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Im lost :(

Kate_O

Kate_O

Newbie
Messages
2
Type of diabetes
Other
Treatment type
Insulin
Hi. I was diagnosed 4 days ago. They have taken blood to find out what type I am but they have started me on insulin. It was information overload on tuesday so Im just a bit lost. And terrified.
If they have started me on insulin, am I likely to stay on it? They said the test results wont be back for a couple of weeks, so Im on it for at least that amount of time.
Is it true that insulin makes you put on weight?
Im struggling to know what to eat too. With not knowing what type i am yet, I dont know what information to follow. Find myself getting hungry just because I dont know what Im allowed.
Im really quite scared. Im 24 years old, but feel like a child because im so scared and lost :(
 
consider yourself found!

They say that people seldom get off insulin but you never know.....

Take a look at all the dietary info on the other pages. Most people here try to reduce carb intake as the body turns it all into sugars. You can eat meat and fatty things like cheese and they wont do much to your BGs.

Be wary of fruit (contains fructose) it's not as innocent as it makes out.

Your feelings of being terrified are understandable. But diabetes is quite manageable with the right approach.

Welcome.
 
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Hey I'm 28 and a type one diabetic. The best simple advice is look at labels and see how many Total carbohydrates are in things. The less the better. I compare bread for example and go for the lowest total carbs. I only drink water or tea (with no sugar). Diet soda only makes me crave sweeter things so I try not to drink that. Protein is good with your meals, meat is a freebee. If you have pasta or rice try and have an actually serving. Weigh it or measure it to have an idea if how much you are eating. Make a food dairy and show your doctor so they can work with you. Hope that's helps some. Best of luck to you. It's not easy, it's a big life adjustment but it will make you more aware of what you put in your body. And it can get better :)
 
Hi Kate
I was diagnosed 3 weeks ago. I am awaiting test results to see what type I am. However I have also been started on insulin. I put on 8 pounds. But I think that was from being severely dehydrated. That was in first week and have not gained since then. I am also unsure what advice to follow. But I am finding that cutting out the sugar and following a reduced carb diet is helping reduce my blood sugar.
 
Welcome Kate.
You had a big shock. But everyone here is great and will help you no end.
:)
 
Kate

It is understandable that you are feeling lost. My advice is for you to eat sensibly - try to reduce sugary drinks/high carbs food etc. Wait for your results and then try to adapt your food intake.

Finally, don't let diabetes rule your life. It is a condition that you will learn to live with :-)
 
Hi and welcome. Unless you are vastly overweight, then at your young age i'm afraid Late onset T1 is a likely diagnosis. I suspect your GP may be doing GAD and c-peptide tests for this. If so, you may be able to stay on tablets for a few years but most likely you would end up on insulin. Don't panic though as insulin is not a big problem and gives you excellent blood sugar control. It's not insulin that causes weight gain but the carbs it metabolises that causes the weight gain. If you keep the carbs down you will not gain much if anything. I've increased from 60kg to 63kg in 2 years on insulin.
 
Hello Kate and welcome.

Firstly you have an illness that you can lead a totally full and active life with. Never let anyone tell you different who ever they are.

Keep things simple, stay away from white breads and go with wholemeal, be careful with fruit juice (it may be natural but fruit is full of sugar) only drink "sugar free drinks" do not be fooled into thinking "no added sugar" drinks are safe, they're not, foods that say they are low in fat (like yoghurts) are normally full of sugar so stay away from them. If you like cheese that's fantastic as we can eat that without too much worry!

Regular exercise and a little commitment on your behalf and your'll be wondering what all the fuss was about in a few months from now.

Learn as you go, it's a bit like starting a new job, the fear of believing you won't be able to cope soon subsides once you've learnt the routine and before you know it Kate your'll be managing it with confidence.

Don't be afraid, be sensible and be happy :)

KevFitz
 
Hi there, it is scary being diagnosed no doubt. To begin with you are probably on a fixed amount of insulin and the goal is to match the number of carbs you eat to the amount of insulin you have been told to take. After a while doing that they may well get you to start adjusting your insulin if you want to eat more or less.

When I was diagnosed I switched to diet soft drinks and cut any carb based snacking between meals to try and simplify things. If I was hungry between meals and needed to eat something I chose things which were low in carbs. Raspberries for example are really low in carbs, as are walnuts. Cheese and meat are also low carb along with most vegetables(not potato or anything with sweet in the name :). These things won't spike your blood sugar, though a diet based primarily on cheese might be less healthy for other reasons. Tasty though!

There are many more subtleties but to begin with that worked quite well for me.

As for meals themselves, I would weigh the carb bit of my meals, so the cereal/bread/pasta/rice/potato/etc so I knew how many carbs I was taking with a meal. I was told to test using a blood glucose meter before each meal and before bed, if you do that you should be able to see what effect the carbs you eat have. So if you look at the difference in the number before breakfast and the number before lunch that will show you what effect the carbs you had at breakfast time had. If your blood glucose is a lot higher at lunchtime then you had too many carbs for the insulin you took at breakfast and if you are lower at lunchtime then maybe you should have had more at breakfast to match the insulin. It will vary day to day because of any number of factors, so you have to look over a few days to try and spot a pattern.

You may have lost weight quickly before you were diagnosed, that is one of the symptoms (I think more for type 1), and some people put that weight back on once they start taking insulin. I lost about 2 stone in about 2 months before I was diagnosed last October but I have kept that off. There is no fundamental reason why you would put on loads of weight if you remain on insulin, it is still down to the amount of food you eat.

I am about 6 months ahead of you so I am still learning as I go, but it does get much easier.
 
Welcome to the place we'd all rather not be but enjoy being here anyway.
It does come as a shock and yes they leave you without much of a clue what to do while you're waiting.
You've arrived at the right place.
You'll be amazed how near a normal life you'll be able to lead ... it becomes normal pretty quick for most.
You'll find advice on here that may conflict with NHS advice ... just ask and it will all become clearer.
There are thousands of us here doing pretty good and living pretty normal lives of work play raising kids going to school on hollidays etc etc.
Ask lots of questions.
 
Welcome to the forum :) There are 2 books mentioned in my signature that are invaluable for helping in the earlier days, easy to read, explains everything really well and shows how many carbs in most foods :)
 
Thankyou so much for all your help. I really appreciate it.

Im getting used to it now and have found plenty of foods that i can eat and enjoy and keep my glucose levels down.

Thank you all again :D
 
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