and I had to stop working because of pain my weight went up 50 pounds quickly. Then my A1c suddenly shot up to 10.4, so much for cured. It is not easy to stick with it, especially when life intervenes. All you can do is pick yourself up, dust off, and try again.
 
Walnut_face, the answer is most definitely the wrong type of chocolate, I'm afraid. However, all of your stories and support have been most welcome and encouraged me to pick myself up and start again. Thanks. Onwards and hopefully upwards. My eyes, legs and inner organs will be grateful!
 
Hi and welcome @Peter1959

I totally get what you are going through.

For me, the thing that got me serious about blood glucose control was actually seeing the numbers, and reading up on the www.bloodsugar101.com website exactly what raised numbers would do to my body over time.

I didn't take it as a dire and terrifying doomladen promise of things to come - I took it as an incentive to knuckle down and make a few changes.

So I got myself a meter (the SD Codefree was/is the cheapest) and I started testing my blood glucose before and after food. All food, including chocolate.

What a revelation! It turned out that some foods that I regularly ate were brilliant - and having not effect at all on my bg, while others were sending my blood glucose up to damaging levels on a daily basis.

Very motivating.

I can only encourage you to arm yourself with the knowledge, using a meter and reading sites like 101, because it is hard to keep your head buried in the sand when you do.

Hope that helps!
 
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