Hi, everyone I'm looking for help and advice please as I'm a type 2 diabetic and know nothing I feel tierd, sluggish in afternoon my eyes are blurred vision most of the time I don't know if my blood sugar is to high or to low how do you tell and what's the best things go eat. The web contradicts itself and getting no support off Dr's Any help and advice would be very appreciated. Thanks
Newly diagnosed, any help and advice would be very appreciated please
- Thread starter Dawn Tt
- Start Date
JoKalsbeek
Expert
- Messages
- 6,190
- Type of diabetes
- I reversed my Type 2
- Treatment type
- Diet only
Hi Dawn,
Sorry about the diagnosis, but here's the good news: Now you know what's wrong, and you can FIX it. There's no cure for diabetes, but 8 years ago I was very weak in my muscles, fatigued, blurry vision etc too... On top of a bunch of other things, like constant thrush, bladder infections, very severe depression etc. And a non-alcoholic fatty liver that was maybe a year or two off from killing me, who knows? So I did what you're doing now: Tried to find information on what I could do, because I at the time, responded badly to the meds I was put on. And I felt helpless, so... I needed some empowerment. And yes, like you, I found a whole lot of contradictions online, in books, from the medical professionals I spoke to, everywhere... Waded through all that, came out the other end, and today I walked across town and back with camera gear to an appointment to get my feet checked. While back then I couldn't even manage walking through our little flat. It gets better when you get control.
So this is how you get all that sorted: Get yourself a meter, so you know what is happening with your blood sugars. ( @Rachox can provide information on those for you). In the meantime, realise that you're unique. Your body, the rhythm of your life, likes and dislikes, your insulin sensitivity/resistance, all of it is unique to your person. So something that works for one person, might not work for you. That's where the meter comes in. All in all, carbs turn to glucose once ingested, it's not just the sugars that make our blood sugars go high. What you want to know is what specific foods/drinks do to your blood sugar levels. Then you find out what you can "safely" eat, and what causes a spike you find to be unacceptable. I mean, some people can have oats while others -like me- can't even look at them without spiking. You want to know where you are on that spectrum. Basically, you test like this: Just before your meal, and two hours after the first bite. Right when you're starting off, the numbers are likely to be high, but that's okay: you're just beginning. What you're aiming for is a rise of no more, and preferably less, than 2.0 mmol/l between the two measurements. If you can keep that down consistently, your over-all numbers will go down towards the normal range as well. https://josekalsbeek.blogspot.com/2019/11/the-nutritional-thingy.html should help with the basics, but just keep in mind... You're you, you're not anybody else. Trust your meter and don't get badgered into some expensive diet or supplement or whatever, when you can get this sorted just by eating a little differently than you've been taught is healthy. (Because the EatWell plate is not designed for people with insulin resistance!)
You'll be okay. Life's about to get better.
Hugs,
Jo
PS: As your bloods change, so will your eyesight. DO NOT BUY EXPENSIVE GLASSES! I tossed hundreds of euro's down the drain that way, alas. Your vision'll be changing for a while, as the overload of sugar in your eye and tears, stops distorting your vision. Just stick with the cheap reading specs, those should be able to tide you over for the few weeks this'll likely last!
Sorry about the diagnosis, but here's the good news: Now you know what's wrong, and you can FIX it. There's no cure for diabetes, but 8 years ago I was very weak in my muscles, fatigued, blurry vision etc too... On top of a bunch of other things, like constant thrush, bladder infections, very severe depression etc. And a non-alcoholic fatty liver that was maybe a year or two off from killing me, who knows? So I did what you're doing now: Tried to find information on what I could do, because I at the time, responded badly to the meds I was put on. And I felt helpless, so... I needed some empowerment. And yes, like you, I found a whole lot of contradictions online, in books, from the medical professionals I spoke to, everywhere... Waded through all that, came out the other end, and today I walked across town and back with camera gear to an appointment to get my feet checked. While back then I couldn't even manage walking through our little flat. It gets better when you get control.
So this is how you get all that sorted: Get yourself a meter, so you know what is happening with your blood sugars. ( @Rachox can provide information on those for you). In the meantime, realise that you're unique. Your body, the rhythm of your life, likes and dislikes, your insulin sensitivity/resistance, all of it is unique to your person. So something that works for one person, might not work for you. That's where the meter comes in. All in all, carbs turn to glucose once ingested, it's not just the sugars that make our blood sugars go high. What you want to know is what specific foods/drinks do to your blood sugar levels. Then you find out what you can "safely" eat, and what causes a spike you find to be unacceptable. I mean, some people can have oats while others -like me- can't even look at them without spiking. You want to know where you are on that spectrum. Basically, you test like this: Just before your meal, and two hours after the first bite. Right when you're starting off, the numbers are likely to be high, but that's okay: you're just beginning. What you're aiming for is a rise of no more, and preferably less, than 2.0 mmol/l between the two measurements. If you can keep that down consistently, your over-all numbers will go down towards the normal range as well. https://josekalsbeek.blogspot.com/2019/11/the-nutritional-thingy.html should help with the basics, but just keep in mind... You're you, you're not anybody else. Trust your meter and don't get badgered into some expensive diet or supplement or whatever, when you can get this sorted just by eating a little differently than you've been taught is healthy. (Because the EatWell plate is not designed for people with insulin resistance!)
You'll be okay. Life's about to get better.
Hugs,
Jo
PS: As your bloods change, so will your eyesight. DO NOT BUY EXPENSIVE GLASSES! I tossed hundreds of euro's down the drain that way, alas. Your vision'll be changing for a while, as the overload of sugar in your eye and tears, stops distorting your vision. Just stick with the cheap reading specs, those should be able to tide you over for the few weeks this'll likely last!
catinahat
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 3,446
- Type of diabetes
- Type 2
- Treatment type
- Diet only
- Dislikes
- Reality tv
Welcome dawn
Have a look at the link for the nutritional thingy at the base of my post. It will help with many of your questions.
Ok so what to eat, we should start with the fact that all carbohydrates when digested will turn to glucose and raise your blood sugar. The more carbs you can cut from your diet the easier this T2 is to manage.
Blurry eyes, this can be caused by rising or falling blood sugar levels. What happens is as your blood sugar levels rise your body starts pushing the sugar anywhere it can to get it out of your blood. A bit like sweeping dust under the carpet, it's still there but you can't see it.
As this sugar goes in it changes the shape of your lense and makes your vision blurry untill your brain adjusts to the new shape. When you are first diagnosed this happens over a long period of time leading up to diagnosis, so the changes are usually so slow you don't notice.
When we get diagnosed, make a few dietary changes, perhaps take some meds our blood sugar falls and your eyes change faster than your brain can keep up with.
It will sort itself out when your brain catches up.
You were worried if it might be caused by low blood sugar, our problem is that our insulin is not working as well as it should. This means our blood sugar is almost certainly going to be higher than normal, that's why we're diagnosed.
The horror stories you hear about low blood sugar are almost always caused by taking to much medication. Although someone is sure to say that they get unmedicated hypos, and of course it's possible but extremely rare, and usually caused by another condition. As I said diabetes is a problem of high blood sugar and those of us not taking insulin or one of the more aggressive drugs need not worry about going too low.
Have a look at the link for the nutritional thingy at the base of my post. It will help with many of your questions.
Ok so what to eat, we should start with the fact that all carbohydrates when digested will turn to glucose and raise your blood sugar. The more carbs you can cut from your diet the easier this T2 is to manage.
Blurry eyes, this can be caused by rising or falling blood sugar levels. What happens is as your blood sugar levels rise your body starts pushing the sugar anywhere it can to get it out of your blood. A bit like sweeping dust under the carpet, it's still there but you can't see it.
As this sugar goes in it changes the shape of your lense and makes your vision blurry untill your brain adjusts to the new shape. When you are first diagnosed this happens over a long period of time leading up to diagnosis, so the changes are usually so slow you don't notice.
When we get diagnosed, make a few dietary changes, perhaps take some meds our blood sugar falls and your eyes change faster than your brain can keep up with.
It will sort itself out when your brain catches up.
You were worried if it might be caused by low blood sugar, our problem is that our insulin is not working as well as it should. This means our blood sugar is almost certainly going to be higher than normal, that's why we're diagnosed.
The horror stories you hear about low blood sugar are almost always caused by taking to much medication. Although someone is sure to say that they get unmedicated hypos, and of course it's possible but extremely rare, and usually caused by another condition. As I said diabetes is a problem of high blood sugar and those of us not taking insulin or one of the more aggressive drugs need not worry about going too low.
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Hia Dawn, you have come to the right place and I echo all over the above that has been said. Have a mooch around, you will learn so much. The glasses thingy I can relate to, before being diagnosed I was going back and forth so many times that the optician said they couldn't change the prescription any more. Then it all clicked when I was diagnosed. I had the blurry eyes and its horrid but then as soon as my levels started getting better the blurry eyes got better. Have you got a meter yet, did the gp give you one? It helps to know what level you start with and what food is okay etc. Keep a diary it all helps I still look back on mine now and the nutritional thingy too.
- Messages
- 16,384
- Type of diabetes
- I reversed my Type 2
- Treatment type
- Tablets (oral)
Quick reply as I’m on holiday, here’s some info I have saved with links for UK meters, and to be clear I have no commercial connections with any of the companies mentioned.
HOME HEALTH have the Gluco Navii, which is a fairly new model and seems to be getting good reviews.
https://homehealth-uk.com/all-produ...ose-meter-test-strips-choose-mmol-l-or-mg-dl/
Links to the strips for future orders:
https://homehealth-uk.com/all-products/glucose-navii-blood-glucose-test-strips-50-strip-pack/
Then they sell the older SD Code Free, details to be found here!
https://homehealth-uk.com/all-products/codefree-blood-glucose-monitoring-system-mmoll-or-mgdl/
SPIRIT HEALTHCARE have a meter called the Tee2 + which is quite popular:
https://shop.spirit-health.co.uk/co...e2-blood-glucose-meter?variant=19264017268793
The strips are to be found here:
https://shop.spirit-health.co.uk/co...py-of-tee2-test-strips?variant=19264017367097
If there is a choice of units of measurement then ‘mmol/L’ are the standard units in the UK, ‘mg/dl’ in the US, other countries may vary.
Don’t forget to check the box if you have diabetes so you can buy VAT free. (for all meters and strips)
HOME HEALTH have the Gluco Navii, which is a fairly new model and seems to be getting good reviews.
https://homehealth-uk.com/all-produ...ose-meter-test-strips-choose-mmol-l-or-mg-dl/
Links to the strips for future orders:
https://homehealth-uk.com/all-products/glucose-navii-blood-glucose-test-strips-50-strip-pack/
Then they sell the older SD Code Free, details to be found here!
https://homehealth-uk.com/all-products/codefree-blood-glucose-monitoring-system-mmoll-or-mgdl/
SPIRIT HEALTHCARE have a meter called the Tee2 + which is quite popular:
https://shop.spirit-health.co.uk/co...e2-blood-glucose-meter?variant=19264017268793
The strips are to be found here:
https://shop.spirit-health.co.uk/co...py-of-tee2-test-strips?variant=19264017367097
If there is a choice of units of measurement then ‘mmol/L’ are the standard units in the UK, ‘mg/dl’ in the US, other countries may vary.
Don’t forget to check the box if you have diabetes so you can buy VAT free. (for all meters and strips)
If you read and don't get too anxious about stuff, I recommend you get "the pioppi diet" and "ultra processed people". These are amongst the best I've read in my quest for answers and I've gone from hba1c never below 80 and as high as 120 over 4 years to 57 in 3 months once I understood what was going on and decided I was fed up with feeling rubbish. Also look for phc uk on the web run by UK Dr's who get excellent results without issuing any meds, shame the rest of the medical profession don't take note!
