Not quite newly diagnosed, but my T2DM is back!

[EllisB]

Hi all,
I managed to get my T2DM into remission 8 years ago by diet, weight loss and exercise. Now it is back with avengeance. When I had a recent blood test I asked the GP to add HbA1c and I am glad I did, it came back at 124mmol/mol (sky high). I am not overweight (just in the green zone) and have been losing weight easily over the last 6 months. Covid has interfered with routine monitoring, with a 10 day wait blood test appointment (if you can get one at all). Testing positive for Covid for the first time on the day the test was originally scheduled did not help.

That was 3 weeks ago. After a second (higher) result the GP put me on 80mg Gliclazide and added an evening dose a week ago.

So far, my BG seems to respond more to low carb meals than the gliclazide. This morning I had my lowest fasting BG at 11.9 after an omelette for evening meal last night. I'm not sure a low carb diet is sustainable with a young family. My wife has been great, but cooking a different meal for me is a lot of work.

The care I have had, once I got to see them has been good. I had a CT on Friday and the doctor is calling me early tomorrow.

A question for the more experienced members: How long should the Gliclazide take to bring the BG down?

Regards
Ellis

 

[Outlier]

I can't help with the Glic but I can with the cooking - your wife doesn't have to cook a different meal. All she has to do is cook extra of the diabetic-friendly foods for you, and not serve up the other stuff on your plate when she dishes up. Your bit is to see the diabetic-unfriendly foods as toxic (which they are for people like us, no matter how much we used to eat them) and the diabetic-friendly food as delicious (and it is).

 

[EllisB]

I can't help with the Glic but I can with the cooking - your wife doesn't have to cook a different meal. All she has to do is cook extra of the diabetic-friendly foods for you, and not serve up the other stuff on your plate when she dishes up. Your bit is to see the diabetic-unfriendly foods as toxic (which they are for people like us, no matter how much we used to eat them) and the diabetic-friendly food as delicious (and it is).

That worked for yesterday's sunday roast. She cooked roast sweet potato for me, I went sparingly with the parsnip and carrots and skipped the roast potatoes.

The problem is that most of the time what the kids eat is relatively high carb. Potatoes and pasta are staple foods in our house.

 

[Ronancastled]

Greetings @EllisB

I see from your sig that your remission was so successful the first time around that the "Diabetes code removed from medical record".
That's very impressive.

Can you identify anything that changed recently that caused you to regress, had you noticed any symptoms. I see that you were losing weight in the past 6 months. I wonder if your doc ran c-peptide & antibody tests to rule out T1 or one of it's variants.

Good luck with the Glic, hope you get back under control.

 

[Resurgam]

@EllisB - are you sure about the sweet potato being low carb for you?
I tried them once and got really high levels, but then my gut does see some things recommended for type 2s simply as a challenge.
I'd have chosen the carrots myself.
I brought up two children on a fairly low carb regime, as they preferred the foods but there were always more carby options made for them and my husband. I ended up as a little old lady as they are both way taller than I am - my son is well over 6ft - which I can only put down to the diet. I did not restrict their diet at all, but all the meat and fish etc was eaten and the potatoes and other starchy foods were what was left on the plates.

 

[EllisB]

Greetings @EllisB

I see from your sig that your remission was so successful the first time around that the "Diabetes code removed from medical record".
That's very impressive.

Can you identify anything that changed recently that caused you to regress, had you noticed any symptoms. I see that you were losing weight in the past 6 months. I wonder if your doc ran c-peptide & antibody tests to rule out T1 or one of it's variants.

Good luck with the Glic, hope you get back under control.

Thanks Roncastled,

My activity has declined over the last few years due to having a young family and working from home. I used to be a hell of a lot fitter and have a lot more muscle. I had Covid for the first time in July, have not felt the same since.

Doc has not run a c-peptide test, but he is obviously concerned enough to want to check my pancreas. I am speaking to him tomorrow and was thinking of asking whether it might be time. After all, with T2 and glic it should be high if my pancreas is responding.

 

[MrsA2]

Can you identify anything that changed recently that caused you to regress, had you noticed any symptoms. I see that you were losing weight in the past 6 months. I wonder if your doc ran c-peptide & antibody tests to rule out T1 or one of it's variants.

Yes, I'd like to see if t1 can be ruled out too