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Scottish Newly Diagnosed No Testing at home

M

masueuk

Member
Messages
17
Location
St Andrews, Fife
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Hi

Just wanted to speak to someone who might have some advice. I have only recently been diagnosed Type 2, have seen the diabetic nurse at the hospital who has such an unpleasant manner I came home and burst into tears.

Apparently in Scotland no one who is newly diagnosed can now get blood sugar meters and strips. Only people on insulin or sulphonylureas. Anyway not me. So I asked her which meter would she recommend as I want to test until I have a better idea of which food changes seem to be working best for me. No, she said, you dont need to test, wont tell you anything, its only the HBcA1 test which tells us anything. So I am supposed to eat for 3 months with no clue if what I am doing is working. Also how after 3 months will I know what works best?

I have also been diagnosed as having an overactive thyroid, told her about that, said I am concerned that the needs of both conditions are hard to manage from a dietary point of view. Yeah was her reply. I asked her if they had any experience with the Newcastle study as my numbers were only just into diabetic territory. Well, she said, anyone can do a study, doesnt mean it works. Be careful of anything you read online, you are best to follow what you are told here. So going in, hoping to find someone who will help me to manage my condition, I find a really unpleasant, patronising, controlling person who made me feel worse than the diagnosis of both conditions were able to achieve.

So dear sufferers, what do you suggest? I am really struggling with everything.
 
HI. If you read this forum regularly you will find that many GPs and diabetic nurses are both ignorant and arrogant. Fortunately my DN is superb but I'm lucky. Like many of us after diagnosis you need to take control of your condition regardless of silly advice. Yes, do get hold of a meter as it's essential to find out what foods affect your sugars. I wish I had bought a meter immediately after my T2 diagnosis as my bloods were far worse than I or my GP realised. Many meter manufacturers will provide a meter for free if contacted and the expensive test strips can be bought online, and even eBay if you are careful, at reduced prices. Many recommend buying the SD Codefree meter from Amazon which has cheap test strips
 
Find another DN as that tumshie is obviously too thick in the heid to be able to do anything but harm :thumbdown:
She is obviously ignoring your concerns and I would be shouting loudly to the authorities for assistance :cry:
Possibly to PAL or her superiors.
 
My suggestion would be to see your gp and express your disappointment at the treatment you received. I'm up in the north east and know that I don't get much cut from the hospital. My local gp surgery are far more helpful. If you do a wee search online, I'm sure you'll pick up a meter, I know diabetes.co.uk have offers for free meters a lot. As for strips, you can buy them too but I'd put pressure on your gp to get them on prescription. I'm a type 1 and never knew that type 2's didn't get meters. Its shocking IMO. And just to add, the experience and judgement of veteran diabetics is the most useful tool I've found. The consultants just want rid of you! Keep your head up, there are many people experiencing what your going through and a lot of them are on here. There are dedicated threads on low carb eating, diets etc. Good luck and all the best. Stu.

Sent from the Diabetes Forum App
 
Thank you for getting back to me. Fergus, you made me laugh really loudly. Tumshie is a great word, not used half enough in the 21st century. So, should we ask George Osbourne to try to manage the economy with no statistics to help him (not sure they do in reality), but we will all sit down in six months and then tell him he didnt do ok, but not give him anymore info than that. Off he pops for another 6 months, learning nothing useful which will help in the future period How is this educating? I feel a series of email coming on. Being in the land of King Salmond who will no doubt blame it all on London, but health is under his management here. Oh and a real belter, I was told that taking my blood reading myself will only make me anxious !! Not being a mushroom I find sitting in the dark for 6 months anxiety making.

This particular nurse is one of two who didnt want to do my fasting glucose tolerance test in the first place and shouted their displeasure in their room, then called me in, in front of a busy waiting room. She then said, well is it really worth doing this? I said the GP wanted it done. Oh right, oh I suppose... oh well. I should have said what I thought but didnt want to disrespect bovines.

Big hugs to anyone in need of one.
 
Hi, and welcome to the forum.

Your nurse sounds a disgrace to the profession, and no wonder you feel upset. I think we all feel like it's all just so confusing and upsetting when we first get diagnosed. Chin up, there's great help and support out there, even if it's not from your Diabetes Nurse. They seem to have little idea, in my opinion, of actually living with diabetes, although some are much nicer than the dragon you have met. :evil:

Re meters and strips - my Health Authority won't give them to me either, but I was lucky enough to get a free one from this forum, and I buy my strips straight from the company themselves as it's far cheaper than going to a chemist for them. E-bay is cheaper, but I have a problem about lining the pockets of those who are lucky enough to get their strips for free and sell them on e-bay. I know, some may be guiltless but that will be the minority.
I have heard folks on here say that if you ring a company they will give you a free meter, so that's worth trying.

I was told not to test, but didn't listen to that 'advice' and I'm so pleased I didn't. You need to test to be able to see what foods you can, and cannot eat. It gives you back the control of managing your diabetes yourself, and hopefully improving it. For instance, I can eat Burgen soya bread, but cannot eat an ordinary brown roll - it really raises my bg......everyone is different though, so testing is the only way to find out what's right for you, and you alone.

I have lost a lot of weight and improved my BG due to the low(er) carb diet that so many follow on here. I'm not a slave to it though, I admit, and do allow myself new boiled potatoes, Burgen bread, and other foodstuffs, though in much smaller portions. :oops:
I find also, that doing some kind of exercise after a meal really helps in lowering your glucose levels, your weight, and generally makes you feel better.
There are loads of great ideas and plenty of inspiration from others on here, so have a good look around, and take from the advice what suits you, as many of the diets are quite limited. Only you can decide what is the correct way forward for yourself, but by registering on this forum you have made a huge step.

By the way, I too have hypothyroidism, and I can't honestly say that it has made a huge difference in the way that I eat, but I also have other meds I take, which do make a difference.

So, good luck, and don't despair - in 6 months time you will hopefully be feeling much better about being able to control your condition. I wish you well. :thumbup:
 
Thanks Luna, my thyroid is hyper... very unusual for someone my size apparently, bloody typical I get all the symptoms and look more like a whole forest than a twig. I am so glad the internet is here, I will speak to my GP who is usually very nice. I am sure he wont be too happy to hear how she speaks to his patients. Suggest the next round of cutbacks involve those with negative feedback scores from a sample of patients in their care. That would sort them out !
 
The NHS think that by not giving home monitoring supplies, they will save money. I doubt it in the long run. they will have to deal with complications which COST!
If you can manage it, I'd get a meter and buy strips. The meter might well be free. Try calling the meter suppliers. DO NOT buy from a retail pharmacy. Direct from supplier is MUCH cheaper.
You can search the web for the names of supply companies, but I use Abbott Diabetes Care who give me an immaculate service and a fair price for strips. The meters come with lifetime guarantee and free batteries and test solutions for calibration.
the Code Free sold by Amazon, is cheap, but I found it reading high, so sent it back. I've had Freestyle lites from Abbott for years and been pleased with them. they are "no frills", but reliable and pretty accurate.[ read their leaflet ]
Hana
 
Looked at IME-DC which seems to have quite cheap testing strips. But is what you are saying, call the companies and ask them for cost of selling the testing strips directly to me or did you mean, call them, see if they will send a meter, then buy the strips elsewhere.

What do you do about getting the finger pricker and needles for it?

Sorry to be a dope, should have paid more attention to healthy eating classes... oh wait no, we didnt get them in my day. Can I sue the Scottish Education department :lol:
 
Masueuk, apologies for getting your condition wrong - it is more unusual to have hyperthyroidism with diabetes than hypo,so I can see that your diet needs might be different.

I totally agree with Hana: Abbot have a brilliant after service and you can get all your supplies from them, lances, strips, etc. They will more than likely give you a meter for free too, if you ask nicely! :wink: You have to call them though, as they don't have an internet service, although they do answer e-mails very quickly and efficiently too.

It does seem rather unfair not to be able to get the strips and meter for free on the NHS, as there is no other way, other than the occasional HBcA1 test, to assess your diabetic progress, or lack of it. This disease is all about self monitoring and self motivation to help ourselves stay healthy, so the lack of equipment to monitor ourselves seems silly and non cost-effective in the long run.

However, if you possibly can, do buy your own equipment if you have to, as it will be well worth it in the end.

My diabetes Nurse at my GP practice is very nice, but seems to have very little training, and then only has NHS advice to offer, so to be honest after 6 months of trawling the internet, and reading hundreds of posts on here, I do feel that I probably have as good an understanding of the disease as she has. That's not to say that some clinic led Diabetes nurses aren't better trained, although like yourself I don't believe that they all are up to the task either.

I learned very little from the old cookery lessons at school! They were trying to teach me how to do cheese on toast at 13 years old, when I was used to cooking for 6 of us at home as soon as I got in from school! I was so bored..............
I'm very glad I had a great Mum and Grandmother who taught me so much about how to prepare good food. :)
 
masueuk said:
Looked at IME-DC which seems to have quite cheap testing strips. But is what you are saying, call the companies and ask them for cost of selling the testing strips directly to me or did you mean, call them, see if they will send a meter, then buy the strips elsewhere.
Click to expand...

Either get the tester free and buy strips direct?via amazon/e-bay
or buy the tester from Home Health (UK) Ltd (codefree)(Amazon:£12.99)(e-bay:£9.95+£2.99 p+p)
And buy even cheaper strips from them.(Amazon/e-bay £6.99/50)

masueuk said:
What do you do about getting the finger pricker and needles for it?
Click to expand...

Most manufacturers will send you a pricker with the tester and sell you sharps directly(and cheaply)
p.s. most pricker sharps are interchangeable :)
 
:lol: well my mum was a great baker, rubbish cook and being Scottish if it isnt stodgy it cant be good was how I learned about food. Oh that and how to make Royal Icing using a knife on a plate... I said at the time it was pointless and some 40 years later... never made it far less using a knife on a plate. Yours truly got into trouble for using a hand whisk, was told What would you do if you were on an island and didnt have a whisk "Well I wouldnt be making Royal ICING then !" :crazy:
 
Hi masueuk sending you lots of hugs after your bad, disgraceful experience. I have my 6 months review tomorrow with a new DSN as my lovely usual DSN has mysteriously disappeared from my doctors' practice without any explanation. I have my own thoughts about it I think it was because she was too understanding and never judgemental and always took the time to listen which I don't think was particularly welcomed by the practice manager and her colleagues.
 
Hi all,
Very glad to read this article, as I am having the same problems re getting a meter from my GP.
Now that I have seen this advice and the material that I have read on the web site, I shall certainly try harder to get my GP to agree.
I was doagnosed type 2, two months ago. I'm trying to get my levels down by diet, but have no idea how I am doing.
Having to wait 3 month between HCa1B tests to see how you are doing is ludicrus.
Like many other type 2's I have a weigjt problem, and have been at Slimming World before. There, baked beans are great for weight loss, but I just read on another forum that they seem to be pretty bad for blood sugar levels, but the effect of foods is specific to the individial.
My conclusion to what I have read is that I need to test so establish what impact foods are having on my sugar levels.
Is this a fair conclusion? :?:

Sent from the Diabetes Forum App
 
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