One Year On

My goodness, congratulations Rachox! You’ve been so knowledgeable and inspiring that I thought you must have been here for years! Guru! But in fact your journey sounds almost parallel to mine. I’m seeing the GP next week for an annual checkup after a year in which I’ve tried and roughly managed to do what you have done and reverse my blood glucose values. I hadn’t even been diagnosed as prediabetic. My glucose and cholesterol were ‘slightly up’ and I had about 20 complaints SO as the combo was not good, GP’s answer was to suggest statins! No thankyou very much, no more statins, I’ll do it through nutrition. Oh well if you insist was the reply. I went lowcarb and started monitoring the sugar - and soon saw I wasn’t just slightly high (6.6 fasting) but likely prediabetic! I recall moments like a 16 following a holiday cappuccino & jam croissant.!! An annual fasting value is not enough! Mostly pricking to check, but twice used the Freestyle Libre which I loved. A life saver, but soooo expensive. It was a luxury birthday present for me. But Surely giving risk patients this for two weeks would help prevent diabetes 2 and thus SAVE money for the health system. I ‘only’ lost 13 kg to date (there have been some tough standstill times when exercise was unavoidably lower) but I felt I’d ditched it. I soon realised I was on the right track but that the sugar monster will always be lurking... thank you for sharing! Congratulations and enjoy your trail! If I may I’ll join you all for the crispy duck and veggies at the Eat all you can drop dead gorgeous Chinese Buffet. Katie in Holland

catarinagallo said:

My goodness, congratulations Rachox! You’ve been so knowledgeable and inspiring that I thought you must have been here for years! Guru! But in fact your journey sounds almost parallel to mine. I’m seeing the GP next week for an annual checkup after a year in which I’ve tried and roughly managed to do what you have done and reverse my blood glucose values. I hadn’t even been diagnosed as prediabetic. My glucose and cholesterol were ‘slightly up’ and I had about 20 complaints SO as the combo was not good, GP’s answer was to suggest statins! No thankyou very much, no more statins, I’ll do it through nutrition. Oh well if you insist was the reply. I went lowcarb and started monitoring the sugar - and soon saw I wasn’t just slightly high (6.6 fasting) but likely prediabetic! I recall moments like a 16 following a holiday cappuccino & jam croissant.!! An annual fasting value is not enough! Mostly pricking to check, but twice used the Freestyle Libre which I loved. A life saver, but soooo expensive. It was a luxury birthday present for me. But Surely giving risk patients this for two weeks would help prevent diabetes 2 and thus SAVE money for the health system. I ‘only’ lost 13 kg to date (there have been some tough standstill times when exercise was unavoidably lower) but I felt I’d ditched it. I soon realised I was on the right track but that the sugar monster will always be lurking... thank you for sharing! Congratulations and enjoy your trail! If I may I’ll join you all for the crispy duck and veggies at the Eat all you can drop dead gorgeous Chinese Buffet. Katie in Holland

Click to expand...

You’ve got to say it properly my dear...

“Eat All You Can Til We All Drop Dead (gorgeous) Delicious Chinese Buffet Everyday!!!”

hahahahaha!!!

Rachox said:

Happy Diaday to me!
Happy Diaday to me!
Happy Diaday dear Rachoooooooox!
Happy Diaday to me!

Yes one whole year today since my Type 2 diagnosis and what a year!
I’ve gone from an HbA1c of 70 to consistently in the 30s (MySugr says estimate of 31.9 today)
I’ve gone from weighing 115kg (BMI 44.3) to 79kg (BMI 30.4)
I’ve gone from a BP of 140/88 to 125/77 and that’s on less BP meds.
I’ve dropped 3 dress sizes.
I’ve taken in my watch strap twice!
I’ve gone from sleeping for England to waking each day refreshed after 7 hours sleep.
I’ve gone from couch potato to someone who walks at least 20 mins each day.
I’ve gone from lazy cook to experimental cook.
I’ve gone from “Shell Shocked” (the title of my first post here) to well informed and educated on all things Type 2!

I’ve followed a low carb way of eating from the night of my diagnosis, with Metformin and self monitoring to achieve all of this, and it’s absolutely thanks to the wisdom, support and friendliness of the folks on this fantastic forum, for which I’ll be eternally grateful - plus a pinch of effort and will power from me!

My diabetes diagnosis really has been a blessing in disguise, as a result of it I am so much fitter than I was this time last year!

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Well done u have a lot to be proud of there love what an achievement

Rachox said:

Happy Diaday to me!
Happy Diaday to me!
Happy Diaday dear Rachoooooooox!
Happy Diaday to me!

Yes one whole year today since my Type 2 diagnosis and what a year!
I’ve gone from an HbA1c of 70 to consistently in the 30s (MySugr says estimate of 31.9 today)
I’ve gone from weighing 115kg (BMI 44.3) to 79kg (BMI 30.4)
I’ve gone from a BP of 140/88 to 125/77 and that’s on less BP meds.
I’ve dropped 3 dress sizes.
I’ve taken in my watch strap twice!
I’ve gone from sleeping for England to waking each day refreshed after 7 hours sleep.
I’ve gone from couch potato to someone who walks at least 20 mins each day.
I’ve gone from lazy cook to experimental cook.
I’ve gone from “Shell Shocked” (the title of my first post here) to well informed and educated on all things Type 2!

I’ve followed a low carb way of eating from the night of my diagnosis, with Metformin and self monitoring to achieve all of this, and it’s absolutely thanks to the wisdom, support and friendliness of the folks on this fantastic forum, for which I’ll be eternally grateful - plus a pinch of effort and will power from me!

My diabetes diagnosis really has been a blessing in disguise, as a result of it I am so much fitter than I was this time last year!

Click to expand...

EVERY CREDIT TO YOU. AMAZING. WELL DONE. That makes great reading. Thrilled for you Rachel. And I want to thank you for YOUR help on MY journey to a healthier more informed me too.

You are an inspiration to anyone just diagnosed and finding this site @Rachox Well done

Congratulations!! And a very inspiring post! I was diagnosed just 10 days ago so am still in the 'shell-shocked but making changes' phase; I'm hoping I'll be making my own 'one year on post' this time next year. I'm so very pleased for you

Good on yer keep it going

Big congratulations! You can be proud of yourself. We certainly are proud of you.

Well done! You're an inspiration to everyone incl lazy folk like me!

You've done well, keep up the good work.

Rachox said:

Happy Diaday to me!
Happy Diaday to me!
Happy Diaday dear Rachoooooooox!
Happy Diaday to me!

Yes one whole year today since my Type 2 diagnosis and what a year!
I’ve gone from an HbA1c of 70 to consistently in the 30s (MySugr says estimate of 31.9 today)
I’ve gone from weighing 115kg (BMI 44.3) to 79kg (BMI 30.4)
I’ve gone from a BP of 140/88 to 125/77 and that’s on less BP meds.
I’ve dropped 3 dress sizes.
I’ve taken in my watch strap twice!
I’ve gone from sleeping for England to waking each day refreshed after 7 hours sleep.
I’ve gone from couch potato to someone who walks at least 20 mins each day.
I’ve gone from lazy cook to experimental cook.
I’ve gone from “Shell Shocked” (the title of my first post here) to well informed and educated on all things Type 2!

I’ve followed a low carb way of eating from the night of my diagnosis, with Metformin and self monitoring to achieve all of this, and it’s absolutely thanks to the wisdom, support and friendliness of the folks on this fantastic forum, for which I’ll be eternally grateful - plus a pinch of effort and will power from me!

My diabetes diagnosis really has been a blessing in disguise, as a result of it I am so much fitter than I was this time last year!

Click to expand...

Congratulations! I 've been trying LCHF but failing repeatedly. I need determination. I found this website today and I hope it will help. I envy your great success. I hope someday I could make it too.

Welcome to the forum @FIghtCarb. You will get a lot of good advice and support on here.

@Rachox

Hello Rachox and let me congratulate you for your results. Here is the Basic Information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful and interesting. Ask as many questions as you like and someone will help.

BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEW MEMBERS

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 235,000 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

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.

Over 145,000 people have taken part in the Low Carb Program - a 10 week structured education course that is helping people lose weight and reduce medication dependency by explaining the science behind carbs, insulin and GI.

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.
Take part in Diabetes.co.uk digital education programs and improve your understanding. Most of these are free.

• Low Carb Program - it's made front-page news of the New Scientist and The Times. Developed with 20,000 people with type 2 diabetes; 96% of people who take part recommend it... find out why
  
  
• Hypo Program - improve your understanding of hypos. There's a version for people with diabetes, parents/guardians of children with type 1, children with type 1 diabetes, teachers and HCPs.
  

Rachox said:

Happy Diaday to me!
Happy Diaday to me!
Happy Diaday dear Rachoooooooox!
Happy Diaday to me!

Yes one whole year today since my Type 2 diagnosis and what a year!
I’ve gone from an HbA1c of 70 to consistently in the 30s (MySugr says estimate of 31.9 today)
I’ve gone from weighing 115kg (BMI 44.3) to 79kg (BMI 30.4)
I’ve gone from a BP of 140/88 to 125/77 and that’s on less BP meds.
I’ve dropped 3 dress sizes.
I’ve taken in my watch strap twice!
I’ve gone from sleeping for England to waking each day refreshed after 7 hours sleep.
I’ve gone from couch potato to someone who walks at least 20 mins each day.
I’ve gone from lazy cook to experimental cook.
I’ve gone from “Shell Shocked” (the title of my first post here) to well informed and educated on all things Type 2!

I’ve followed a low carb way of eating from the night of my diagnosis, with Metformin and self monitoring to achieve all of this, and it’s absolutely thanks to the wisdom, support and friendliness of the folks on this fantastic forum, for which I’ll be eternally grateful - plus a pinch of effort and will power from me!

My diabetes diagnosis really has been a blessing in disguise, as a result of it I am so much fitter than I was this time last year!

Click to expand...

Very good. But are there any improvements?

Ha ha ha well done