Re: To All Members

sugarless sue said:

You may have got your numbers very low but for someone who is high then this is like shooting for the moon! The advice to get to the NICE guidelines is do-able for most newly diagnosed. Once they get their levels down to that level, then they can try for the lower levels as, by this time, they will have got some idea on diet etc. and more experience in just what diabetes is.

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I never in a million years thought I'd be quoting this gentleman on a Diabetes forum, but here we go anyway:

Bruce Lee said:

It is like a finger pointing away to the moon. Don't concentrate on the finger, or you will miss all the heavenly glory.

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:wink:

Quite simply John when you find something that works for you, you want to tell everybody about it.
I am as guilty of that as anybody here. Some are more eloquent than others or more well informed and so they post with their views. Sometimes incessantly. Certain sections are also reticent to post because of past experiences. Some are very shy about posting and have to be cajoled into giving an opinion. Some opinions are twisted and portray something that was never intended or even said ?

We hope here that that is all behind us now. Is it a forlorn hope, I don't think so.

This forum grows and grows, discussions like this are interesting, educational, controversial. Not bland and full of recipes and crude jokes, sexism and intolerance of other views. We like to think we are above that. We have our jokes here quite often too, but we never let it get in the way of serious postings. A bit of light relief sometimes, never to the point that the OP is never answered properly.

There will always be differing views on what is the best way. It may well be an alien concept to some. What everybody should remember is this rule on this forum. Set by the administrator, the owners.

Do not be rude or offensive
Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but please try and go by the rule of only speaking to people here as you would on a face to face basis. Do not try and shock, upset or offend. Debate and discussion are fine, as are controversial opinions, but each individual should be treated with respect and tolerance. Remember, everyone is different in age, experience and the nature of their diabetes. Finding common ground and sharing help is the purpose of this forum.

As to history it's just that as far as I am concerned. We can examine our navels till the end of time, it's still a navel and it won't change anything. I prefer to just get on with things and leave the past where it belongs.

Ken.

Patch said:

.........I wish that I knew what i know now when I was diagnosed. It might have saved me many years of trial and error, during which time irreversible damage may have been done to my body.........

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Me too Patch! Me too!

What this forum REALLY NEEDS is a sticky thread with neautral information (links to external websites) on each control method. Provide ALL the available information and allow people to make informed decisions.

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Patch,there is a thread in the sticky forum already with external, useful links. We also have many links on the forum, some useful, some not.

As for drip feeding... no, that was never said ? Just giving information in a form that it can be easily read by all members not just those technically minded....yes. Not everyone has a grasp of chemistry, biology etc.

sugarless sue said:

Not everyone has a grasp of chemistry, biology etc.

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I know - I'm one of 'em. It's only through the sheer volume of research I've done that I know anything about the body. I failed all the sciences at school, and am not a good student.

We shouldn't assume that newbs are unintelligent. We should assume that they have a willingness to learn - and point 'em in the right direction and give 'em a good shove!

[quote="Patch]........We shouldn't assume that newbs are unintelligent.......... [/quote]
No we shouldn't! In my opinion, that is the mistake that the healthcare professionals make - and it gets them to confuse the messages!

Patch wrote.

We shouldn't assume that newbs are unintelligent. We should assume that they have a willingness to learn - and point 'em in the right direction and give 'em a good shove!

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That's just it Patch.....WE don't assume anything. We don't presume to know the intelligence of anybody. Sometimes they can be highly intelligent, they still might be unable to take in all the information. Information overload, I think it is called.

We elicit the responses and find out what meds they are on before 'shoving them in the right direction ?' Wherever that may be ? Everything is relevant. Some don't appear to stop and think about that when posting replies. Even to the point of giving out seriosly flawed information.
e.g "I feel great at a Bg level of 2.8, therefore it isn't a hypo." So all medical opinion about the subject is wrong then !! ( I paraphrased that one, but you see what I mean. A newly diagnosed T1 could be in grave danger reading that sort of response)

You see assuming things is always fraught with danger. One of the first things I was taught when I was at work. So, conversely why should we assume that they are able to grasp everything that is thrown at them ? Bit of a contradiction in terms I think ?

The other point is that welcoming a newbie on here is something we do every single day. Then we point them in different directions, tell them to read the information on the forum....ALL areas. That way they can build up to asking the relevant questions that THEY want answering, not the things that experienced members want to steer them into.

If I had been given a list such as you describe, do this, do that, then I would have quickly found that it might have worked for some, but it possibly didn't work for me. I had to chose between them all. Pick out the best bits.

We are not a 'one trick pony.'

I think we're missing the most important thing here - I managed to squeeze a quote from Bruce Lee into a discussion about diabetes.

8)