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it's all about me!

missy-45

Newbie
Messages
4
:crazy:
Exactly as this diabetes lark is driving me!

I have been following the forums for a few weeks now and plucking up the courage to post here. And so much seems relevent to me!

So - a brief history - diagnosed type 2 18 months/ 2 years ago now and diet controlled. I was picked up at my regular high blood pressure review, having had high BG's in the past, but ok fasting ones. Family history is riddled on both sides with T2, heart attacks and strokes. I thought I would have another 10 years before I fell for this. My cousin was diagnosed within months of me after drastic weight loss, and his attitude - being a smoker, liking a drink and single fella , so lives on take out - is if lifestyle changes only give an extra couple of years, who cares.

My problem is I love food. Cadburys have lost so much profit in the past couple of years as my consumption has noticably decreased. But not stopped! Carbs Rule, OK, I like carbs! I have no willpower and have not yet reached a point where a 'lifechanging' incident has occured - feet, eyes, neuropathy etc. I hate excercise, though I swim a couple of times a week. The dietician and doc think this is wonderful. This is not and increase, I have always done this, alongside salad and fruit intake. I dont smoke and dont drink. I have other un-related conditions which make excercise difficult/painful - but here we are back to willpower and I can make excuses forever.

So symptoms then- I have for years got up in the night for the loo, so no change there. I went through a stage about six months ago where I had the munchies in the middle of the night. I often wake up needing a drink. I am cronically tired! I live on Red Bull - sugar free - and knock out drops on occasion.

I have attended two dietician/nurse led courses which explained carbs and healthy diet. I had to go on two 'cos the first (2 afternoons) didn't take and the second (6 afternoons) is a distant memory also. I go to see the dietician every three months at present, to make me feel guilty and to see if he can motivate me to diet. Not working yet either. Logically, I want to say I am educated about this diabetes lark. I know the risks, can probably quote stats. And am ignoring them anyway.

:problem: I want to know more about what is classed as a 'low-carb' diet, especially if you have to have carbs with each meal. I have been testing on occasion, as recommended on one of the courses, and did find it useful to know if I had OD'ed on the carbs - the GP will not prescribe the strips, even though they were instrumental in me going on the course that recommended BG testing.
:problem: I am only being called anually for HBA1C tests though I have asked for it to be included with other random blood tests.
:problem: Just recently, in the past few weeks I have been feeling queezy, not diahorrea, but not comfortable, more thirsty and ratty tempered. My before breakfast BG has never been below 7 and up to 13, during the day, before food, often 5-6. So what is this fasting raise all about? and what should I aim to snack on in the evening? I do not like to eat too late and generally do not snack after dinner.
:problem: I did have bloods done because I felt unwell, and was considering the metformin which I refused earlier this year,as I thought that I had totally lost control. Fasting BG was 7.9 (old money) and HBA1C was 55. So all in all, not good, but not bad enough to throw in the towel on metformin yet.
:problem: And please explain what you all mean when you say that some carbs affect you more than others. Is it more that low GI stuff is better, or do you find as individuals that you tolerate some stuff more than others - and how do you test to find out?

Thats enough for now. I hope there is enough space for some responses! :lol:
 
Hello and welcome

Hopefully some type 2's will be along with some support and advice

Best wishes RRB
 
Hi. You've raised a lot of different issues in your post. Yes, you do need will power to get the carbs, weight and sugar down and only you can make that happen. It sounds like some of the NHS diet advice you have been given is the usual nonsense. You absolutely do not have to have carbs with every meal. There is no science behind that so forget it. It may help to spread carbs throughout the day rather than have one big hit but that's a different issue. Not only do you not need carbs with every meal, some people exist on virtually no carbs at all. So, set yourself a daily carb limit; perhaps 150gm/day or less. Low-GI carbs are the best carbs because they take longer to be absorbed and avoid the worst sugar spikes that highly processed carbs can cause. On the forum you will find lot's of advice on the best carbs to have. Your HBa1c of 7.2 could be a lot better. If it doesn't improve you must start taking the Metformin especially if you are overweight. If you have the SR (Slow Release) version you will find very few side effects. It is well proven and safe and will reduce insulin resistance to some extent. It's not a miracle drug but helps. Ref meter readings, don't worry too much about morning fasting tests as they don't tell you much about the effect of specific foods and meals. Test 2 hours after a meal when you do test. Yes, the NHS doesn't like prescribing strips. I always bought my own before I went onto insulin; fortunately I could afford to do that. You can buy them cheaply on eBay. Yes, certain carbs do seem to affect some people more then others. Having them with fat and protein helps. Ref snacks try to train yourself off them and have nuts and small fruit when you do. Also try 85% dark chocolate; I have Green & Blacks 85% which is very low-carb. Hope this info helps a bit.
 
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