Type 2-New..

[mia]

Hi there...I was diagnosed before Christmas with Type 2...very borderline result, told I could reverse the diagnosis through diet...I started with good intentions,started walking and eating really well....and would love to say this continued!!!....Needless to say, I did not continue with the changes I made, and now live as if I don't have an issue! I keep forgetting to go to the appointments and haven't had a blood test since November..and I'm beginning to feel rough! I need to get to grips with this, and so decided to join here and start getting support from people who have this same issue. My partner is lovely, and worries about what I eat...and I know I should be dealing with this as if I was an intelligent person...instead of burying my head in the sand!!!
I think I feel I am to blame for my health...which being brutally honest I am...I am overweight and this has caused this problem and I feel such an eejit for allowing myself to get this way. There is diabetes in the family, so it wasn't a total surprise...
My willpower is non-exsistant, and the idea of changing how I eat just leaves me feeling at a loss at where to start!!
So...advice and what I should be reading would be great..I am making an appointment with the diabetic nurse today...and I am going to take this on proparly🙂 ...any support and words of encouragement would be gratefully recieved!!! Many thanks! Mia.

 

[mia]

I must add, that I am not on medication as yet...as change of diet and excercise should control it...(why I am not changing yet is beyond me!!!!!)

 

[SimplesL]

Hi Mia

You've made a big step by acknowledging you need to look at your lifestyle to help you improve your type 2.

I'm glad you will make an appointment today with your nurse. Can I suggest what would help them & you would be to keep a food diary from now. Keep a note of ALL you eat from snacks (my downfall initially) to details of each meal & time you eat.

This should help your team to have a look & give you some pointers about what is good in your diet & stuff you need to work on to change.

I'm not overweight but have type 2 very strongly in the family. I started by substituting my daily chocolate bar or bag of sweets for 2 bits of fruit. I've even lost 1/2 stone over the year, and upped my weekly visits to the gym.

You have started to do some walking & this just great you may find looking at the weightloss threads on here will give you some good advice. The thing is you are not alone there are lots on here like me who will be willing you on.

I found the book Type 2 diabetes the first year by Gretchen Baker to be a very informative book. I got hold of a copy from Amazon.

If you are going to control by diet & exercise speak to your team about self-monitoring so you can check the effect of eating various foods/meals have on your levels.You may be lucky & get some testing strips etc on prescription I don't but but them to check my levels every now & then or when I don't feel too well.

Sending you all the support I can; & pass on my best wishes to your partner as their support is invaluable.

Regards
Lynne

 

[mcdonagh47]

Hi there...I was diagnosed before Christmas with Type 2...very borderline result, told I could reverse the diagnosis through dietI recieved!!! Many thanks! Mia.

Hi Mia,

start by reading Maggie Davey's Open Letter to the Newly Dxed Type 2....
http://www.sequin.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/Downloads/openlet.pdf

You were ill advised with the references to "borderline" and "reversing the diagnosis".
The diagnostic criterion for Type 2 are "all-or-nothing" so there is no "borderline" diagnosis and "reversing" is a misleading word that should not be used in relation to Type 2 Diabetes.

 

[Andy HB]

I'd disagree slightly with McDonagh47 (and I mean slightly) because it IS possible to reverse the SYMPTOMS of diabetes 'cos I've done it.

If you're still producing insulin and the main problem is simply insulin resistance because you're overweight, then losing the weight will improve your condition.

I worked on the principle of losing around 1lb per week (actually it was 0.8lbs for various 'logical to me' reasons!). This meant that I could still indulge my passion for eating (which I like). However, certain dietry changes were absolutely required for me. I cut out a lot of saturated fat in my diet mostly in the form of cheese and also replaced some minced beef meals with quorn.

If you cook for yourself rather than relying on processed food, it will make the process easier, by the way.

Good luck,

Andy 🙂

 

[Steff]

Hi Mia and a warm welcome to the forum, just wanted to say hi and hope you find this forum as valuable as we all do



I thought that we were diabetic for life and could not shake that off even when we are on diet and exercise only ?

 

[flybynight200000]

Dorling Kindersley do a good book on Diabetes, Amazon should stock it.

I know the feeling about willpower, its hard and the food advice is not all ways easy to follow. Lets face it, how many of us have time to count the carbs, weigh ingredients etc.

If only advice coulbe simple 🙂

 

[Steff]

Dorling Kindersley do a good book on Diabetes, Amazon should stock it.

I know the feeling about willpower, its hard and the food advice is not all ways easy to follow. Lets face it, how many of us have time to count the carbs, weigh ingredients etc.

If only advice coulbe simple 🙂

Hi flyby welcome to the forum have you been diagnosed long,what's the name of the Dk book I am a regular book worm when it comes to diabetes books anyways

 

[flybynight200000]

Hi Steff, I was diagnosed 18 months ago. Like Mia i struggle to stay focused, not easy.

The book is diabetes "A practical guide, to managing your health" 🙂

 

[Steff]

Hi Steff, I was diagnosed 18 months ago. Like Mia i struggle to stay focused, not easy.

The book is diabetes "A practical guide, to managing your health" 🙂

Thanks flyby il have a gander in my local water stones Friday am.

Are you on mediation for your diabetes?

 

[mia]

Thank you all! Right....diabetic nurse is getting in touch to get me booked into the next session! So thats one thing sorted!
I've woken up early, again, today...feeling headachy and the usual tablets don't touch it, feeling sick, achy, stuffy nose and a scratchy feeling in my throat! I've felt like this for about a week...it comes and goes...don't feel overly tired..is this diabetes linked!? I don't like to ask for a diagnosis like this, but just want to hear if this could be a part of it!?
I will be very honest, the last couple of weeks before I started feeling like this, I ate much more red meat than I normally do...and feel that this has triggered it off! I am going to look at the Diabetes for Dummies book, as I've seen people suggest on here...and look at some other info too....I could do with advice on what I can eat and when to help get the balance back!! I really hope that I'm not making you 'tut tut' with my lack of understanding!!!🙂

 

[Andy HB]

I thought that we were diabetic for life and could not shake that off even when we are on diet and exercise only ?

Yep, very true. But it is possible to improve your symptoms in some circumstances. It need not be a slow decline which is the message I frequently hear .... well in the beginning at least.

Andy 🙂

 

[Andy HB]

I could do with advice on what I can eat and when to help get the balance back!! I really hope that I'm not making you 'tut tut' with my lack of understanding!!!🙂

No 'tut tut's from anyone, I suspect! We've all been where you are now. 🙂

Difficult to advise what to eat because we all respond differently to different foods. For example I have absolutely no problem with porridge in the morning whereas others go sky high with it. This is why self testing, at least in the beginning, is so useful. You have immediate feedback in what works and what doesn't.

But I'll give you some ideas nonetheless (feel free to ignore!)

If you like potatoes, then the ones to go for are new potatoes. Two reasons. Firstly, they're better than old potatoes and also you can control portion size much more easily (I usually just have two or three small ones when I have them).

I generally avoid rice but when I do have it, I really control the portion size (I guess 1/5th of a portion from a chinese takeaway!) and I go for basmati, which is the best one apparently.

Most vegetables are fine for me and so I try to bulk my meals out with them. This need not be a boring option. I quite like my spicy veg soups!

Hopefully, you'll get some ideas from others, but I can't emphasis enough how useful it was for me to be able to test early on. Unfortunately, that seems to be a problem for many these days.

Andy 🙂

 

[ando]

I quite like my spicy veg soups!

So do I! See the recipe on my blog!

 

[flybynight200000]

Yes Metformin, Citagliptin and Atorvastatin. Think I spelt them right 🙂 So I rattle well Im afraid.

 

[grufflybear]

I have been managing my T2 with diet and excercise. I took a rather "brutal" attitude to the diet part; So many diets focus on exclusion of things which are regarded as "treats" and time and time again I read about people reducing their weight, acheiving BG reductions and then having a "treat". That "treat" is a slippery slope back to bad habits. I took a rather single minded attitude and decided to focus on the delicious things I can eat. I learned to make "puddings" without sugar or any of its foul substitutes. After a relatively short time taste becomes accustomed to how delicious food is without all the sugar pumped into it. I can now happily sit down and have a "safe" pudding and watch friends shovel down sticky toffee puddings etc without a twinge of regret, and in fact the smell of sweet puds has become quite unpleasant ( a bit like the smell of other people smoking once you give up that ).

But overall I still treated diet as a regime in which I took pleasure in real treat like smoked salmon, very expensive but overall I still spend less because I don't buy any cake or pudding or biscuits.

It is not just down to sugar of course and careful observation of which other carbs you eat and their quantities is also very helpful, after about 3 months of calorie counting it became a natural habit to recognise what a "safe" balanced meal looked like and now I have quite a wide repertoire of meals and foods which are a pleasure to eat and keep me within safe BG levels. I can even make a number of sugarless low fat "puddings" ( even chocolate ones ) and I promise you that the natural flavours are delicious without the sugar, or any sugar substitute.

I had to lose about 2 stone in weight and I found that I slowly and steadily lost weight without actually focusing on that aspect too much, losing about a half pound a week seems very slow but it is better to lose it slowly.

Some may think my attitude to food is a little obsessive but the T2 diagnosis was quite a shock and I would much rather take a little trouble to watch what I eat than increase the risk of unpleasant side effects from diabetes.

The detail of my "case" doesn't really matter, what I wanted to say in a round about way is that it is possible to make a huge difference without causing yourself too much angst. It is better if those around you help but just be solid with yourself and learn to politely refuse those kind friends who offer you treats and tell you that "a little bit wont hurt".... sorry it does hurt you and it only maintains a yearning for things which you are better off not eating.

It is very important that you learn to test yourself, it re-assures you when you are doing the right thing and suceeding and warns you if you are eating something which causes BG to remain higher, everybody has individual responses and only through testing early on and experimenting with different carbs will you learn which foods are best for you.