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Not all nurses/docs know anaemia influences HbA1c, but you could ask about those results. You're entitled to the numbers, so I do suggest you get a print-out or ask for online access, as there's usually a range to go alongside your own numbers. It kindof helps figuring stuff out. Also, if all of that is absolutely fine and there's no lack of iron messing things up, yet things are a bit iffy throughout the day, you might want to invest in a CGM. A Continuous Glucose Monitor would follow your ups and downs all day and all night for week or two. (Though I understand they may be a bit unreliable if you lie on them). It would paint a clearer picture, maybe? Could maybe explain what happens and why, especially combined with a food/drink diary.

Far as testing goes, a lot of people have feet-on-the-ground liver dumps. The moment their eyes open and they get up, their liver starts dumping, so just having the meter on the nightstand might be useful. Other than that, test before a meal and 2 hours after the first bite to see whether the meal was okay for you. You're looking for a rise of no more than 2.0 mmol/l. And as your nurse is requesting it, before bed. I know that's a whole lot of testing, but it will tell you more.
 
Thank you. I did get my results online and printed them and reviewed all the data on the tests. Mostly they were pretty good - better than I expected. I'll get them out and review them for iron. Vitamin D3 - has not been optimal for a couple of years. Then I have not been completely dedicated to daily doses - but I am at the moment. They don't tend to personalise that here - now it seems to be up to the patient but without the backup of regular testing and any advice.

I think she finds it hard to believe the results which I attribute to my carb restriction and steady weight loss. It doesn't seem possible for her to reconcile the, " On these readings. you would not be diabetic - although that one puts you into pre-diabetic." with the HbA1c score. Its possible she has not seen anything like this before. I do hope I don't have raging glucose over night - but then I can test for that myself if I need to. At this point just slowly gaining a bit of confidence in both how and when to test and what results mean.

She can't get over small rises after meals. It varies. Sometimes 0.5 or 1.00 or no higher than 1.5. Occasionally it is lower.

Today it was interesting to see the reading at the end of my IF. It was higher than the getting up one. That caused a bit of panic until I re-checked Fung and decided it was probably due to the liver releasing glucose until I had a late lunch. Post lunch it was 1.0 lower.

What do you do if you wake up early; say just before 6 am and then go back to sleep. I have tended to wait until I got up and washed my hands before testing. Should I try out testing at that early waking time?

Yes you are right about continual monitoring. I have thought about it or trying it for a month or so. I may well do so in the future.
 
I haven't tested my fasting in a while, but I do know my liver will dump, dump, and dump some more until I finally eat, usually. Some of us are lucky like that. I've even seen a seven pop up after fasting into the afternoon. You could just have breakfast and skip lunch instead. Or have a tiny little portion of something or other so your liver knows to knock it off. If you have a little alcohol swab handy on the nightstand you don't have to go to wash your hands. For me, my liver starts dumping when i wake. And yeah, that can be at 3 at night. Just test whenever you want to, or to get it to overcomplete. Better too much than too little when there's question marks eh.

As for your suspicions about nights, do you sleep alright? Like I said, I start dumping when I wake, even if that's at 3 a.m., when I just need a quick visit to the loo. Sometimes I wake up at 4 and don't bother going back to sleep because the alarm goes at 5:15 anyway. (Might as well read! ). All in all though that means I have a lot of interrupted sleep. Is the same true for you? Also, nightmares or sleep apnea can make your sleep unrestful... Resulting in higher numbers. So could be anything, really. A CGM would bring some clarity there, I do think. But just experiment.... And buy an extra box of test strips. There'll be a lot of them to go through, but you might see a pattern!
 
I have a shoebox of test strips at the moment. They were put on prescription and I had already bought some to take away on holiday. Next Thursday I expect to be landing from the Hull-Rotterdam ferry, speeding through the Netherlands en route to Italy.

Sleep quality is an interesting one. Its not been good for the last couple of years - lots of weeing in the middle of the night. However its improving on low cal and I am wearing a Fitbit which gives me a sleep report which is often good. Yes, it could be open the purse time again. I may have left it too late to order their starter pack before we go.
 
Hi @Ceppo,

At one point my GP was suggesting too that my levels must be going up while I sleep. I set the alarm for the middle of the night (or rather early morning) for a couple of nights to check this out -- but turned out to be nothing, blood levels at night were the same as when going to sleep. I would be surprised if it was any different for you.

Btw, I was also considering getting a Freestyle Libre (a CGM) at the time to see what my blood sugars were doing over night, but Libres are known for compression lows (i.e. is reads low when you lie on your side while sleeping and compress the Libre sensor which is attached to your arm). So, if you sleep on your side, this might not be ideal. Other than this, the Libre, I am sure, will give you loads of valuable data and might be worthwhile investment.

As to an explanation as to why the nurse is doubting your blood sugar levels, I tend to agree with you -- she is probably just fishing because she can't believe your levels have come down so quickly -- only due to changing your way of eating.

Again, really well done. Enjoy your time in Italy. Where will you be staying?
 
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I hope that's the case. I'll know more in a couple of months and will tie up the ends of this thread.

I'm tempted to give Libre a try for a few weeks to get a fuller picture. but not use it all the time - at this stage.

Update, failed attempt to buy sensors. Using the app on my phone as a reader. Abbot’s website not working. Had to cancel an order with an online chemist as their sensor version was labelled as only useable with the reader. Sigh. Just about set my heart on a few weeks CGM.

Liguria just over the border from France we have a small country house outside Perinaldo. Its been sadly neglected this year. Lots to do outside.
 
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The country house sounds absolutely wonderful. Sounds as if it is a great place to relax and get away from things. Hope you enjoy your time away from home.
 
You might want to skip lunch at Rotterdam. Covid's flaring there. (As it is in some areas in Belgium and France). In some countries you'd be quarantined for 2 weeks for stopping there, so I hope you make out alright. It sounds absolutely lovely... We were supposed to do a second honeymoon in Venice this year, but the prospectcof the airport/plane was too scary. So just booked a little bungalow in the Netherlands for next week. Less stressful, and home in 2 hours, should anything to awry.

Anyway, hope you enjoy your time in stunning Italy! I wish we could join you, haha!
 
6.6 on waking at 7.00am today. (7.1 before bed last night).

Straight off the ferry by 9.00 am and no stopping until well into Germany. In transit only.This is our delayed May trip where we had no choice but to accept a credit note from P&O. Otherwise we might chosen the tunnel.

If we had gone then, none of this would have been uncovered.. strange world, strange life.
 
Had a phone conversation with the DN today. She calls my 'good' blood glucose readings a discrepancy with the HbA1c result! No suggestion that it is remission due to low carb etc. Hah. Lots of blood tests next Wednesday. I may find something out on Friday or the following week.
I have my replacement monitor which seems to be reading more where I expect. I've also got a Libre starter pack which I have yet to use. Perhaps after I've seen her for my flu vaccination and bloods.
 
Keep in mind that flu jabs etc can up bloodsugars for a bit, but nothing overly dramatic. My fasting's a mmol/l higher than it was last week, or thereabouts. No worries, it's normal.
 

Great to see you back on the forum, @Ceppo. Also, well done on your brilliant blood sugar readings. Maybe your DN needs to see your new HbA1c results before she'll agree to remission.

Good luck on your blood tests. Keeping my fingers crossed for you (but I'm sure you'll do brilliantly even without this).
 
Ceppo, I can imagine how you feel. I was in a similar position 3 months ago. We aren't all the same and what works for one may not work for all. Many combine meds with low carb eating (or other diets) to reach their targets. I would recommend getting a meter as you will be able to work out what foods agree with you (there are personal variations) and you'll be able to monitor progress. If you go low carb, it can take a while to settle into it (there's a physical and a psychological adjustment). I had to endure a lot of migraines before I settled. Low carb eating has enabled me to lower my blood glucose levels, lose weight and most importantly I am no longer dominated by hunger/carb cravings (caused by blood sugar highs and lowsl. Low carb foods satisfy you for longer and I rarely feel very hungry . You're right this site has a wealth of information and wonderful moderators/members who share advice and tips and offer support. 3 months post diagnosis I feel that I am doing what is right for me, I exceeded the Hba1c target my nurse set me (down from 78 to 51) and have a little way to go to feel in a safe zone. Metformin is a brilliant medication for most but I couldn't stand the nausea and appetite suppression. I quit after 6 days and for me diet is everything. I bought some keto cookbooks from The Works (very cheap) and have the Michael Mosley blood sugar cookbook, both Caldesi books and Tom Watson's book 'Downsizing' which outlines his weight loss and diabetes journey. Preparing ahead makes life eating low carbs easier. I'm glad the diagnosis happened to me really as I will be able to secure a healthier future for myself.
I hope that things go well for you. Take care
 
JoKalsbeek said:
Keep in mind that flu jabs etc can up bloodsugars for a bit, but nothing overly dramatic. My fasting's a mmol/l higher than it was last week, or thereabouts. No worries, it's normal.
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Gosh I didn't know that. Both are being done at the same time. Maybe I can get her to take the bloods first. Thank you so much.
 
@JoKalsbeek @ziggy_w @Bex72
Thanks so much for the encouragement all of you. I need it. I'm not achieving the 5s I'd hoped for but it would be hard to believe the test will come out at the level of the first one; unless your confidence is eaten away at! Not sleeping well at the moment either so that doesn't help.
I am testing Bex and love the Caldesi books. Made a few of their recipes now. Made their seed crackers yesterday and it was a revelation to have cheese on one. I've had nothing crisp since July.... Not read Tom Watson's book.
Still working on getting the balance of fat to protein and the low carb veg.
Not sure about some of the recipes on Diet Doctor. They seem to have substitutes like onion powder for real onion and flavourings of soy and worcester sauce. I religiously made their quantity for 2 shepherd's pie and felt it was enormous. Also not sure about quantity of the added creams and cheese in cauliflower mash. I would have made a smaller quantity with less added ingredients. It tasted nice though although somewhat sweet.
 
My delightful DN nurse tells me she expects my result to be in the 70s - without medication! Hmm really. Its Friday week until I find out. So optimistic, so cheerful. Well its wait and see time.
 
Well, what a surprise. I've just been rung by my DN. She couldn't resist it. My HbA1c result is....44
Down from 100 on the 29th July 2020. Thank you friends. Still a way to go yet.
 
Well done you - you are on it - you are heading in the right direction and you know what to do - gold star!
 
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