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New diagnosis

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famous 5

Newbie
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2
Hi All

I have been diagnosed with type 2 and over the last 2 weeks my average has been 11.1 with a peak of 14.7, not sure how that compares.

I have liver cirrohsis (self inflicted) , heart disease a blocked carotid artery CAD in 2013 and very low testosterone. So all in all I never feel very well.

Should I have been referred to a diabetes clinic ? as I have only had telephone diagnosis and prescribed metformin. I am always exhausted and need to sleep , cuts do not heal, and keep getting gout or some type of infection. I have a rash on the back of my hands

Good news I have almost stopped drinking but loosing weight is a problem as I carry lots of fluid. I do eat a very healthy diet.

Anyways nice to be around friends who understand more than me
 
Hi @famous 5 and welcome. Would you mind telling us what your healthy diet consists of, it may be healthy on the face of it but may also be causing your levels to rise. For example, I like apples but if I eat one without taking any insulin then my levels soar as it's equivalent to 4 teaspoons of sugar!
 
Hi, and welcome!
Have you had a test for diabetes performed?
 
Morning,

Can't answer your referral question beyond my own experience - I was diagnosed in January and was called in to see the nurse the next day. Immediately on to insulin and blood monitoring.

Not sure if a referral is standard or only in certain cases. That said, given your symptoms (not all diabetes related), I think i'd be pressing your GP for some facetime to deal with all the issues you have.

You're going to have an interesting few months for sure, fingers crossed it works out for you.

PS.. did you get an A1C test?
 
Hi

Thanks for the fast responses, my AC1 test was 50 then on re test by the surgery was 55.

My diet is fruit, veg and lean meat except roast pork lol ,,love the crackling, I do not have a sweet tooth but my portion sizes are too big. Just at the start of understanding the sugar affect hence why I am here.
 
Hello @famous 5 , and welcome!

Your HbA1c is just over the diagnostic threshold, so it should be peanuts to get you back to lower levels. And yeah, what's considered healthy isn't exactly so for us, with a metabolic condition... Fruit's very sugary, alas. The most many of us can manage is a hand full of berries (with either cream or full fat greek yoghurt, which mitigates whatever spike it might've otherwise caused). Other things you might consider healthy, like bread, potatoes, rice, cereals, corn, underground veggies and (often) pulses are too starchy too, for most of us. We don't handle carbs well, that's not just sugars, but the starches as well. Wholemeal or no makes little to no difference, really.

https://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/blog-entry/the-nutritional-thingy.2330/ might make you think twice about your current menu, and might help some in knowing what to shop for next time you go to the supermarket. Also, you might want to get yourself a meter. They really do help a whole heck of a lot in getting control of your blood sugars. Which should be quite doable, even with the other issues you're dealing with. (The never-ending wounds should be part of the past right-quick! Dunno about the fatigue, as there's other things in the mix that might impact that as well, but there's good hope none the less!)

Take care of yourself eh,
Jo
 
It maybe all you need to do is cut back on the fruit and perhaps some of the starchier veges, or maybe bread and other grains could be reduced?
Generally - for a type 2, the protein and fat are not the problem - so you can eat all the meat, fish or seafood, eggs and cheese you like.
Foods which are low carb, salad stuff, above ground veges are good choices, but you are not far into the diabetes range, so you will probably not have to make many changes in order to get back into normal numbers.
Maybe make a start by working out your carbohydrate sources and the amounts you eat, then considering what to alter.
I don't eat potatoes, amongst other things, but it is hard to feel deprived when eating bubble and squeak made from swede, veges and eggs cooked and eaten with bacon, for instance.
 
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I'd want to check that what you're eating is actually healthy for a T2 diabetic and not just what the media thinks is healthy. Bread, pasta, fruit, rice, root veg etc are all very high in carb and most of us here can't handle them. I can deal with some legumes, for example, but can't handle pastry at all. There is some variance so it's worth finding out through fingerprick testing just how you react. If you haven't got a blood test meter you should get one. It will show you your progress and tell you instantly what effects various foods have on your BG. People are sometimes advic=sed by the NHS not to test but I don'tthink you'll find much support for that on here.

Your levels aren't dreadful and could be back in normal range quickly. I had a similar problem with fluid retention. It largely has gone now - I've been low-carb for just under two years, no drugs. The good news is that a lot of things will clear up as your blood glucose comes down. I also had exhaustion, weight gain, gout, infections, cuts not healing...all of which have gone now.

On alcohol and carbs - depends on what you drink. Alcohol will lower your blood sugar, but by interfering with how your liver works, so you would need to watch out for that with your history. Carbs have still gone in.

Best of luck
 
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