Ruth B
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 447
- Type of diabetes
- Treatment type
- Tablets (oral)
Having been lurking for the best part of a week I thought I would join up and introduce myself and say thank you for all the advise already received.
I am in my early 40s and was diagnosed as prediabetic over 5 years ago. I was seriously overweight (I still am, but working on it) and had a high cholesterol. I was prescribed Simvastatin and Orlastat (hopefully you know what I mean my spellings awful). In just over a year I lost 10kg, (about a stone and a half) but then I seemed to become resistant to the tablets and the weight just sat there, so my GP decided to take me off them. The Simvastatins weren't working as well as hoped so I was changed to Atavastatin, fortunately I don't seem to react badly to many tablets. My sugars were also starting to rise and eventually I was put on Metformin, only one tablet a day to start with, but with everything else it was a bit of a blow.
I guess at this point I stuck my head in the sand a bit and accepted I was on the slippery slope to injections, particularly when 18 months later the metformin was increased to twice a day even though I had managed to maintain my weight if not lose any more.
I saw the nurse for a regular appointment about a month ago and at first I was elated when she said I had lost 3kg since I saw her before Christmas, then she told me the blood sugars and cholesterol were both up and she wanted to double my metformin to what I knew was the maximum dose. I wasn't sure of the progression of treatment and thought that injections would be the next step, I guess this is what triggered my bloody mindedness to step in. I accepted the dose but decided it was time to do something myself.
Unlike some posts I have been reading, I was offered help, at weight watchers or a meeting group for diabetics, but I have never been happy at things like that so turned them down. I was given advise on what not to eat but no advise on alternatives. With the cholesterol problem I was already trying to find low fat options for foods, which I am guessing hasn't helped the sugar side now. Self monitoring was never mentioned. Having upped the Metformin I noticed that I was starting to feel woosy, irritable and shaky in the run up to meal times (shaky when wielding a sharp kitchen knife to chop veg isn't a good thing, my husband occationally came in and took it off me and told me to go and sit down with a cereal bar or similar) if I hadn't been snacking in between. My instant thought was the increase in medication was too much and my sugar levels were falling too low. As I would be seeing the nurse again in three months I decided that it was time to start to sort things out myself. Which is how I ended up here.
In less than a week I have decided that the best way is to actually have some figures to work with and purchased a BG meter off Amazon, started to think that what I thought were hypos were actually false ones brought on by my system being used to elevated sugar levels and start to realise that there are alternatives to the standard bread, potatoes and pasta. Having read that loosing weight, even further down the line than I am at, can halt or regress the progress has given me hope again, I have now lost another 2kg (so 5kg since Christmas) and hope I can keep it up. I still have a lot to loose (about 30kgs really) so I know it won't be quick but hopefully I can keep a steady loss.
At the moment I am full of good intentions, my big problem is always keeping them after a few weeks.
And finally to all who have made it this far through I will finish with one tip that slowly dawned on me and I feel worth passing on even if it only seems a small thing. Like many I was brought up to believe that I had to clear my plate at meal times. I don't blame my parents, but it had become so ingrained in me that it took me a long time to realise that when I was full it was time to stop eating and not to finish a meal for the sake of it. It sounds simple and obvious, but when I mention it around it is surprising how many people still do it.
I am in my early 40s and was diagnosed as prediabetic over 5 years ago. I was seriously overweight (I still am, but working on it) and had a high cholesterol. I was prescribed Simvastatin and Orlastat (hopefully you know what I mean my spellings awful). In just over a year I lost 10kg, (about a stone and a half) but then I seemed to become resistant to the tablets and the weight just sat there, so my GP decided to take me off them. The Simvastatins weren't working as well as hoped so I was changed to Atavastatin, fortunately I don't seem to react badly to many tablets. My sugars were also starting to rise and eventually I was put on Metformin, only one tablet a day to start with, but with everything else it was a bit of a blow.
I guess at this point I stuck my head in the sand a bit and accepted I was on the slippery slope to injections, particularly when 18 months later the metformin was increased to twice a day even though I had managed to maintain my weight if not lose any more.
I saw the nurse for a regular appointment about a month ago and at first I was elated when she said I had lost 3kg since I saw her before Christmas, then she told me the blood sugars and cholesterol were both up and she wanted to double my metformin to what I knew was the maximum dose. I wasn't sure of the progression of treatment and thought that injections would be the next step, I guess this is what triggered my bloody mindedness to step in. I accepted the dose but decided it was time to do something myself.
Unlike some posts I have been reading, I was offered help, at weight watchers or a meeting group for diabetics, but I have never been happy at things like that so turned them down. I was given advise on what not to eat but no advise on alternatives. With the cholesterol problem I was already trying to find low fat options for foods, which I am guessing hasn't helped the sugar side now. Self monitoring was never mentioned. Having upped the Metformin I noticed that I was starting to feel woosy, irritable and shaky in the run up to meal times (shaky when wielding a sharp kitchen knife to chop veg isn't a good thing, my husband occationally came in and took it off me and told me to go and sit down with a cereal bar or similar) if I hadn't been snacking in between. My instant thought was the increase in medication was too much and my sugar levels were falling too low. As I would be seeing the nurse again in three months I decided that it was time to start to sort things out myself. Which is how I ended up here.
In less than a week I have decided that the best way is to actually have some figures to work with and purchased a BG meter off Amazon, started to think that what I thought were hypos were actually false ones brought on by my system being used to elevated sugar levels and start to realise that there are alternatives to the standard bread, potatoes and pasta. Having read that loosing weight, even further down the line than I am at, can halt or regress the progress has given me hope again, I have now lost another 2kg (so 5kg since Christmas) and hope I can keep it up. I still have a lot to loose (about 30kgs really) so I know it won't be quick but hopefully I can keep a steady loss.
At the moment I am full of good intentions, my big problem is always keeping them after a few weeks.
And finally to all who have made it this far through I will finish with one tip that slowly dawned on me and I feel worth passing on even if it only seems a small thing. Like many I was brought up to believe that I had to clear my plate at meal times. I don't blame my parents, but it had become so ingrained in me that it took me a long time to realise that when I was full it was time to stop eating and not to finish a meal for the sake of it. It sounds simple and obvious, but when I mention it around it is surprising how many people still do it.
