Wish I had found this forum earlier.

FuryG said:

You're welcome , glad to help , this forum is great you can get answer for anything related to diabetes

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I truely wish I had found it three weeks ago, it would have made my life easier, and actually talking to real people about things could have helped. But I'm here now

Brunneria said:

Oh well done. What a brilliant turn around!

Since you are needle phobic, I strongly recommend the Freestyle Libre. It is a great tool and would give you a vastly improved understanding of how what you are eating impacts on your body. I wonder if you could make a case to get it from your doc? Not sure about that, although I know it is being trialed in some nhs clinics. I self fund it, and am convinced that it is the best thing for my blood glucose control.

Re the spicy food... I love it too, and I eat under 20 g carbs most days, so it is very possible.

I mainly use Patak's curry pastes (the sauces are higher carb, so stick with the pastes). And if you are missing rice, the Konjac or cauliflower rice make acceptable alternatives. We also eat out sometimes. I just make sensible low carb menu choices (no rice or bread or poppadoms, no sweet sauces, and choose a drier, savoury, high veg + meat curry with a veg side dish instead of rice. Nearly every time I go someone says 'oooh that looks great, I'm having that next time!')

Have you found the recipes in www.dietdoctor.com yet?
Well worth checking out their 2 week challenge. The food is delicious.

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Hi thanks for diet doctor link I will check that out in a little while.

I truely thought my diet was pretty healthy and well rounded before this happened, very rarely had take away a or ore produced good, and ate a variety of fruit and veg. Oh how very wrong I was

I'm in the process of trying to find low carb or carb free substitutes for the food I love. I'm just grateful that I do cook a lot all ready so the adaptions have soneti Es worked and failed spectacularly. Cauliflower rice has been a saviour. I was using it it prior to my diagnosis but I'm using it more now. I've found great recipes online and have to admit that the one I've loved so far is the cauliflower pizza base... Ok sounds bad but to be honest it worked well and had pizza fir the first time I. Weeks. I made the pizza sauce with 1 tomato... Canned spikes my sugars... However, I've used the dry spice fajita mix and that worked a treat, eaten with you guessed it cauli rice. I also bought a Thai red curry paste as it was very low in carbs and sugar and only used a tiny bit and if worked but prefer Indian or Chinese curry so I'll look at the patak ones.... I've also used oat flour a couple of times, it's the gluten free one that's really low in carbs and has zero sugar. It's made a nice change to have pancakes with my bacon and eggs

This food obsession is driving me nuts at the moment, but I get more and more scared every time I read the nutritional advice on packets I used to just throw into my trolley. My carbs I have to say at the moment are between 12-25gms which I'm pretty happy with.

Buttons11 said:

One of my favourite lunches is sliced courgette toasted with cheese on top. I can almost convince myself it's cheese on toast

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Hi thanks for this... I really haven't used the good old courgette as much as I should, it sounds really nice with cheese. I borrowed a friends veg spiraller and have made courgette spaghetti, it's strange, but only made it the once because I made my usual tomato sauce to go on top of it... Using tinned tomatoes... Haha the way my sugars rise after that .... But thinking about it writing this reply I really should make a thick creamy sauce to go on top of it... Oh yes I now know what I'm going to try for dinner tomorrow ooo and added bacon as well...

I think I. Also going to try toasting it with cheese... It does sound yummy

There are other syrups out there, I think Jordan's do one called skinny syrups, but I haven't found them yet, but the Waldren farms one has really kept me on track. I've also tried their no cal, no sugar no carb jams, the raspberry ones really nice, it's a sort of jelly like texture, excellent in porridge or on pancakes, I'm still undecided about the apricot one, jury is out on that one. They also found a peanut butter type spread but haven't tried that and several flavours of coffee whitener. I've used the whitener, but, it's really sweet, I. Still using milk, so I've been adding a small amount to my coffee and it's exceptionally nice.

I have never heard of anything like these before. It was my friend who is a body builder that introduced me to them and bought me my first syrups from his local bodybuilding shop...

I really hope they help you, I would have really gone back to sugar in my coffee without them

Prem51 said:

Hi @Bs0lth and welcome to the forum. I have a needle phobia too, I have only had one injection in the last 60 years since childhood innoculations which gave me trhe phobia, But it was the phobia which spurred me on to beating diabetes as I knew I could never inject insulin.
I use an Accu Chek Fastclix to get the blood blob for testing. The lancets are in a cartridge which fits into a holder that looks like a pen. So you don't see the needle. Just hold it against your finger and press the top. It doesn't hurt much. I still flinch when I press the top, but it never hurts as much as I anticipate, and I have got used to it, especially as I use it mainly to test my fasting blood glucose. I do that first thing in the morning when I'm still in bed and half asleep still, so I don't really notice it so much.
Well done on your great reduction in such a short time.

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Hi Prem51

Your message just about sums up where I am at the moment. To be able to get my ruptured appendix out, they gave me a sedative and gas and air before they could get a needle into me. I was literally climbing off the operating table trying to get out. I also was rushed into hospital with a suspected stroke (all ready had one) and the doctor on A&E gave me a teddy to play with while I was getting blood taken... It's the best thing anybody has ever given me...I still have it and it goes with me to every docs appointment

I'm using a glucorx nexus machine to test my blood with doctor gave it to me, showed me how it works on himself and did my first bloods with it... It was nothing like having an injection or bloods taken, it felt no worse than pricking yourself with a sewing needle and that's what I keep telling myself

The fear of insulin injections have really hit home and if I can put it off or stop the need for them entirely I'm going to test my blood and change my diet... It's got me focused.

Saying that, I have two friends that both inject insulin, and both have told me that it actually hurts less to inject insulin than it does to test your blood, but, I really don't believe them and if staying low carb/sugar in my diet can stop me having to experience this myself I'm going to do it

I truely understand exactly where your coming from, I'm just so pleased I found this forum, it's been a godsend the last coup,e of days

No2D said:

I was just reading about the Genteel lancing device that seems to be pain free (painless except the price $129 USD)

The company website is www.mygenteel.com and there are YouTube videos about it. I did a google search on "genteel lancing amazon" to read the ratings. Good Luck, you've done an amazing job.

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Thanks, and pain free? How can it be, you still have to take blood, unless you don't, I'm going to have a look.

What's got me is reading this forum, getting a device and testing strips on prescription seems to be lottery. I was handed one straight away, yet others have buy their own. I. Fact I was given two, God I feel like I'm rubbing this in, but I was given a tiny one to keep I. My handbag and a bigger one. I lol can have the testing strips on repeat prescription. I just think that this is so wrong and they should be available across the board.

Alison Campbell said:

I use the Waldrams Farms Caramel in my homemade bailey's which is yum. I tried the rasperry jam but had to throw it as the aftertaste was awful.

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Hi, I'm so p,eased somebody else has heard of the syrups, I love the caramel one in quark, I mix a coup,e of tablespoons worth with sweetener and it tastes a bit like old fashioned butterscotch Angel delight I've been using both that and the chocolate one in my coffee.

As for the jams, I liked the raspberry, but if you think the after taste was bad on that one don't attempt the apricot, I still don't know if I like it ir not, I will give it another go but possibly leave it alone.

The coffee whiteners are really good, they are runnier than the syrups, sweeter than the syrups and don't turn your coffee white. BUT, a teaspoon of it in my coffee with milk is excellent.

Putting it in Baileys sounds really good... I loved baileys when I drank, but won't be trying it I'm afraid, I've been not drinking for about 5 years now.

ickihun said:

Amazon sell all different flavoured american sugar free syrups. Its heaven choosing which one to have for kids pancakes! I hope you can have them?

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Hi,

The syrups I use are American, and I have found loads out there, but my friends used these and I can buy them locally which I sort of like doing. I really want to try others and will eventually go online to find them, but at the moment I've spfound what's working. I've been trying to cut the sugar out of my coffee for years and I've cracked it with the help of these when I want a sweet one