• Guest - w'd love to know what you think about the forum! Take the 2025 Survey »

Newly diagnosed

G

Graces grandma

Member
Messages
9
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Hello all, my name is Janet and I was diagnosed with type 2 two weeks ago and trying to come to terms with it, I've been quite depressed and weepy this week, is this normal? A friends husband (diagnosed 2 years now) came to chat to me earlier today and pointed me in the direction of this site and especially the forum, so I'm hoping for lots of great advice from all of you out there! One of the first things he advised was getting a glucose level checker, so any advice on that please?
 
Hello, welcome to the forum I'm not very knowledgeable about the best meters.

@Bluetit1802 can you answer this better than me?
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Hello welcome ....nice to meet you ...
Feeling low can be really awful ...hope you feel more positive soon , you need to find the positives to move forward ...
Understand it will all be a shock ....awful feelings,,but it can get better ,,never easy I guess but once you know what you are dealing with you can begin to take control ....
Best wishes ...Kat
 
Thanks Kat, appreciate your comments.
 
Hi Janet and welcome to the forum.

Yes it was a bit overwhelming for all of us when first diagnosed, in fact a bit of an emotional roller coaster. Effectively you end up going through the various stages of grief, you know denial, anger, guilt, acceptance before finally coming out the other end with hope.

So be prepared for some emotional ups and downs but remember you are not alone. We've all been through it and are here to help.

Daisy will be along soon with the usual information given out to the newly diagnosed. All good staff but take your time to let it all sink in.

And ask as many questions as you need to if something does not seem clear.

You'll find people here never grow tired of responding to enquires especially from newbies.

You see we have all been there, we all remember what it felt like and we all remember how grateful we were to find a friendly ear and some helpful advice from someone who told us that it will be alright that this thing can be controlled.

Well take a deep breath Janet because things will be alright for you, we will all be here to make sure they are.

Once again, welcome

Pavlos
 
Graces grandma said:
Thanks Zand, your "numbers" are fantastic, well done!
Click to expand...

Thank you. I follow a low carb diet which took a bit of getting used to but was really effective.

I've just looked up meters for you and found that many on here use the SD Codefree system (from Amazon etc) because the strips are the most cost-effective. If you can't find it get back to us and someone will be able to help you
 
Thanks Pavlos, appreciate your comments and will take them on board.
 
Thank you, I will see if I can find these meters on Amazon
 
Welcome to the forum from the other side of the pond (Canada). There are various things you need to look for when it comes to chewing a meter such as ease of use and maintenance, because some meters are easier to use than others. Are both the meter and test strips comfortable to hold? Can you easily see the numbers on the screen? How easy is it to get blood onto the strips? Does it require a small or large drop of blood?

There are also various features that meter comes with such as, some meters are large with strips that are easier to handle. Some are compact and easier to carry. People with impaired vision can buy a meter with a large screen or a "talking" meter that announces the results. Colourful meters that give a quick reading are available for children. Some models have a backlight, which is handy for nighttime readings. Others are manufactured to withstand extreme temperatures, which may be useful for people who spend a lot of time outdoors, such as hikers or construction workers.

There is also the matter of information storage and retrieval where you need to consider how the meter stores and retrieves information. Some can track all the information you'd normally write in a log, such as the time and date of a test, the result, and trends over time. Some meters offer the ability to download your blood glucose readings to a computer or your cell phone, then email the test results to your doctor.

Personally I love the Freestyle line of meter because they require very little blood when testing compared to most other meters on the market that I've tested, and for me the lest amount of blood with few errors do to low blood amount the better (I have a b of a time getting enough blood to test with from my fingers after 10+ years of testing). My fav meter to date is the Freestyle Insulinx because it has the built in ability to also help you with figuring out the about of insulin you need to use to correct your readings (which can come in handy if you are on insulin, but not so much if its not something you need). It does also sink with my Mac so I can keep a back up of all the readings that I get from it (but I also use another app that I put in the readings called BG Monitor) and my endro likes the new meter though like a few endro's he will not recommend one over the other to his patients.
 
Hi Janet, as a newbie myself I've been looking for a meter,there is a comparison of different one's on this forum I found at the forum subject headings, hope this helps. I know how you're feeling but these folks will get you through it, I've found all sorts of stuff on here.
 
Gosh! Lots to think about there...Thankyou Nyxks, much appreciated.
 
Hello Janet and welcome to the forum

Here is the information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful. Ask all the questions you need to and someone will be able to help.

BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEWLY DIAGNOSED DIABETICS

Diabetes is the general term to describe people who have blood that is sweeter than normal. A number of different types of diabetes exist.

A diagnosis of diabetes tends to be a big shock for most of us. It’s far from the end of the world though and on this forum you’ll find over 100,000 people who are demonstrating this.

On the forum we have found that with the number of new people being diagnosed with diabetes each day, sometimes the NHS is not being able to give all the advice it would perhaps like to deliver - particularly with regards to people with type 2 diabetes.

The role of carbohydrate

Carbohydrates are a factor in diabetes because they ultimately break down into sugar (glucose) within our blood. We then need enough insulin to either convert the blood sugar into energy for our body, or to store the blood sugar as body fat.

If the amount of carbohydrate we take in is more than our body’s own (or injected) insulin can cope with, then our blood sugar will rise.

The bad news

Research indicates that raised blood sugar levels over a period of years can lead to organ damage, commonly referred to as diabetic complications.

The good news

People on the forum here have shown that there is plenty of opportunity to keep blood sugar levels from going too high. It’s a daily task but it’s within our reach and it’s well worth the effort.

Controlling your carbs

The info below is primarily aimed at people with type 2 diabetes, however, it may also be of benefit for other types of diabetes as well.
There are two approaches to controlling your carbs:

  • Reduce your carbohydrate intake
  • Choose ‘better’ carbohydrates

Reduce your carbohydrates

A large number of people on this forum have chosen to reduce the amount of carbohydrates they eat as they have found this to be an effective way of improving (lowering) their blood sugar levels.

The carbohydrates which tend to have the most pronounced effect on blood sugar levels tend to be starchy carbohydrates such as rice, pasta, bread, potatoes and similar root vegetables, flour based products (pastry, cakes, biscuits, battered food etc) and certain fruits.

Choosing better carbohydrates

Another option is to replace ‘white carbohydrates’ (such as white bread, white rice, white flour etc) with whole grain varieties. The idea behind having whole grain varieties is that the carbohydrates get broken down slower than the white varieties –and these are said to have a lower glycaemic index.
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/food/diabetes-and-whole-grains.html

The low glycaemic index diet is often favoured by healthcare professionals but some people with diabetes find that low GI does not help their blood sugar enough and may wish to cut out these foods altogether.

Read more on carbohydrates and diabetes

Eating what works for you

Different people respond differently to different types of food. What works for one person may not work so well for another. The best way to see which foods are working for you is to test your blood sugar with a glucose meter.

To be able to see what effect a particular type of food or meal has on your blood sugar is to do a test before the meal and then test after the meal. A test 2 hours after the meal gives a good idea of how your body has reacted to the meal.

The blood sugar ranges recommended by NICE are as follows:

Blood glucose ranges for type 2 diabetes
  • Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
  • 2 hours after meals: under 8.5 mmol/l
Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (adults)
  • Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
  • 2 hours after meals: under 9 mmol/l
Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (children)
  • Before meals: 4 to 8 mmol/l
  • 2 hours after meals: under 10 mmol/l
However, those that are able to, may wish to keep blood sugar levels below the NICE after meal targets.

Access to blood glucose test strips

The NICE guidelines suggest that people newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes should be offered:

  • structured education to every person and/or their carer at and around the time of diagnosis, with annual reinforcement and review
  • self-monitoring of plasma glucose to a person newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes only as an integral part of his or her self-management education

Therefore both structured education and self-monitoring of blood glucose should be offered to people with type 2 diabetes. Read more on getting access to bloodglucose testing supplies.

You may also be interested to read questions to ask at a diabetic clinic

Note: This post has been edited from Sue/Ken's post to include up to date information.
 
Thank you Gary, will have a look where you suggest .
 
Hi Janet,

Welcome. Feeling weepy, confused, scared, angry are all very normal feelings, many of us went through the same as you are now.

Post on here as much as you want - lots of understanding, advice and virtual hugs are always on offer.


There is lots of info you have to get your head around in the early days, you will make mistakes - you are human.

Basically you need to find out how your body uses the food you give it. So in simple terms how good is your body at using carbohydrates (carbs and sugars can be treated as same thing in early days).

So once you have your meter - I like many people have the SD code free as the test strips are cheapest (its a basic meter but does the job). Then you need a diary write down what you eat - and ideally how much carbohydrate it has. Test your blood glucose level before you eat, then after 1hr and again after 2hrs. You will be able to see which foods raise your blood glucose levels a little and which a lot. You will be testing a lot in the early days. Test a food a few times before eliminating it as things like fat in a meal can influence how your body processes the carbohydrates. Write everything down.

It seems overwhelming but after a while you will work out what your body can tolerate.

Everyone is different so you will read that some can eat bread and potatoes in small portions and some can't. There are posts on different diets that might be useful to browse for ideas, GI, lowcarbhighfat (LCHF), atkins, veggie etc.
You may find some members are very enthusiastic about one type of eating plan as they have found it works well for them, use your meter and find what works for you.

ask lots of questions, that what the forum is about. There are no stupid questions!
 
Hi Janet and welcome!

T2 diagnosis usually comes as a bit of a shock followed by confusion from often conflicting advice. But don’t panic, it can be managed. It does require a bit of a lifestyle change in terms of diet and discipline, but we can and will help you with that. We were all in the same boat once!

The main priority is to get blood sugars under control. For diabetics this means not just cutting out sugars but significantly reducing carbohydrates as well. Carbohydrates metabolise quickly to sugar in the system (some take a little longer than others) and so for diabetics they act basically as if they were sugar. So you need to cut out starchy carbs as much as possible – bread, potatoes, pasta and rice. This may be contrary to medical profession guidance you have received to eat carbs with every meal – this is fundamentally flawed advice rejected by most well-controlled T2s on here.

In order to learn what foods you can and cannot tolerate it is recommended that you have a test meter (not usually prescribed for T2s). With this you can measure your blood glucose (BG) levels before and after meals and see what ‘spikes’ you. Again this may be contrary to professional advice you might receive which often regards testing as pointless. But how else are you supposed to learn? Many on here use the SD Codefree system (from Amazon etc) because the strips are the most cost-effective.

For low carb foods try and go for those that have less than 10g total carbohydrate per 100g, less than 5g if you can. Ignore the ‘of which sugar’ bit, that’s irrelevant to us. You will become an avid reader of food labels! As well as carbs avoid tropical fruits including bananas which are full of sugar – for us berry fruits are best.

You may now be wondering what we do eat! Many on here successfully manage their BG with the low carb high fat diet (LCHF, see www.dietdoctor.com/lchf). So you can eat meat, fish, salads, above-ground vegetables, avocados, olive oil, butter etc. If you reduce carbs you lose the calories that came with them, so these need to be replaced from other food groups such as protein and fat. The ‘high fat’ bit bothers some people, as it did me at first, but all it means is you can freely eat more fat to offset the carb calories – and you don’t feel so hungry all the time either (carbs are addictive). Avoid most ‘low fat’ products as these usually have added sugar – go for full fat milk, cream, butter, Greek yoghurt etc.

Some prefer to keep eating some carbs, because they want to and/or they can tolerate more; and some are less able to eat higher levels of fat. Everyone has to make the best choice for their own circumstances.

You’re probably overloaded with information by now, and needing a bit of time to absorb it. No problem, just relax and ask any questions you like.
 
from scandichic
http://www.homehealth-uk.com/medical/blood_glucose_monitor_testing.htm

if you buy extra boxes of strips, there is a discount code
5 packs 264086
10 packs 975833
sanguine link is good..
till you get your head around diets, I cut all grain and grain product, bread pasta etc, potato and sugary stuff and 1 piece of fruit a day
eat lots of leafy veg, normal meats and add real butter and olive oil to make up for the lost carbs from the grain
 
zand said:
Hello, welcome to the forum I'm not very knowledgeable about the best meters.

@Bluetit1802 can you answer this better than me?
Click to expand...


Only just catching up with this thread. Jack beat me to it with the Homehealth link and promo codes.

Hello Janet, and welcome to the forum. Some great advice from the others, and I can't add anything. Good luck!
 
Hello,
Well, look like I beat you by a week! I was diagnosed with Type 2 about three weeks ago.
You've had a lot of replies, so I'm not going to write you a long post, but just to say that I've found people here are really supportive and helpful. There always seems to be someone watching this site ready to reply to even the "silliest" question - but of course there are no silly questions.
My blood glucose levels were really quite high so I was given a monitor by my doctor and I have found it really useful.
I would say that for my first couple of weeks I didn't really know what to do, but this last week I have been getting to grips with things a bit more.
Can't offer a lot of advice at the moment, but if you'd just like a chat, that I can manage!
Take care and I'm sure all will be well.
Bee Gee
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Menu
Log in
Register
Cookies are required to use this site. You must accept them to continue using the site. Learn More.…