- Messages
- 2,374
- Type of diabetes
- Type 2
- Treatment type
- Diet only
I saw my doctor yesterday. It was the first time I've seen him since my blood glucose result of 282 mg/dL (15.7 mmol/L) seven weeks ago. I've read enough here and in the books I've been reading to know what to expect, so I went armed with my Jenny Ruhl book, Bloodsugar 101, food journal and blood glucose monitor.
He assured me that my liver and kidneys are functioning normally. I now have an appointment on Monday to see an ophthalmologist for a diabetic eye exam, which I'm very uneasy about, but it needs to be done.
So glad I brought my blood glucose monitor. After looking at the progress I've made with my blood glucose levels - (135 mg/dL (7.5 mmol/L) 7 day average; 137 mg/dL (7.6 mmol/L) 14 day average; 154 mg/dL (8.6 mmol/L) 30 day average) - he's agreed to allow me 2 more months on the LCHF diet before starting medication, likely Metformin and a statin. A week before that appointment, I will have another comprehensive blood panel and A1C done for comparison to the ones I had done 6 or 7 weeks ago.
He asked me twice if the LCHF diet was a diet I could stay on for the rest of my life. I told him that was my intension. He must have a few other patients on this diet because he was relieved I was eating 30 - 50 carbs a day as opposed to no carbs, which concerns him.
I took the advice I've read here a few times, "just nod a lot". I think this is good advice. It was important to hear him out for this visit. It's been my experience that healthcare professionals respond best to results, not opinion. I'll either have better results in 2 months or I won't.
His last statement to me was along the lines of "I don't know what type of patient you are but some diabetic patients stick their head in the sand when it comes to treatment for their diabetes which is what we don't want." When I told him I'm going back and forth reading 10 different books on diabetes and its treatment, he was blown away. My hope is that I gained some respect there, after having not tested my blood glucose for five years, perhaps the stupidest thing I've ever done.
The hardest aspect of this process for me is figuring out the best strategy going forward for me. There's so much to consider.
Is it a mistake to delay starting Metformin? Or would it be a mistake to give up diet alone after only 6 1/2 weeks? I keep seeing this graph in my mind over and over again from a Jason Fung, M.D. lecture I watched this week. It showed a graph of a patient whose blood glucose remained above normal for 4 months then dropped into the normal range. I need to go back and find that graph to make sure my interpretation of it is correct. [Edit: Found the graph. It showed the patient's reduction in medication, not blood glucose...sigh.]
I'm staying in the 30 carb range. I'm in ketosis. I've lost 10 pounds (4.5 kilograms). My lowest blood glucose so far is 102 mg/dL (5.7 mmol/L). But my BG has creeped up some due to increasing the amount of vegetables I'm eating with every meal because I had to increase my fiber due to intermittent constipation. I'm continuing to refine my daily meals by reducing protein, but struggling with increasing fat. It's so hard deprogramming the belief that saturated and monounsaturated fats are bad.
I think what threw me the most yesterday was the statement that all diabetics are put on statins. Why? Particularly when my triglycerides and HDL are in the normal range. My understanding is that cholesterol and blood lipids do not predict heart attack or stroke, only blood glucose does. What am I missing?
He assured me that my liver and kidneys are functioning normally. I now have an appointment on Monday to see an ophthalmologist for a diabetic eye exam, which I'm very uneasy about, but it needs to be done.
So glad I brought my blood glucose monitor. After looking at the progress I've made with my blood glucose levels - (135 mg/dL (7.5 mmol/L) 7 day average; 137 mg/dL (7.6 mmol/L) 14 day average; 154 mg/dL (8.6 mmol/L) 30 day average) - he's agreed to allow me 2 more months on the LCHF diet before starting medication, likely Metformin and a statin. A week before that appointment, I will have another comprehensive blood panel and A1C done for comparison to the ones I had done 6 or 7 weeks ago.
He asked me twice if the LCHF diet was a diet I could stay on for the rest of my life. I told him that was my intension. He must have a few other patients on this diet because he was relieved I was eating 30 - 50 carbs a day as opposed to no carbs, which concerns him.
I took the advice I've read here a few times, "just nod a lot". I think this is good advice. It was important to hear him out for this visit. It's been my experience that healthcare professionals respond best to results, not opinion. I'll either have better results in 2 months or I won't.
His last statement to me was along the lines of "I don't know what type of patient you are but some diabetic patients stick their head in the sand when it comes to treatment for their diabetes which is what we don't want." When I told him I'm going back and forth reading 10 different books on diabetes and its treatment, he was blown away. My hope is that I gained some respect there, after having not tested my blood glucose for five years, perhaps the stupidest thing I've ever done.
The hardest aspect of this process for me is figuring out the best strategy going forward for me. There's so much to consider.
Is it a mistake to delay starting Metformin? Or would it be a mistake to give up diet alone after only 6 1/2 weeks? I keep seeing this graph in my mind over and over again from a Jason Fung, M.D. lecture I watched this week. It showed a graph of a patient whose blood glucose remained above normal for 4 months then dropped into the normal range. I need to go back and find that graph to make sure my interpretation of it is correct. [Edit: Found the graph. It showed the patient's reduction in medication, not blood glucose...sigh.]
I'm staying in the 30 carb range. I'm in ketosis. I've lost 10 pounds (4.5 kilograms). My lowest blood glucose so far is 102 mg/dL (5.7 mmol/L). But my BG has creeped up some due to increasing the amount of vegetables I'm eating with every meal because I had to increase my fiber due to intermittent constipation. I'm continuing to refine my daily meals by reducing protein, but struggling with increasing fat. It's so hard deprogramming the belief that saturated and monounsaturated fats are bad.
I think what threw me the most yesterday was the statement that all diabetics are put on statins. Why? Particularly when my triglycerides and HDL are in the normal range. My understanding is that cholesterol and blood lipids do not predict heart attack or stroke, only blood glucose does. What am I missing?
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