Wot next.

Hi Marion and welcome. Yes, a double blow and I am sorry you are going through this, but type 2 can be controlled by adopting a good diet and adding a little exercise. If you keep your blood sugars under control there shouldn't be any adverse effects on your heart.

How much support you get from your nurse varies from nurse to nurse, but I wouldn't expect very much. She will tell you (most likely) to eat a healthy diet along the lines of the "Eat Well Plate" but this is outdated advice. You will receive much better advice on this forum from people that have diabetes and understand how to control it.

She will also (most likely) tell you not to test, or to test once a week. This is also poor advice and is part of the NHS cost cutting. You may be lucky to be given a meter, but most of us aren't and have to buy our own. Testing is essential, especially at the start of this journey, so you can test out which foods you can and can't cope with as we are all different. Don't blame the nurse, she is only following outdated guidelines.

Please ask any questions you have. People here are very friendly and supportive.

Hi Marion! Yes, get a meter- it really is the way to go and puts you in control, vital that we feel that as you have heard, there's not much support from the nhs sadly! I'm only 6 weeks diagnosed and have learnt so much from this wonderful forum, the lovely folks here are so supportive and informative!!

Hi Marion and welcome to the forum

Here is the information we give to new members and I hope you will find it useful and that it answers some of your questions. For the others, other members will come along and help.

BASIC INFORMATION FOR NEWLY DIAGNOSED DIABETICS

Diabetes is the general term to describe people who have blood that is sweeter than normal. A number of different types of diabetes exist.

A diagnosis of diabetes tends to be a big shock for most of us. It’s far from the end of the world though and on this forum you’ll find over 100,000 people who are demonstrating this.

On the forum we have found that with the number of new people being diagnosed with diabetes each day, sometimes the NHS is not being able to give all the advice it would perhaps like to deliver - particularly with regards to people with type 2 diabetes.

The role of carbohydrate

Carbohydrates are a factor in diabetes because they ultimately break down into sugar (glucose) within our blood. We then need enough insulin to either convert the blood sugar into energy for our body, or to store the blood sugar as body fat.

If the amount of carbohydrate we take in is more than our body’s own (or injected) insulin can cope with, then our blood sugar will rise.

The bad news

Research indicates that raised blood sugar levels over a period of years can lead to organ damage, commonly referred to as diabetic complications.

The good news

People on the forum here have shown that there is plenty of opportunity to keep blood sugar levels from going too high. It’s a daily task but it’s within our reach and it’s well worth the effort.

Controlling your carbs

The info below is primarily aimed at people with type 2 diabetes, however, it may also be of benefit for other types of diabetes as well.
There are two approaches to controlling your carbs:

• Reduce your carbohydrate intake
• Choose ‘better’ carbohydrates

Reduce your carbohydrates

A large number of people on this forum have chosen to reduce the amount of carbohydrates they eat as they have found this to be an effective way of improving (lowering) their blood sugar levels.

The carbohydrates which tend to have the most pronounced effect on blood sugar levels tend to be starchy carbohydrates such as rice, pasta, bread, potatoes and similar root vegetables, flour based products (pastry, cakes, biscuits, battered food etc) and certain fruits.

Choosing better carbohydrates

Another option is to replace ‘white carbohydrates’ (such as white bread, white rice, white flour etc) with whole grain varieties. The idea behind having whole grain varieties is that the carbohydrates get broken down slower than the white varieties –and these are said to have a lower glycaemic index.
http://www.diabetes.co.uk/food/diabetes-and-whole-grains.html

The low glycaemic index diet is often favoured by healthcare professionals but some people with diabetes find that low GI does not help their blood sugar enough and may wish to cut out these foods altogether.

Read more on carbohydrates and diabetes

Eating what works for you

Different people respond differently to different types of food. What works for one person may not work so well for another. The best way to see which foods are working for you is to test your blood sugar with a glucose meter.

To be able to see what effect a particular type of food or meal has on your blood sugar is to do a test before the meal and then test after the meal. A test 2 hours after the meal gives a good idea of how your body has reacted to the meal.

The blood sugar ranges recommended by NICE are as follows:

Blood glucose ranges for type 2 diabetes

• Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
• 2 hours after meals: under 8.5 mmol/l

Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (adults)

• Before meals: 4 to 7 mmol/l
• 2 hours after meals: under 9 mmol/l

Blood glucose ranges for type 1 diabetes (children)

• Before meals: 4 to 8 mmol/l
• 2 hours after meals: under 10 mmol/l

However, those that are able to, may wish to keep blood sugar levels below the NICE after meal targets.

Access to blood glucose test strips

The NICE guidelines suggest that people newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes should be offered:

• structured education to every person and/or their carer at and around the time of diagnosis, with annual reinforcement and review
• self-monitoring of plasma glucose to a person newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes only as an integral part of his or her self-management education

Therefore both structured education and self-monitoring of blood glucose should be offered to people with type 2 diabetes. Read more on getting access to bloodglucose testing supplies.

You may also be interested to read questions to ask at a diabetic clinic

Note: This post has been edited from Sue/Ken's post to include up to date information.

Hi Marion, welcome.

Unless you are lucky you won't get much support from the DN. Chances are she will suggest you eat 'healthy carbohydrates' with every meal. This is about the worst thing you could do - carbs are essentially sugar to a diabetic.

Many on here manage their T2 by reducing carbs and increasing fats in their diet (to compensate for the lost calories). Have a look at www.dietdoctor.com/lchf .

You should test your blood sugars because you will need to know how your blood glucose levels react to different foods. Many DNs and GPs say T2 diabetics shouldn't test, this is nonsense as it is our only way to manage it effectively. Many use the SD Codefree from Amazon etc, strips are more cost-effective than most.

Do you know what your diagnosis results are (fasting level, HbA1c? Get the receptionist to print them out for you.

Lots to get your head around, but there is lots of advice and support on here.

Hi Marion, welcome to the forum. The advice on here is excellent, have a good look round the site and learn as much as you can and ask questions. As far as testing goes you should test before food and then 2 hours from the start of your meal not from when you have finished. Also, it is a good idea to do a fasting bg test as soon as you get up in the morning.

Unfortunately, the advice from the NHS is very outdated, you will soon learn what foods you can tolerate and what spikes your bg. Bluetit is very knowledeable and has given you some good advice. Also, have a read of the information that Daisy1 has sent, this is also very useful to newly diagnosed diabetics.

Everyone is very helpful, friendly and supportive. It all seem very overwhelming to start with, but you will be surprised how quickly you get to grips with it.

Marilyn

Meters aren't expensive, some are even free. It is the testing strips that can be expensive. The cheapest appears to be the SD Codefree meter and strips available from Amazon (and maybe elsewhere). They are widely used by people on this forum. I don't think there is a great deal of difference between any of them, other than cost. To begin with you will need a lot of testing strips if you intend to test out all your meals. Once you get the hang of which foods you can eat, you will probably test less often.

Hello Marion. Dont despair or get angry as it just upsets your body. I do know exactly how you feel though as I have been in the same situation. I had had to have a blood test as part of my induction at a new GPs surgery. I then got a phone call to say the Doctor had said I needed an appointment with the diabetic nurse. But Im not diabetic I said. Yes, youve got it. After seeing the Doctor the next day I found out I was diabetic!!! The DN gave the eatwell plate and no testing advice that seems to be standard. I have started a low carb diet thanks to this forum and found out a lot more about diabetes , thanks to this forum. I was interested to see the meter you had bought as this was the one which I had thought of getting. Do you find it easy to use?

It's normal to feel the way you do. Many of us Type 2's were left to sort ourselves out immediately after diagnosis. GP's don't seem to know much about it. It's the nurses that are left to sort us out, although they simply follow the old outdated methods. What should happen when you see your nurse is that she should explain things and put you on the diabetic care plan. This involves an appointment for retina eye screening, a foot check, and some dietary advice (which will be useless and incorrect) She should also test your urine and arrange for a 3 month review and blood tests. She may also prescribe you Metformin, or give you 3 months to try diet and exercise before medication.

Meanwhile, use your meter and learn from what it is telling you. Keep a strict food diary including portion sizes. Record all your readings alongside the food you ate (and drinks). Test before you eat, then at 2 hours after your first bite. The NICE guidelines say this 2 hour reading should be under 8.5mmol/l. However, this is old guidance, unchanged for many years. To begin with I suggest you try to keep under 7.8 at 2 hours. As time passes, you may wish to reduce this target. These tests will help you sort out a suitable diet. You can also test before you go to bed and again as soon as you wake up. These will tell you how your body is coping generally. A fasting and pre-meal reading should ideally be under 6 to begin with. The morning fasting level is often the last one to get down as it is subject to many variables.

Good luck and have fun with your meter!

Hi Marion, what you are feeling is quite natural, it will take a little time for your body to adjust to your new eating regime, please try not to worry get angry or anxious as this can raise your glucose levels. Your numbers are not massively high (I have had levels in the mid teens in the early days) so it does get better.

Doctors and DN's I am afraid are not very helpful at all, your DN will probably tell you not to test, as they do not provide strips on prescription (unless you are very lucky), but it is very important in the early days to test to see what foods you can tolerate and won't spike your bg. It is a bit of trial and error to start with, but you will soon find that things start to settle down. If your readings are high 2 hours after a meal, think about what you have eaten, you may have eaten too many carbs. Carbs are the main culprit of high blood glucose readings, so try cutting them back at each meal, you will find that your levels will start to come down.

I joined this Forum when I was diagnosed, like you, I had no dietary advice or information from my GP, just told to take my tablets and return in 3 months for another HbA1c test, (not at all helpful or reassuring), just left feeling very alone and scared. I found the informaton on here invaluable, and the advice is excellent.

Good luck!

Marilyn

I didn't see my DN for about three weeks after diagnosis, so I had time to kick-start my management with LCHF and give her no reason to prescribe any medication as long as I kept it up.

I still haven't had a retinopathy check via the surgery, they keep saying they will let me know when the visiting optician is due. In the end I had it done myself at my own optician (60 and diabetic, free on both counts!) and there was nothing there. I wasn't worried about it because there was no issue the last time I had an eye test about 18 months ago, when I was already probably diabetic but undiagnosed, and I've never had any blurred vision. Only thing was the optician didn't have a camera to record the check - they're getting one in a couple of weeks so I can go back and get it done again then.

Bluetit1802 said:

Meters aren't expensive, some are even free. It is the testing strips that can be expensive. The cheapest appears to be the SD Codefree meter and strips available from Amazon (and maybe elsewhere). They are widely used by people on this forum. I don't think there is a great deal of difference between any of them, other than cost. To begin with you will need a lot of testing strips if you intend to test out all your meals. Once you get the hang of which foods you can eat, you will probably test less often.

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@marion07
You can get everything from home health directly. I would buy the starter kit and a box of 50 x 5 strips.
http://www.homehealth-uk.com
There is a discount code which I will find for you which will get you the strips at a discounted price. This is for the sd codefree meter, by the way!