i need some advice please x

[chandni2409]

i've been diabetic for about 6 years which is a long time. i started of on diet control, then put on tablets and eventually put onto insulin 4 times a day. throughout the whole of the 6 years only once had i bought my HBA1C down to 9, rest of the time it is 13%.
i am now on a borderline high on cholestral at the age of 19, my readings are on 5-6 at night time but rest is always high. i take care of myself for a while and eventually give up. please can somebody give me some advice or help. i would really appreciate it. thank u

 

[daisy1]

Hi chandni and welcome to the forum Since you are asking for advice you have come to the right place as being a member of this forum will really help you to manage your diabetes better. Here is some information which was written by the former monitors for new members (including those who are not newly diagnosed) which may help you to get back to basics and make a new start. Ask as many questions as you need to as there is usually someone who can answer.

Here is the advice that Ken and I, as Forum Monitors, 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.

For more information on CARBOHYDRATE see here:

viewtopic.php?f=3&t=20306

This is NOT a low carb diet suggestion, just a reduction in your intake of carbohydrate. You have to decide yourself how much of a reduction will keep your blood glucose levels in control.

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!!

For TIPS FOR STRIPS see here:

viewtopic.php?f=20&t=19002#p173253

If you are an Insulin user in theory you should have no problem getting test strips.

The latest 2011 NICE guidelines for Bg levels are as follows:
Fasting (waking and before meals).......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 at least 30 minutes moderate exercise a day, it can be split into 10 min sessions to start with. 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.

Finally a few QUESTIONS TO ASK AT DIABETES CLINIC.

viewtopic.php?f=20&t=17091



Sue/Ken.

 

[chandni2409]

thank you so much

 

[Gappy]

I'd question the issues as to why you give up looking after yourself, when I was diagnosed I was advised lose weight, i've always been a big lad, so was worried I wouldn't have the discipline to maintain any regime. So knowing being an awkward stubborn sort is one of my strengths I told people that as part of my treatment I'll be losing weight. Having told people I don't want to fail! My bmi is now no longer considered obese, so maybe if you post in the what's my morning reading topic you'll get the same sort of feeling and support about taking care.

 

[chandni2409]

hey gappy thanks for the advice. i just dont like taking insulin. and i know this sounds stupid but when ever i start looking after myself i will end up having hypos. like i went on the trip to cumbria from diabetes uk and i had soo many hypos that i stopped taking insulin..and i know its bad

 

[Pneu]

chandni,

Only you can make the conscious decision to manage your diabetes well... A lot of us on here myself included went through a phase or a period of poor control... for the first five years post my diagnoses I all but ignored the fact I was diabetic.. never testing my sugars, rarely injecting etc...

For me the turning point was a prolonged stay in hospital and a fight for life at the mere age of 22... now I don't want to scare monger but the bottom line is with poor control your are risking your life... if not today then certainly within the next 3 - 5 - 10 years you will see damage.. for me the choice is simple... injecting is no where near as scary as death, or blindness or an amputation...

The stay in hospital for me kicked me into gear and forced me to confront diabetes and sort myself out... what you need to do is start with small steps and managing diabetes comes from understanding the condition and yourself..

If you can get down your local diabetes centre and talk to an HCP there... be HONEST they are there to help you... if you can't talk to an HCP then talk to a friend or a relative build yourself a support base..

Put yourself a plan together... start with say testing 4 times a day... do this for a couple of weeks until it becomes normal... then maybe start to look at a food diary / insulin diary... I made myself a spreadsheet on the computer that I still use religiously every day now 7 years on! After a while you will amass the information you need to manage your condition well...

 

[donnellysdogs]

Have you ever considered having a pump instead of MDI.....having originally been put on diet then tablets before insulin at being such a young age at the time is I would say very rare, as most children I know are always put on insulin straight off......so never having a HBA1c under 13 is not your fault in my eyes at least.

Yes, I know some kids are diagnosed as type 2, not type 1...but to only ever having 1 hba1c around 9 in 6 years is NOT necessarily your fault.

Now, if you really do want to improve your life and your chances, you may really have to bit the bullet on this one......MDI you do have to inject a lot of times each day....and test probably up to 8 times a day....(thats what i used to do). On a pump you have no injections to do, but you do have to either get the remote control out or the pump out to do a bolus.....however, sets only have to be changed every 2-4 days depending on the type you set you have....however testing....I am 11 months in to a pump, and I have yet to test myself less than 10 times a day......either way....whatever the reasons are for past high hba1c's you seem to be honest about why..and seem to me to actually be concerned enough to log on to the best forum to give you some help and encouragement.

You will get some great help here, but, and this is the biggest BUT EVER!!!!!!! It is only you that lives with the diabetes 24/7/365...not your nurse, your consultant or your mum or your dad...just you...so it is you that is best placed to take control of it....and the younger and earlier you do it...the better it will be for you both short term for hypo's etc and long term for complications that may (NOTnecessarily WILL) happen in the future.

If hypo's are a big concern to you, then you really do need to get some help with reducing them to a minimum...lots of advice here, but your HCP's are also vital to your management of your diabetes...i.e if driving they need to know that you are hypo aware, to sign you as fit for driving etc.....if they are disturbing your sleep-then that is no good to you or family etc.......

Lecture over, there is some great advice, help and support here...but do get your medical professionals on your side to help you too....