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CallMeAlan

Active Member
Messages
26
Location
Newbury
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
Hi all.

I'm a 71 year old male, diagnosed just this week with Type 2.

I'd been suffering with dry mouth and frequent small urinations for a few weeks, and decided, enough is enough, and consulted the doctor. She asked for a urine sample and then, during a phone conversation, sent me for a blood test. The conclusion was, yes, it's diabetes type 2. She prescribed Metformin, 2 x 500 mg. Today is day three of the drug. I've completely cut out sugar, which I used a LOT! Watching the carbs and have bought a couple of books about it. She didn't tell me the test readings.

Only taken 3 Metformins so far so early days. The urination has settled down to more like normal and hoping the dry mouth will go away.

I note that Type 2 most often affects the overweight, but I'm just a skinny 10 stone.

Anyway, hello to all!

Alan
 
Further to the above - I forgot to ask: would you recommend any testing kits, urine or blood? If so, please recommend a brand. I'd like to keep an eye on things.

Thanks.
 
Being very lean means there is room for a wrong diagnosis. Get yourself a blood glucose testing monitor, check your levels before a meal and a few hrs after. I'd be finding out what those readings were you mentioned. And I'd recommend you always get a copy of your results. You may of course still be T2, but you need to keep an eye on levels I think being it's early days. If they get high and don't come down that's a good time to get to the hospital.

I think a popular brand of testing gear is Tee2.... I don't have that brand, but seems like a popular choice.

Sounds like you are really on the ball with the diet, so that's good.

Welcome to the forum.
 
Hi and welcome. A popular low cost meter and strips is the Codefree which I believe is on Amazon. You don't normally need to test your urine unless you suspect ketones. Mis-diagnosis of diabetes type is common as GPs usually guess. Keep and eye on you blood sugar over the coming weeks and if it keeps creeping up then ask for the two tests for T1. You're doing the right thing by lowering your carbs. Be careful with diabetes books or NHS websites as they often think fat is the cause of diabetes and rarely mention carbs only sugar. This website is excellent.
 
Hello and welome,

You sound like you have already started making changes to deal with it.

A meter is a great idea. Most people find that the costs of strips is the expensive part. I personally went for a brand that can sync to my phone so I have a record of my readings. I use the mysugr app which can then give me an estimate of my HbA1C.

I also agree with @Tophat1900 's advice. There are more than 2 types of diabetes so keeping an eye on your readings is important. As Tophat said if your levels remain high go to the hospital.

Welcome.
 
Thank you all for your very helpful replies. I didn't have my results, but asked my doctor to provide them. She said that my HbA1C was 67 at my blood test 9 days ago, and my urine test showed my urine dip as +++, whatever that actually means.
Yes, I've made massive changes in my diet since diagnosis last week, cutting out sugar entirely, which was a massive change as I had a very sweet tooth, and watching the carbs carefully.
My meter should arrive today, so I'll use it to keep a close watch.
Now it's really only the dry mouth that's a bother - though coffee without sugar and no cakes and choc are a pain!
Alan
 
CallMeAlan said:
cutting out sugar entirely, which was a massive change as I had a very sweet tooth, and watching the carbs carefully.
Click to expand...
Carbs are just more sugar in a different form.. so whilst watching them might help reducing them would be even better!
I'm sure you have already but there's lots of nonsense about brown being better than white (which it might be) but they are still both bad for us T2's.
 
Thanks bulkbiker. I've started reading the contents on the back of foods for their carb content. I've cut out bread entirely and have moved to crackers for peckishness. I see that my favourite Jacobs are 4.5 g per cracker, and I'd normally have two, possibly twice a day. Chips and crisps have gone.
To my surprise, the loss of sugar has had no effect on me. But I'm not a lover of sweet potatoes.
 
BTW many of us have nuts, cheese, berries etc as a snack.
 
Hi I have received a letter recently saying I need to speak to the diabetes nurse after having some bloods taken I’m worried
 
Hello everybody I'm a newbie, If anyone fancy a conversation I'll always be here
 
Jo475, please go and see the nurse. I spent six or eight weeks of dry mouth and little dribbles of urine frequently with no idea why, and causing me much anxiety. Finally, I spoke to the doctor a couple of times and had urine and blood tests, and the verdict came back: Type 2. Straight onto Metformin which, despite the doctor's warnings, caused no side effects.

Now, nearly a week later, I'm still dry of mouth, but, having a diagnosis, the anxiety has gone, I'm urinating normally, and I'm relieved to know what it is. Big diet changes straight away. Sugar has gone (previously 3 or 4 coffees a day, each with 2 spoons of sugar, donuts, chocolate) and I'm watching the carbs. Metering my blood glucose before and after dinner and it doesn't seem too bad, at 6.2 / 7.9.

So major changes to lifestyle but actually feeling better in myself. So do go.

Alan
 
For me 4 crackers twice a day would be more than my entire daily carb intake.
Do you have something with them? Maybe just have more of the something and no crackers?
T2's are kind of allergic to all and any carbohydrate on the whole so it is good to avoid as many as you can.
 
Wow. That's 18g of carbs each day just on four crackers as snacks, plus the carbs in the rest of your eating. It might be OK for you, it would definitely not be OK for me. Have you thought about something that isn't carb-heavy as a snack?
 
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