I need help with this, a bit frightened..

..and I don't have a regular doctor, just a physician's assistant, and her "nurse". Neither of them are getting back to me on phone messages I've left. I finally had to buy my own test-kit and I hope I bought a decent one. I kept calling between the pharmacy and the clinic and no help. The only thing I got was a huge bottle of Metformin 500 mg. It made me have digestive issues so I stopped it and just at the lowest foods I could on the glycemic scale. I use a calorie counter and adjusted it so I was only eating 30 carbs, 35 Fats and 35 Proteins. I used to eat all kinds of carbs and sugars too, M&M caramels! So I stopped all that 2 weeks ago and today I finally got my Meter in the mail. It's a Caretouch and easy to use, watched a video of "how to".

So today after lunch (I eat like every 3 hours with a breakfast, lunch, and dinner. A lot of my meals are like snacks. I mean I just eat some raw vegies, monterey jack cheese (just an ounce) I mean I don't pig out on anything. I just eat often. More on that if anyone wants more detail. I drink Tumeric and Ginger in the a.m. and 2 cups of Chicory Root mixed w/coffee, half chicory half coffee. I was getting bad headaches from no caffeine so weaning off it slower.

Sorry, back to testing. First test I was thrilled, it was at 111 or 6.1. I had got the diagnosis because I had a 7.0 from my labwork at the clinic. So I took a half-hour nap and when I got up, I ate 3 saltines a with a little crunchy adams peanut butter. Tested again just to see what it was at 4:30pm and it had shot up to 170 or 9.4 ;(

Do you think I'll live? I'm only half laughing, and thanks in advance for any input. PS I live in a tiny town with **** for medical. I'm on my own with this. I have to figure out my foods somehow. I've lost 4 lbs too, thought I was doing it all right.

Denise, Crescent City, CA

Jaylee said:

Hi Denise,

Sounds like yer 'avin a go.. (English West Country, upbeat talk.)

Do you eat any meat?

You ain't knocked outa the ring just yet.

I'll tag in @Goonergal @bulkbiker @Rachox @JoKalsbeek

Bit "night owl" for the UK & Europe. Hang about for a response.

Best wishes.

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Yes, I eat mostly fish (salmon), pork, turkey, chicken, not much beef, also seafood like shrimp (not often on that last one )
Thanks Jaylee, I am a bit used to your lingo because of some of my fave shows, Midsomer Murders for one

ontherun said:

Hi G0ldengirl68, night owl from Scotland here & recently diagnosed so my knowledge is very limited. How long was it between your 4:30 test & eating? Also, I don't think 7.0 mmol/L is within the diabetic range. It needs to be over 7.8 or 48 mmol/mol. 7.0 gives you just over 42 which puts in the the pre-diabetic range.

All the best.
OTR

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I got the results back and it said abnormal for the 7.1, and the range here in the US (I guess all of) that is good is 4.2 - 5.7% but I wouldn't bet my life on this clinic being right about anything. I do feel sick though, tired, headaches, even before the Metformin. I'll be back around, have to eat dinner now. Thanks for getting on to help me Denise

EllieM said:

Was that an hba1c by any chance, measured in %? (That sounds right if normal is 4.2 to 5.7%) In the new (last 20 years) units now used in the UK, that corresponds to an hba1c of 53mmol/L, which is definitely diabetic but on the low side of the diabetic range. (Put it this way, as a long term T1 diabetic, my team don't complain if I test in at that on a regular basis, though they would prefer me to go lower if that didn't put me at risk of losing hypo awareness, which is NOT an issue for T2s not on insulin.) And 7% corresponds to an average blood sugar of 8.6mmol/L or 155mg/dL.

So it sounds like your new diet is reducing your blood sugars significantly, though I'd think it's a bit calorie light for the long term (once you've lost any weight you need to lose). Most of the T2s on here just count carbs, and they use their meters to determine how many carbs their bodies can cope with. Basically, you want whatever you eat to increase your blood sugar by less than 2mmol/l (36mg/dL) 2 hours after you eat.

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Yes, HBA1C I did find a nice "table" to clip and save that compare % to the mg/dl. Handy for me being new to a meter that just reads out whole numbers

Just wrote you a bunch more Ellie, then lost it all ;( I'm tired now but so appreciated everyone's help, big hugs from across the pond, Denise

G0ldengirl68 said:

Yes, HBA1C I did find a nice "table" to clip and save that compare % to the mg/dl. Handy for me being new to a meter that just reads out whole numbers

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Antje77 said:

You might like this one as well. Top two rows are hba1c in mmol/mol (most of ours) and % (yours), bottom two are the corresponding average blood glucose in both mg/dl (yours) and mmol/l (most of ours).

Don't worry about converting for us when you post, this is an international forum so you can use your own system if you like

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Thank you @Antje77 but this one isn't easy for me to see because of the colors. It, nor mine, have the percent for 124? Oh well, I'll just play it safe and go to the next percent up Thank you again and maybe see you around today

TeddyTottie said:

I wouldn’t worry about the lack of input from a doctor if you are a typical type 2, unless you have specific health concerns. Many of us here in the uk have never had a post-diagnosis consultation with a doctor, only with the diabetes nurse. And in my case she is only interested in ticking off items on her list so that the practice meets the NHS targets.

So we are pretty much on our own, but the good news is that this is absolutely manageable for a lot of people by diet. And you are in the right place for that. As @Goonergal says, it is better to just stick or mealtimes and eat until your are full at each sitting. Once the carbs are much reduced I have found that my body is very good at deciding when enough is enough, there isn’t much desire to over-stuff myself! But do ensure that you are replacing carbs with healthy natural fats and some protein so that you don’t get hungry.

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Hi Teddy, thank you for your reply This is ok with me, I'd rather do it on my own than have to be going into a clinic. I am fortunate I had already started a pretty healthy diet. Now it will be getting rid of more carbs from the looks of my self-tests so far. That's ok, I never felt good after eating many carbs anyway, tired and lazy. Protein is my fave and yes, good fats I don't worry about but I do have to be aware of those "hidden" carbs, or at least the ones I didn't know about.

I will look around the site today for recipes or shopping lists some of you use. I would rather learn from folks with the diabetes, than some affiliate marketer that doesn't know diddly about eating what they advertise

Goonergal said:

Thanks @Jaylee for the tag and hi @G0ldengirl68

A few thoughts from me. As Ellie says, it sounds like you’re bringing your sugar levels down, and that does take time, so stick at it. Reading your post, the following stood out for me:



With type 2, eating very frequently can be problematic as every time you eat, it provokes an insulin response from the body. Given that most type 2s are producing too much insulin because their bodies are resistant to it, this doesn’t help with the underlying issue. Eating less often gives the pancreas a rest and helps to improve insulin sensitivity, which in turn will help with managing blood glucose. So one easy thing you could do is to stick to meals and avoid snacks, giving yourself the longest possible ‘fasting’ period between the last meal one day and the first the next. Dr Jason Fung (see The Diabetes Code, or his YouTube channel) explains this very well.

The fish, seafood and meats you mention above are a very good basis for a low carb way of eating so I’d suggest just sticking at it, and perhaps have a browse of the dietdoctor website, which is a great resource (much of which is available free).

Stick around here too, we’re here to help!

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Thanks so much @Goonergal This was helpful as well. I think it was nerves that caused me to start eating all the time. I will do it different today. Fasting in the a.m. will be easy because I already do that. Up about 6 and don't eat til between 9 and 10 maybe as late as 11. Then I do have lunches usually about 2 and dinner at 5. Do you think 4 hours is enough to go between?

And no snacks, that will be a challenge in the evenings. But, I do notice when I eat a good protein with a vegetable (I like a variety cut up and roasted) I am not hungry after dinner. That's usually when I take my longer, fast walk too. I have a little dog and we go out 4 or 5 times if it's not pouring rain.

I love Salmon, and eat quite a bit of Albacore Tuna but can only get it canned. I like turkey, pork loin, and chicken for variety, but I have a great, little market in this teeny town that has fresh Salmon, and other fishes so I will try and get that most often. Oh, I also eat beans often in my Crockpot. I love the Mayacobas/Peruvian, and black beans the best. Some beans are really high carb though so I don't know about eating a lot of those??

Goonergal said:

It’s more about your eating ‘window’ so that your pancreas gets a rest. If you’re eating between 10 or 11 and and 5pm, that’s 6 hours, which is fine - gives a good long 18 hour fast.

That’ll definitely help. Don’t be afraid of fat on the protein either.

Do you have a meter to test? That’ll be your most reliable guide as to which foods are ‘safe’ for you.

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I eat breakfast at about 9 usually, then lunch around Noon if I eat breakfast early, so that's only a few hours. I hear you on the rest for my pancreas (what's a pancreas?), just kidding. So I will try and keep at least 4, well, what's the longest I should shoot for, 6 hours? I think I will need 3 meals at least and I didn't mention before that I don't have any acid reflux at night anymore since I started eating 4 hours or even just 3, before lying down at night.

Another reason I had changed up my diet and when I ate was the GERD. I was getting Esophogeal spasms and refluxing. Another story. Ok, so let me set some times, although it's hard for me to eat if I'm not hungry, although when I got nervous the last 2 weeks, I just wanted to stuff my face.

Yes, I have a meter now, just came yesterday. I used it first thing this a.m. before anything else, and got a 124. Don't know the percent for that because it wasn't listed on the chart. Thanks Gal, I so appreciate you taking the time to help.

Antje77 said:

124 would be your blood glucose in mg/dl, which is around 6.8 mmol/l.
Percentages are only for your hba1c numbers, which show your average blood glucose over a couple of months. It doesn't make sense to convert every single bg reading to hba1c; at home you only work with blood glucose.

Not everyone with T2 does intermittent fasting, many have good results with eating 3 meals a day (and possibly a snack here or there). With your meter you can test right before you start to eat and then again 2 hours later. This will give you an idea of how a particular meal affects your BG. Many aim for a rise after meals smaller than 2mmol/l or around 35 mg/dl.
With your hba1c at 7%, your only just over the diabetic threshold and you might find reducing the carbs will reduce your BG to healthy levels again.

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Ok @Antje77 Thanks for this, I have to remember everyone is going to have their ways, I just have to find mine I feel a little better not trying to kill myself being some sort of perfect at this, which I have that tendency. I have to go lower carb than I have been, but also, I have to decide on the medication real soon. Right now I've messed up a couple days not taking it, but felt way better off it. I think instead of clinging to that it will be better for me to drop off some carbs, eat my 3 meals, and a couple low or no carb snack Thanks so much, and I do love how folks are finding their way so well, through this thing. Whatever works for each of us right, as long as it does get the job done

PS Forgot to mention I am keeping my diary online so I will know how many carbs I'm eating that way, and, know if I'm getting enough calories by adding more fats and meats/fish.

I just tested a bit past 2 hours after breakfast of eggs and Havarti cheese, and got 100 which I think is a good one for the mg/dl?? I will get the hang of this way better! I even placed the lance better so it didn't hardly hurt at all!! More fatty side of my finger PS Drinking lots of water because I am wanting to eat again already. 9-11 was only 2 hours, and I do feel a little shakey, but gonna hang in there at least til noon.