Hi…….overwhelmed

[JaneMcDavid]

Hi, my husband has just been diagnosed as Type 2, no medication as yet but told to try and loose weight then back in 3 month! we half new it was coming. He came back from the doctors with a lot of leaflets but no real support from the nurse at health centre.
im feeling a little overwhelmed by it all as I’m going to be sorting out our diets! Is there any tips you can give me?

 

[john e]

Hi, Jane you could start here Eating with diabetes, it can be confusing at first, most of us were, took me quite a while, but take your time, and change your diet gradually, and keep us posted on your progress

 

[Inka]

My first tip would be to find out his HbA1C test result (the blood test that diagnosed him with diabetes). You can then see how far into the diabetic zone he is and how radical your changes need to be.

My second tip is to click on the Learning Zone orange tab at the top of this page.

And my final tip is to make an honest record of his daily food pre-diagnosis, then look at how you can improve his diet. This will mainly be by reducing carbs and upping green veg.

 

[zuludog]

Hello Jane and welcome to the Forum!

Don't worry if you and your husband are feeling overwhelmed and lost, that's quite common and understandable

There is good news and bad news -

You can live well with diabetes (often just called D on this forum since we all know what it is), and don't be put off by any horror stories you might hear about side effects like problems with your feet & eyes
He may well have been feeling weak, tired, & lethargic, that is common with D but as you learn to control it, those feelings usually go away
In fact many people say they feel better & brighter with D than they did before

The bad news is that you will have to make some changes to your diet, and probably other things as well; and do this all the time to keep on top of things

Diabetes is the inability to process carbohydrates properly, which means that glucose accumulates in the blood, and it is this accumulation that causes the problems we call diabetes
You can control diabetes by taking tablets and/or injecting insulin, but the best way is to not consume carbs in the first place
So a diet for diabetes restricts carbohydrates, and it is important to realise that this means starchy food like rice, pasta, spuds, bread, as well as the obviously sweet things like cakes, biscuits, & sweets

In fact many people take a diagnosis as the motivation to cut out processed & junk food, eat more veg, get more exercise, and all the healthy stuff we hear about

These have suggestions for diet -
The Learning Zone, the red tab at the top of this page
Living With Diabetes section on the Home Page of Diabetes UK - there are recipes, meal plans, and so on
Read previous Threads on this Forum, especially Newbies, Food& carbs, and Weight Loss

Exercise will help as well - it doesn't have to be a long gym session, Owt's Better Than Nowt!
Walking is good; start with just a stroll round your local streets, back lanes, & footpaths, get out into the fresh air and build it up from there
You don't need serious hiking gear, it's summer now, so comfy trainers & casual clothes are all you need

 

[JaneMcDavid]

Thanks both, I’ve just been looking at all the information and feel slightly better It’s dooerble

 

[zuludog]

Thanks both, I’ve just been looking at all the information and feel slightly better It’s dooerble

Yes, take some comfort that you (both of you) are by no means the only ones to find yourselves in this position
As with anything new, you'll probably find things difficult & confusing at first, but as you progress, the easier it becomes - honest.
If you follow the advice and learn and look after yourselves, you can live well with D

Look on the bright side - you've just found a new hobby!

 

[Sophywow]

I felt lonely and extremely overwhelmed since being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, But thank you Jane for your comment , I feel a little better, It was very helpful.

 

[Wannie]

I felt lonely and extremely overwhelmed since being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, But thank you Jane for your comment , I feel a little better, It was very helpful.

Hi @Sophywow, welcome to the forum, you will find lots of help and advice from some amazing people on here, it is 9 weeks since my diagnosis and I like you, felt overwhelmed by it and some days still do. if you have any questions please ask and someone with more knowledge and experience than me will help. Take care

 

[Transistor]

Some encouragement, Jane: I was was diagnosed with Type 2 at the end of October 2021 with HbA1c = 91 (20 - 42 is considered OK). I was fortunate that my wife and son were already on a keto diet for other reasons so that evening I switched from a normal diet to sugar-free and low carbs. It's quite doable and for many of us the results are spectacular. I was almost normal in 12 weeks or so - to the surprise of my doctor. (I wasn't overweight but diabetes was in both sides of my ancestry.)

We don't eat rice, potatoes, pasta, bread, noodles but lots of vegetables roasted and cauliflower / broccoli with butter and cheese sauce. (In general, when you're reducing the carbohydrates you need to increase your fat intake.) To fill the void left by the missing potatoes, etc., we have a variety of desserts mostly made with ground almonds, eggs, mascarpone cheese, coconut milk, cream, cocoa powder, berries, erythritol sweetener and such like. It's nice!

"Do you not miss the carbs?"
Me: "Not as much as I'd miss my toes!"
It's a great incentive.

Tips:
- Do your research and talk to the medics about your options on this. Diet-only treatment is not suitable for everyone.
- Packaged food has the carbohydrate content stated on the pack. I've found that I can tolerate food with up to 10 g carbohydrates per 100 g - that's 10% carbs without difficulty. Pick up the pack, read the info and if > 10 g/100g then put it back!
- I did run a spreadsheet for two days, weighed everything I ate, looked up the carb content of each on the web and calculated that I was eating about 50 g of carbs a day. That info and the previous point gave me a pretty good idea of how to manage what I ate.

Have fun!

 

[nonethewiser]

Good chance with weight loss he could reverse diagnosis, could try joining local Slimming group for support & advice.