newly worried

[nick jennings]

hi i was diagnosed on dec 12 2012 with a reading of 17, 10 days later my reading was 19 and today i've just returned from the docs and its gone up to 27 !
this despite the fact i've been very careful with my diet over xmas and have given up alcohol and have not eaten any sweets things or many carbs. so far the 3 x 500 mg per day are not working and i've just been told to take 1 x gliclazide in addition.
how long do i need to do this trial and error medication until my diabetes is under control.

as a newby i'm beginning to get very depressed at the thought that my body is not responding to medication and what it means long term. am also fed up with feeling tired and under performing mentally and physically . is this normal ?

 

[GraceK]

Hi Nick and welcome to the forum ... I'm not sure if you're a T1 or T2. You're only diagnosed a month from what you say in your post so it's early days yet. Not sure what kind of diet you're eating but I've found, being a T2, that eating very low carb diet has lowered my BS quite a bit, I got down to virtually normal within 3 months.

I stick to eating like this - http://www.dietdoctor.com/LCHF

I was started on Metformin 500mg increasing to 2000mg within a month which I'm still taking and that seems to have really curbed my overall appetite along with cutting out the carbs.

What does your doctor say about your BS levels?

Yes, it's perfectly natural to feel depressed, sick and tired - that's uncontrolled diabetes for you. BUT ... please hang in there because it DOES get better once your doctor gets a better picture of your levels and how they're behaving so that he can diagnose and treat you appropriately.

I'd suggest if you don't already have one, get yourself a Codefree blood testing meter from Amazon and some test strips and start testing before you eat and an hour and 2 hours after you eat. Daisy will come along and give you some guidelines regarding what you should be aiming at in terms of BS levels. It's important to make a note of WHAT you eat so that when you test you know what's making your levels rise ... then you simply avoid that particular food. For me potatoes are a definite no-no, they're as bad for me as eating two chocolate muffins in quick succession, same with bread.

For me, the radical approach of just cutting out bread, potatoes, rice, pasta, cakes etc rather than cutting down. The change in how I felt became apparent within a couple of weeks, particularly where fatigue and depression were concerned. I couldn't drag myself out of bed before 1pm most days and even then I had no energy to do anything, so don't be surprised if that's how you feel while you have such high blood sugars but equally don't despair of ever feeling better, because you will, once you've got your diet and meds sorted. Keep posting and I'm sure there'll be others who've been in a similar situation to yours and who'll give you guidance. :thumbup:

 

[Daibell]

Hi. How old are you and were you overweight at diagnosis? If you are young and have recently lost weight you might possibly be a late onset Type 1 (LADA) in which case the tablets might not have much effect. I'm afraid diabetes treatment is quite a lottery. Metformin is usually started first as it helps most people a bit by reducing glucose around the body and is a good drug. Gliclazide is started if you not insulin resistant i.e. not overweight and the pancreas needs a prod. I'm also on Sitaglitpin which helps extend the insulin production time after a meal. If you are young and normal weight then the GP probably needs to do further tests.

 

[nick jennings]

thanks Grace. I'm actually type 2.
as for the diet tips, i've hardly been eating any carbs apart from porridge each morning and have been eating loads of fruit .
for the record i'm a pretty fit 57 year old with no obesity whatsoever and no history of it - always been very fit and active actually so all this diabetes malarkey is a bit of a mystery and very worrying as according to the doctor i'm by no means a usual suspect.

thanks nick

 

[daisy1]

Hi Nick and welcome to the forum

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


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 well over 30,000 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 ... rains.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 blood glucose 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.

 

[Daibell]

Hi Nick. Sounds like you are similar to myself. Diagnosed at 60 and it came out of the blue. No family history of diabetes, never been overweight and went to the gym 3 times a week preceding and since diagnosis. I now have a real problem controlling my sugars on the set of tablets so insulin round the corner; this is with ever-decreasing carb intake. There are 20% of so-called T2s who do not fit the overweight insulin resistance criteria and the docs usually don't know what the cause is and tests are limited. A GAD test will point some to the most common antibody but my recent private test was negative. There are other antibodies, pancreatic disease, viruses and the usual genes that can be the cause. The treatment regime is similar i.e. typically tablets up to three types then insulin when needed. C'est la vie.

 

[GraceK]

thanks Grace. I'm actually type 2.
as for the diet tips, i've hardly been eating any carbs apart from porridge each morning and have been eating loads of fruit .
for the record i'm a pretty fit 57 year old with no obesity whatsoever and no history of it - always been very fit and active actually so all this diabetes malarkey is a bit of a mystery and very worrying as according to the doctor i'm by no means a usual suspect.

thanks nick

I hate to tell you this Nick ... but much as I love my porridge I had to stop eating it because it sent my sugars sky high yet you wouldn't think of it as a 'sugar'. I know its advertised as a healthy option but it's healthy so long as you don't have diabetes. Also as far as fruit is concerned, that also has sugar (fructose) in it and so things like banana and very sweet fruits are best avoided at least until you've stabilised your BS. Mainly the berries are OK for us. When you're diabetic, you have to retrain your brain about all the foods you've been taught are 'healthy' because they may not be healthy for you as a diabetic, that's why I use the diet doctor link as my guide, it made everything so simple.

I agree it is a mystery and a nuisance but honestly, the diet doctor link is my best friend because the first thing we need to know is WHAT CAN WE EAT AND WHAT SHOULD WE BE AVOIDING LIKE THE PLAGUE.

God I DO miss my porridge with salt and cream but it's not worth the high BS.

 

[nick jennings]

thanks for all the advice particularly on the diet front. am struggling to find the positivity and good news amongst all this but thank you for your kind advice. nick

 

[nick jennings]

still newly worried

diagnosed with type 2 on Dec 12th 2012 with a blood glucose reading of 18.
was put on metformin 500 mg x 1 daily and went back 10 days later to seemy doctor and blood sugar was 19 so
he upped dosage to metformin 500 mg x 3. went back 10 days later and blood glucose reading was 27 !! so he changed meds to
2x 40 mg gliclazide daily + metformin 500 mg x 3 and i actually started feeling better - no blurry vision and not peeing constantly and feleign a bit more vigour and vitality.
I have just been back again nearly 2 weeks after last test and my blood glucose level is 20 and the doctor has now upped me to
2x 80 mg gliclazide daily +metformin 500 mg x 3.

the reality is that although i thought i was feeling better my diabetes isn't responding to what seems to be a trial and error form of
treatment. is this normal for someone who's just been diagnosed ? should i question what my GP is doing ? all my tests are around 0930 in the morning ( aboiut 1 hr after i've taken my meds) is this why readings are high ?

i;ve bought my own meter but to be honest i don't want to test myself daily before and after meals as i don't want to get depressed by the results. i've not drunk for 6 weeks and my diet's been very good (especially over xmas season) hardly touch carbs at all now. so why is my blood glucose ot coming down to low teens at least ? should i be worried.

any advice gratefully appreciated.

thanks nick

 

[DaveNN]

Hi nick,
I'm far from an expert in this... But how is your weight?
Is it dropping due to a conscious effort on your side?
(I've not been diagnosed YET.. though my doc seems to be itching to do so.... My figs are only 5 to 10ish)
Could it be that your reduction in carbs ( you'll have read the responses about porridge etc) is causing your liver to dump more Tate and lyle into your bloodstream?
I use an iBG Star and actually enjoy using it.

I hope you get sorted and quickly!

 

[Yorksman]

and have been eating loads of fruit .

Hi Nick. The "loads of fruit" may be the culprit. Fruit is ordinarily good for you but it does contain sugar. Try eating loads of vegetables instead and see if the BG comes down. I have one banana a day as a pudding because it fills, tastes good and contains potassium, which helps against cramps. However, a single banana does cause my BG to go up. If you're eating loads of fruit, you may be eating too much. Generally citrus fruits are good because the citric acid helps lower BG, thus countering the sugars in the fruit. Now most people can't eat lemons but oranges, clementines, grapefruits etc are worth trying. Always start with small amounts, check your BG after a couple of hours. You have to learn what foods work for you. I eat porridge too and it always causes a rise but, I have settled on a small amount which pushes me up from the 6s to the 7s. You can always eat some of what you want but you have to find out about how much you can eat too. "Loads of fruit" sounds like a good candidate for getting loads of vitamins but also loads of sugar too.

 

[nick jennings]

i've been waking up every morning with a headache and dry mouth and feeling very tired, this has only really happened since my gliclazide was increased to 2x80 mg a day - could this be the reason or is it just a general symptom of having diabetes and should it be getting worse . since being first diagnosed my medication doesnt seem to be bringing my blood sugar levels or making me feel any brighter and more energetic.

 

[Daibell]

Hi Nick. As I said in my earlier post you appear to be similar to me i.e. one of the 20% of so-called T2s who aren't insulin resistant but have a failing pancreas for whatever reason. In this case no tablets will help much in the longer-term and all you can do is continue with the lowest carb diet you can live with. I was put onto Sitagliptin 2years ago as I was on max dose of Met and Glic. This helped reduce spikes initially but has now stopped having any effect. Do discuss adding Sitagliptin with the doc. I've never had any problems with any of my meds but it sounds like Gliclazide is a problem for you in which case Sitagliptin may be an alternative. I'm using an HBa1C of 7.5% as my guideline per NICE and when I go above this I will discuss insulin with the doc. I think you need to be guided by your HBa1C and ask for another one if needed. I have one every 6 months, but 3 months when you have sugar problems is recommended. This gives you a base to discuss options with the doc. Sorry you have been hit with all this so soon after diagnosis. BTW I would suggest just testing 2 hours after a meal to find out the best foods for you. This will give you some idea of your average sugar, but HBa1C is the real guide. If your sugars continue to rise then you may want to get some Ketostix and check if you have any ketones in your urine. If you do have and feel unwell then have plenty of fluids call the doc or go to A&E.