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Struggling Diabetic

Diagram

Diagram

Member
I've had my diagnosis for a few weeks now and just got my hands on a monitor... Over the past couple of days my reading has been fluctuating between 10 & 19.5... that seems scary to me. While I'm not a healthy eater, I've been trying to be more considerate. I've also cut out all drinks bar tea and water (was drinking 2l Coke/day)... Been using My fitness Pal to record meals, and it seems happy with my eating... I'm struggling to understand what eating does to my glucose levels... It seems that sometimes it rises and sometimes falls after eating...

Allot of the diabetic services have closed here due to the pandemic, so I'm struggling to get to grips with all the information. The internet is full of conflicting information, so I'm finding it difficult to work out what I'm dealing with.

I'm not on medication yet... But I'm amazed I'm so far off on the readings. Excersise needs to pick up starting today. But I'd appreciate any pointers or helpful ideas... thanks in advance :)
 
Diagram said:
I've had my diagnosis for a few weeks now and just got my hands on a monitor... Over the past couple of days my reading has been fluctuating between 10 & 19.5... that seems scary to me. While I'm not a healthy eater, I've been trying to be more considerate. I've also cut out all drinks bar tea and water (was drinking 2l Coke/day)... Been using My fitness Pal to record meals, and it seems happy with my eating... I'm struggling to understand what eating does to my glucose levels... It seems that sometimes it rises and sometimes falls after eating...

Allot of the diabetic services have closed here due to the pandemic, so I'm struggling to get to grips with all the information. The internet is full of conflicting information, so I'm finding it difficult to work out what I'm dealing with.

I'm not on medication yet... But I'm amazed I'm so far off on the readings. Excersise needs to pick up starting today. But I'd appreciate any pointers or helpful ideas... thanks in advance :)
Click to expand...

BTW, I've also lost about 3 stone or 20kgs over the past 3.5 years. I'm less than 2kg from a healthy (sic) weight... Also in that time I've cut down on alcohol in a big way... Still have an occasional big night out, but they are rare.
 
Diagram said:
I've had my diagnosis for a few weeks now and just got my hands on a monitor... Over the past couple of days my reading has been fluctuating between 10 & 19.5... that seems scary to me. While I'm not a healthy eater, I've been trying to be more considerate. I've also cut out all drinks bar tea and water (was drinking 2l Coke/day)... Been using My fitness Pal to record meals, and it seems happy with my eating... I'm struggling to understand what eating does to my glucose levels... It seems that sometimes it rises and sometimes falls after eating...

Allot of the diabetic services have closed here due to the pandemic, so I'm struggling to get to grips with all the information. The internet is full of conflicting information, so I'm finding it difficult to work out what I'm dealing with.

I'm not on medication yet... But I'm amazed I'm so far off on the readings. Excersise needs to pick up starting today. But I'd appreciate any pointers or helpful ideas... thanks in advance :)
Click to expand...
Hello Diagram,

First off, when there's a lot of different opinions and conflicting "facts" boasters all shouting at you, trust in your meter. Test before a meal and 2 hours after, you're aiming for a rise of no more than 2.0 mmol/l. If it's over that, the meal was carbier than you could handle. https://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/blog-entry/the-nutritional-thingy.2330/ might help some with the basics, but that's pretty much how I got my diabetic blood sugars back into the normal range. And many here have chosen a similar route: low carb, high fat, moderate protein. If you want we could go over what you eat in a day and point out possible problematic foods, because yeah... Right now you're pretty high and the sooner that's fixed, the better. As for exercise, you might want to incorporate walks into your day. half an hour after a meal would be absolutely excellent. It's slow and steady, so it shouldn't trigger a glucose dump from your liver.

Good luck eh,
Jo
 
Thanks Jo, firstly, I've been testing 20 mins after a meal () so two hours might be a better way to do it... You're right about excersise, I think I've become lazy over the pandemic...thanks for the advice!
 
Diagram said:
Thanks Jo, firstly, I've been testing 20 mins after a meal () so two hours might be a better way to do it... You're right about excersise, I think I've become lazy over the pandemic...thanks for the advice!
Click to expand...
No problem, and my pleasure. You're going to be fine, you know. You're off to a good start, you're asking questions, learning... Whatever route you end up taking, I have faith you'll get on top of this. :)

The thing with testing after 20 minutes: your blood sugars are probably still on the rise at that point. If you test after 2 hours, you'll know whether your body can cope with a rise and bring numbers down to acceptable/healthy levels. You're not looking for the peak; you're looking for the adequacy of the insulin-response/sensitivity. :)
 
Diagram said:
I've had my diagnosis for a few weeks now and just got my hands on a monitor... Over the past couple of days my reading has been fluctuating between 10 & 19.5... that seems scary to me. While I'm not a healthy eater, I've been trying to be more considerate. I've also cut out all drinks bar tea and water (was drinking 2l Coke/day)... Been using My fitness Pal to record meals, and it seems happy with my eating... I'm struggling to understand what eating does to my glucose levels... It seems that sometimes it rises and sometimes falls after eating...

Allot of the diabetic services have closed here due to the pandemic, so I'm struggling to get to grips with all the information. The internet is full of conflicting information, so I'm finding it difficult to work out what I'm dealing with.

I'm not on medication yet... But I'm amazed I'm so far off on the readings. Excersise needs to pick up starting today. But I'd appreciate any pointers or helpful ideas... thanks in advance :)
Click to expand...

Can you start from the beginning.
What was your HbA1c that led to diagnosis?
You might want to make some big changes or may not need to..

You blood sugars are pretty high at the moment so it would be a good idea to concentrate on getting those down.

The best way to do that is reduce your eating window and cut back on carbohydrate ingestion possibly by a lot!
 
I'm not sure what a HbA1c is... But in the diagnosis my doctor told me that 48 was pre, 54 was diabetic and I had a number of 83... She said I must have been diabetic for a long time without being diagnosed
 
Diagram said:
I've had my diagnosis for a few weeks now and just got my hands on a monitor... Over the past couple of days my reading has been fluctuating between 10 & 19.5... that seems scary to me. While I'm not a healthy eater, I've been trying to be more considerate. I've also cut out all drinks bar tea and water (was drinking 2l Coke/day)... Been using My fitness Pal to record meals, and it seems happy with my eating... I'm struggling to understand what eating does to my glucose levels... It seems that sometimes it rises and sometimes falls after eating...

Allot of the diabetic services have closed here due to the pandemic, so I'm struggling to get to grips with all the information. The internet is full of conflicting information, so I'm finding it difficult to work out what I'm dealing with.

I'm not on medication yet... But I'm amazed I'm so far off on the readings. Excersise needs to pick up starting today. But I'd appreciate any pointers or helpful ideas... thanks in advance :)
Click to expand...

Hi Diagram. I have been diagnosed for around 4 months now and all I can say is that there is lots to learn. That said the easy wins are exercise especially first thing in the morning, I walk to work its only 20 mins but it has really helped. Secondly and this is a very simplistic explanation, until you do more reading, but its worked for me stay away from carbs (bread, rice, pasta, potatoes, sweet potato, lentils, etc), sugar, fruit and dairy. I do have some milk but not in large quantities because essentially all those items I just listed will turn to glucose in your bloodstream. So a steak and salad for example will have very little effect on your blood glucose. Take no notice of the eatwell plate or what my fitness pal likes you to eat because we need to eat less carbs than normal people and they dont allow for that. There are people that can explain it better than me but thats the general gist.

If you are in the UK get yourself on the diabetes x-pert course its amazing. Also as someone who initially cried over not being able to eat a McDonalds hash brown, try not to mourn the loss of the carbs and sugar, for me Type 2 has actually been a really amazing second chance at life. Good luck, this forum is amazing with so many knowledgeable people to help.
 
Diagram said:
I'm not sure what a HbA1c is... But in the diagnosis my doctor told me that 48 was pre, 54 was diabetic and I had a number of 83... She said I must have been diabetic for a long time without being diagnosed
Click to expand...

Those numbers are the HbA1c numbers, however in the UK 42 is considered pre-diabetes and 48 is the number for diabetes (not sure where you are but if you're in the UK your doctor gave you the wrong numbers for diagnoses)
 
Rokaab said:
Those numbers are the HbA1c numbers, however in the UK 42 is considered pre-diabetes and 48 is the number for diabetes (not sure where you are but if you're in the UK your doctor gave you the wrong numbers for diagnoses)
Click to expand...
I'm repeating from memory, and at the time those numbers weren't my priority, so I wasn't paying much attention to them (more concerned about what action to take), but I do recall the 83 number, which again seems huge to me...
 
Diagram said:
Iona May thanks, luckily I'm changing job and will be dumping the car commute for more walking, public transport and possibly a bit of cycling...
Click to expand...
Thats brilliant, you will find the steady exercise will really help with getting rid of the glucose from your blood.
 
Diagram said:
I'm repeating from memory, and at the time those numbers weren't my priority, so I wasn't paying much attention to them (more concerned about what action to take), but I do recall the 83 number, which again seems huge to me...
Click to expand...
It is a big number, mine was 74 to start with but in 3 months I got it down to 49 with the changes I posted earlier. I do also take 2 metformin but I know thats a personal choice.
 
Diagram said:
I'm not sure what a HbA1c is... But in the diagnosis my doctor told me that 48 was pre, 54 was diabetic and I had a number of 83... She said I must have been diabetic for a long time without being diagnosed
Click to expand...

Ah ok.. that was your HbA1c.
It's kind of a 3 month average of your blood sugar levels.

Mine was 87 on diagnosis, within 4 months of cutting down almost totally on eating carbs and some intermittent fasting it was 36 (mmol/mol which are the units).
 
I have to say, thanks for all of the responses, this chat has been more beneficial than you could imagine. It's nice to know I can get a grip on this thing...

I'm going to use the comments above as my starting point and refer back to it... The information is very helpful and luckily I love eggs!
 
Diagram said:
I have to say, thanks for all of the responses, this chat has been more beneficial than you could imagine. It's nice to know I can get a grip on this thing...

I'm going to use the comments above as my starting point and refer back to it... The information is very helpful and luckily I love eggs!
Click to expand...
You can do this. I have found the support on here invaluable. I am only just over a month into my journey, but feel so much better already. I’ve cut out all carbs at the moment, upped my protein intake having healthy fats and loads of salad and leafy vegetables. Eggs are also your friend. A glucose monitor is a definite even though my doctor told me not to get one. I know if I test 2 hours after a meal and if it’s an ok reading I can have that again, if too high I’ll look at what I’ve had and see where I can change it. I have felt so much better, I was tired all the time but now that has gone, especially in the afternoons. Good luck, you have got this.
 
Iona May said:
Hi Diagram. I have been diagnosed for around 4 months now and all I can say is that there is lots to learn. That said the easy wins are exercise especially first thing in the morning, I walk to work its only 20 mins but it has really helped. Secondly and this is a very simplistic explanation, until you do more reading, but its worked for me stay away from carbs (bread, rice, pasta, potatoes, sweet potato, lentils, etc), sugar, fruit and dairy. I do have some milk but not in large quantities because essentially all those items I just listed will turn to glucose in your bloodstream. So a steak and salad for example will have very little effect on your blood glucose. Take no notice of the eatwell plate or what my fitness pal likes you to eat because we need to eat less carbs than normal people and they dont allow for that. There are people that can explain it better than me but thats the general gist.

If you are in the UK get yourself on the diabetes x-pert course its amazing. Also as someone who initially cried over not being able to eat a McDonalds hash brown, try not to mourn the loss of the carbs and sugar, for me Type 2 has actually been a really amazing second chance at life. Good luck, this forum is amazing with so many knowledgeable people to help.
Click to expand...
Having recently completed the DESMOND course I was told to eat everything in moderation (not cakes and biscuits obviously but certainly rice, pasta, potatoes etc) but to watch portion sizes and keep to lower fat foods. Unsaturated spreads most times rather than butter. I've noticed many people on here advocate very low carb and very high fat - In a confused as ever and don't know which way to go!
Good luck with everything though :)
 
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