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Should I start on Insulin ?

jellyang

Member
Messages
14
Location
Norwich
Type of diabetes
Treatment type
Tablets (oral)
I have been T2 Diabetic for 7 years.
Over the 7 years I have taken Metaformin and every other diabetic medication for Type 2.
It’s been a constant struggle , especially the last year ,nothing seems to get my BS down to a decent level. Ozempic worked for a while but am not able to get that st the moment.
Up to this point the health professionals have not wanted me to take insulin mainly because of the weight gain possibility. Now I’m being asked to consider it as I have nowhere else to go .
I have always been really good at keeping my diabetes in check but now ,although I know it’s not my fault I feel a failure on burnout
Would appreciate any input or your own experience
Thank you

Angie
 
Hello @jellyang

It sounds like you've had a long struggle- virtual hugs for you.

I'd be interested as to whether you have tried lowering your carb intake? Just a question as if that's something you've tried and it hasn't worked for you there's not a lot of point in suggesting that to you

I'm really glad that you know that it's not your fault. I can say I know it in my head but not in my heart yet. I used to constantly feel like a failure for being diagnosed in the first place. This place has really helped me but I haven't fully got over that feeling.

My view is that it is really important to try to keep your blood sugars at the right levels. There are many approaches but for me the right one is one that helps keep the levels correct and also is achievable and sustainable and also is something that fits in with the rest of your life. While some can do it with diet alone there are very many who can't. No approach is the right one. As human beings we are complex and many of us have a lot of balancing to do- other conditions, life circumstances and mental health. These are all important.

I'm sorry you can't get access to the solution that worked for you- that is so sad. It's frustrating that having developed a drug to help with this condition others are taking it for something else.

Until Ozempic becomes available again you need to find something that will allow you to keep your levels in the right range. Please listen to your medical team and then make your own decision. I can't advise you but I can say that the people here will support you whatever the decision is.

Good luck.
 
I don't think that everyone who's on insulin gains weight. I've lost weight (a lot) since I've been on insulin. I don't attribute this to insulin, though, but changes I made to my diet (i.e. going low carb, and low carb for me is not 1g a day).
 
I’m on the maximum does of Metformin and 3 months ago started on Forxiga. But I still have to eat very low carb if I want my BG to stay in the 5s and 6s. Yes it is a constant struggle with food choices but I don’t want to go on insulin as I know I’ll use this as a get out clause to eating anything I want and dose as necessary, which I don’t think is a good idea IMO

Out of curiosity, what do you eat on a typical day @jellyang?
 
Personally I would do everything in my power to get a C-Peptide test before starting insulin, I think as a type two there would be a very good chance you could gain weight as the insulin hormone is linked to fat storage, if you are already producing too much insulin in an attempt to combat insulin resistance then putting more in makes little sense to me, if the c-pep shows low insulin production then it makes perfect sense. If you do decide to try it, I would suggest a very strict diet to avoid the weight gain and the vicious circle.

I have zero medical training other than my YouTube degree. Best of luck.
 
You mention only medication... Have you tried a change in diet, (going low carb/keto), is that an option for you? Basically it means cutting out carbs -which turn to glucose once ingested- so your body has less glucose to process back out, which it really can't do. No bread, cereal, potatoes, rice, pasta, fruit-save-for-berries, etc...

Thing is, with meds, it's always going to require more and more, and especially with shortages like with Ozempic, that can be problematic. If diet's possible, that would be my first port of call. https://josekalsbeek.blogspot.com/2019/11/the-nutritional-thingy.html might help some with that.

If for some reason diet's not doable for you, and there are very, very valid reasons why it might not be, then maybe, yeah... Insulin might be the way to go, because you really do want to get those blood sugars under control. If you do use medications that can cause hypo's, be very careful if you go the diet route, as you're quite likely to hypo. So test your heart out if you do, and adjust meds as you go, preferably with assistance from your gp/nurse/specialist.

You be good to yourself, okay? It may not all be as hopeless as it seems right now.
Hugs,
Jo
 
Thank you all for your replies.
I have tried low carb but not for a while so may give that another go . I am also vegetarian which does complicate the diet a little but I know that it is possible.
I have tried all sorts of eating plans . What usually happens is in the short term I will lose a little weight & the BG will improve & then after a few weeks I come to a standstill , the weight loss stops and the BG starts creeping up.

I have just not found the key to it all yet !
But as a poster said we are all different and our body reacts in different ways . I couldn't believe I didn't lose weight with Ozempic when other people had it falling off them .

I will speak to my health practice but since Covid the support has just not been there.
I had a text 3 days ago asking me to call to discuss my last lot of blood results (pretty sure I know what that will say) then when i call I can't have a telephone consultation for another 2 weeks & I am pretty sure my pancreas would need to be falling out to get a face to face appointment.

Thanks all
xx
 
jellyang said:
I have tried all sorts of eating plans . What usually happens is in the short term I will lose a little weight & the BG will improve & then after a few weeks I come to a standstill , the weight loss stops and the BG starts creeping up.
Click to expand...
@jellyang
Do you test your bg with a meter? That will show you which foods raise your bg ,and therefore are very good at motivating you to stay away from those foods.
Reading between the lines it seems as if you've been concentrating on weight loss rather than lowering bg. I found by eating foods that didn't raise my bg, but kept me full and not hungry, that the weight fell off as a happy side effect.
There's a few vegetarian threads on here for you to get ideas, but simple proteins, dairy, salad and veg, in decent quantities might well be your solution
 
I agree with @MrsA2 I suggest that at the start forget about losing weight- concentrate on managing your blood sugar levels. I did it with very low carb. Once you know the level and the types of carbs your body will tolerate you can then look at losing weight knowing the parameters in relation to your blood sugars. There are a few here who find just focusing on low carb also helps them lose weight.

Good luck.
 
I'll add to my brief comment earlier. I eat low carb (not keto low, but low) and am on insulin and have achieved two things: a) My blood sugars (except for a few weeks ago where they went crazy and I think now I must have been fighting a virus or something) have been 98% time in range; and b) I have lost a lot of weight. I use Cronometer to track everything I eat. It shows me kJ (or calories depending on your preferences) but I don't take notice of those because my goal is/was not to lose weight that's just a nice side effect for me.

Notes:
a) I choose to eat low carb because I actually prefer that way of eating. It wasn't even a choice really, I just kept eating the way I have nearly my entire life. I don't like sweet things in general and would rather have some cheese or something than any kind of sweet thing. I *do* eat no added sugar chocolate (2 squares) when I'm reading my book after dinner. I've also had 95% cocoa chocolate when the no added sugar chocolate hasn't been at the shops. This is my sweet treat, I don't like much else that's sweet
b) I think I've lost weight not because I've cut down on carbs but because I can eat low carb and still be way under the kJ intake for my weight, age, height

Yesterday was a "typical" day for me (although I've started having sandwiches for lunch again every second or third day) so I may as well list what I ate

Breakfast: Bacon, eggs, mushrooms
Lunch: Green leaves (lettuce, baby spinach, rocquet or however you spell it), pastrami, kalamati olives, leicester cheese, red onion, 1/2 tomato (probably the highest carb thing), baby beetroot
Afternoon snack: pork crackling
Dinner: Chicken stuffed with asparagus and bacon. Cauliflower, broccoli, zucchini
Dessert and reading book: blue cheese, 2 squares no added sugar chocolate

I wasn't hungry and I was way under my kJ intake for the day (to lose weight, so bonus)
 
Today isn't such a low carb day, but it's not insane I don't think. I wasn't going to post it but it's all locked in anyway so may as well. I guess it's all about for me but I don't think today is outrageous carb wise

Breakfast: Same as yesterday
Lunch: Ham sandwich (so two slices of white bread. This was my carb hit for the day. I find no difference between white and wholegrain bread regarding my BSL and prefer white so that's what I had; your mileage may vary: measure)
Dinner (yet to be had): Corned beef, cauliflower, brocolli, brussels sprouts. I may have cheese sauce with it, I haven't decided yet
Dessert and reading book will be the same (cheese and no added sugar choc)
 
I like your idea for lunch on this day so I may have to steal it (maybe not the tomato but the olives, red onion, cheese all sound really yummy.
 
VashtiB said:
I like your idea for lunch on this day so I may have to steal it (maybe not the tomato but the olives, red onion, cheese all sound really yummy.
Click to expand...
What will I eat if you steal it?! It's ok, you can eat it, it's my standard lunch when I'm not eating sandwiches so there's plenty here. I buy the salad green mix in a bag from my supermarket. I don't use salad dressing or anything, I pour some of the brine out of the olive jar onto the salad. I think it's pretty good. Enjoy!
 
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