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New To Testing - Help !

Quirkybee

Well-Known Member
Messages
128
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Morning all

I'm new to testing as of yesterday and my after meal readings were 15 then 13.7

This morning upon waking, bearing in mind I had an apple about 11.30 and went to bed after drinking sparkling water 12.30, I woke with 9.2. Realised I had not selected pre meal, so just did it again and it was 10.2.
I'm so disappointed and even more fretful now. I'm eating shredded what bitesize with half a small banana, so lord knows what it will be like in 2 hours.
HELP.
How would I reduce it, do I do this after everything I eat. I'm going to be paranoid, but I know I need to do this.

Was hoping to go for a Toby carvery this eve as a treat, but I'm doubtful on that now. It was a treat to save cooking for once in my life, lol.
 
Has anyone on the forum given you advice about cutting your carbs? Shredded wheat and banana (+ presumably milk) for breakfast would send my levels through the stratosphere. If your blood glucose is already high, you should eat a meal containing only protein and fat - preferably no carbs at all.
 
I have had links posted, but I can't eat savoury food first thing, never have. I prefer cereal, or I've had natural yog and blueberries etc, but I'm even too scared to eat that now, so in my eyes, I'm stuck. I just cannot and don't want anything savoury for breakfast as I'd end up being sick, but I look forward to cereal. So what can I eat instead?
Not very hopeful at the moment.
 
Berries and maybe some crushed nuts/seeds and full fat Greek yoghurt would be a much lower carb than cereal.
 
I would agree with @Indy51 look around this forum to see how people have adjusted their diet to reduce the amount of carbohydrates they eat and decide if that is for you.
If I was going to a carvery I would go with the meat and veg (loads of), give the roast spuds and pud a miss....
Testing before and after is important to see what is going on.
Good luck to you.
 
Alternatively, if you're actively trying to lose weight, you could skip breakfast and see if your BG goes up or down. For some people they need to eat or their BG keeps on rising; for others fasting works well to lower BG. You might get some ideas from checking out the Low Carb Diet and Fasting forums.
 

One of the M&S porridges it relatively low in carbs. I don't remember exactly but I think it's about 12g carbs per portion. My mum eats it sometimes as she's on insulin and is trying to keep her carbs right down. I tried it once but I found it too creamy. Might be worth checking the backs of packets if you like that sort of thing? I agree with the previous poster though, Greek yogurt is good. Having said that, everyone is different. I find that if I eat something very low or carb free for breakfast, my levels just keep rising. Strangely enough, an apple causes it to drop like a stone.
 
Toby carvery should be ok if you cut down the spuds. I would give the pud a miss and have an extra wine (assuming youre not driving)
 
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Hi @Quirkybee
I think you need to be kind to yourself -- you can only gain experience for what will work for you in real time
so it will take weeks to build up a picture of what foods work best for you.

I think you can safely go along to the toby carvery -- but aim to fill the plate with more meat and above ground vegetables ( broccoli , cauliflower , green beans etc )
( and a lot less or none of the below ground type -- potato , parsnip )
 
Hi Quirkybee,
I found through testing very quickly that it was carbs that increased my BG levels, some more than others. I was only prediabetic but have family members with type 1 and 2 diabetes so fear motivated me to be strict!
Right from the beginning I went hard core low carb and got to normal readings very quickly, I lost a about a stone, which lowered my BMI from a high normal, about 24 I think to 19.5 which I have maintained.
Now a good few years later I am a bit more lenient (occasionally), but if I ate what you have eaten even at the beginning my BG levels would have been too high.
Good luck!
 
Thank you.

Could I have 2 small roast potatoes, or best leave them altogether?
What about the lightest possible dessert......or am I pushing much luck now, haha?

Just nibbling on 2 slices ham and few almonds, I usually have fruit this time, but too frightened to go back to that after all the fruit I've previously consumed.

The dietitian didn't see the need for me to test with T2, so when I get different advice, it totally boggles me, I think it's good that I am, and I'm happy to do so at the mo.
 

What do you think of as a light dessert?
 
As far as the spuds go, different vegetables cause different reactions in everyone. The only way to find out what works for you is to test, so i think it's good that you are too.


For me, potato is really bad. It causes an immediate spike that's so high I usually can't stay awake, with problems well into the next day. Having said that. That was jacket/mashed potato. New potato isn't anywhere near as extreme and adding protein/fat should (I'm a little hazy on the exact mechanics) slow down the effect further, as in, cause a slower release and less of a spike. I would say that if you usually eat more than 2 roasties, eating two now would be a step in the right direction. But I'd make it a very rare treat.
I'm told that going completely cold turkey on the carbs can have problems of its own, - and stress raises blood sugar (no, lol, it really isn't fair!). Maybe be a little kinder to yourself lol, and don't panic!
 
@Quirkybee you can have what you like, but if you want to avoid strong medication you know you must not give in to temptation. Potatoes are not a wise choice, nor a dessert, nor gravy. Whatever you do, enjoy your meal and pile on the green veggies.

Your dietitian is wrong. We have all told you that testing is the only way to learn which foods are OK for you. You now have a meter, so why not use it and forget what this person says. She is spouting the NHS rubbish about T2s not needing to test. We have all been told this. If the NHS told us to test, they would have to provide us with meters and strips in order to comply with this - they used to do this years ago, but now money is tight they decided not to continue.
 
Quirkybee said:
Thank you.


The dietitian didn't see the need for me to test with T2, so when I get different advice, it totally boggles me, I think it's good that I am, and I'm happy to do so at the mo.
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Your dietitian hasn't invested as much time in you as you have, and wont be impacted by the outcomes. The NHS will not prescribe test meters and strips unless you are on blood glucose lowering medication that might cause a hypo. It plain penny pinching.
Ask yourself this - If you dont measure how can you manage your blood glucose? It is only by trial and error that we all find out what food is kind to us and what food isnt. As others have said it will take a while for you to build up this knowledge bank. At first I too was impatient for my blood sugars to fall, but fall they did. At the moment they are a bit higher than I want (6 to 7) but i'm on the case.
 
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Hi. First, your dietician was wrong about testing and obviously is pushing the NHS line. I always advise people to avoid dieticians like the plague as so many haven't a clue. Next, don't fear food. If you get it wrong the meter will tell you. Most of us were brought up on breakfast cereals and have had to wean ourselves off them as they are habit-forming carbs. I have a small portion of home-made muesli with cold milk. My wife adds nuts & seeds to it and I add blueberries. It's better if you have the oats in muesli that they aren't cooked as porridge will have more sugar released. Try to change your taste towards a more savoury breakfast. Fruit is generally fine but avoid tropical fruit e.g a banana (sorry). Proteins and fat are fine as well as veg and fruit. Nuts are great. You can just test 2 hours after a meal and if you go over 8.5 quite often then you need to cut the carbs down a bit further or see the GP for more medication.
 
Stop and think before you follow any dietitian's advice
- are they promoting low fat, high complex carbs?
- are they saying you don't need to test (because T2s don't need to)?
- are they relying on the HbA1c tests - which may be up to a year apart, and are rarely 3 months apart - to monitor progress?
- are they prioritising weight loss over blood glucose control?
- are they spouting the standard drivel about needing 130g carbs for brain fuel, and complex carbs 'for energy'?

If ANY of the above are true, then that dietitian isn't acting in your best interests, and is giving out information that is harmful to T2 diabetics.

The amount of damage, and the risk of long term complications rises steeply when our blood glucose exceeds 'normal' and an HbA1c over 42 (6 in old units) exceeds normal. Living like that is not a good idea. Testing IS a good idea. Eating to your meter is an even BETTER idea.
 
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