Hi and welcome from me too. We all know how overwhelming it is at first, but it does get easier and there is no reason why, with a bit of effort and knowledge and support from the medical profession you shouldn't manage to live well with diabetes. Personally I am fitter and healthier since my diagnosis than I was before and I feel like it may have actually extended and improved my life rather than restricted it. Not wishing it on anyone or touting it as a health remedy, but it was the kick up the pants I needed to get a grip of my diet and make more of an effort to fit structured exercise into my life.
I am in a state of shock this morning I was told yesterday my HBA1C is 73. Which they tell me means I have type 2 diabetes.
It might be a bit pedantic of me but your HbA1c result of 73 gets you a diagnosis of diabetes (anything 48 or above gets you "the badge")
The type of diabetes you have may be open to interpretation or further investigation. Many mature adults are assumed to be Type 2 simply because many GPs have a misunderstanding that Type 1 only exhibits in childhood/young adulthood, so if you are middle aged they often automatically assume it must be Type 2. Many are also not aware that there are other types of diabetes than just 1 and 2.... ie 1.5, LADA, MODY, 3c
You do occasionally get slimmer/fit Type2s but it is unusual and my suspicion is that a high proportion of those are just very slow onset Type 1s (LADA), whose remaining beta cells in their pancreas manage to limp along producing enough insulin to keep things on an even keel providing that people are careful about their diet and keep active and don't have any event which might trigger their immune system to target any more of their beta cells.... Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune condition where the immune system attacks the beta cells reducing their ability to produce enough insulin themselves. Type 2 diabetes is often the reverse, where the beta cells are over producing insulin in an effort to try to push the excess glucose from the blood into the cells, but the cells have enough stores and don't want to take anymore to store as fat and they become resistant to the insulin which is trying to give them more glucose than they can cope with. This has been referred to by some medical professionals in this field as the personal fat threshold.... the point at which your body can't store more fat and it varies quite significantly depending upon genetics and metabolism. So you can get very obese people who don't have diabetes as their fat threshold is higher and people who are just a bit overweight whose bodies can't handle anymore.
Not sure if that will make sense to you at this stage, but if you genuinely feel that you have no weight to lose and you are fit and active and eat "healthily" then that might be something to bear in mind. There are quite a few of us here who were misdiagnosed as Type 2. I did have a bad diet pre diagnosis and I was carrying just over a stone more than ideal weight, but not huge and I was reasonably active. I adopted a low carb way of eating becoming increasingly strict with cutting out the carb rich foods to try to control my levels as well as Type 2 oral medication but unfortunately my HbA1c went up instead of down and it became clear I needed insulin. I was subsequently tested for C-peptides (a test which assesses how much insulin you are able to produce) and GAD antibodies which indicates the autoimmune attack on the beta cells and was eventually re-diagnosed as Type 1. These tests are more expensive and take longer to be processed and are sometimes inconclusive, especially with slower onset Type 1 so they are not routinely carried out, but may be something to ask about if dietary changes/weight loss and/or oral meds don't work or suddenly stop working.
In the mean time the 4 main factors which should help lower your Blood Glucose (BG) levels (in no particular order) are:-
Weight loss
Reducing the amount of carbohydrate you eat.... not just sugar/sweet stuff but all carbs like bread, potatoes, pasta, pastry, rice, breakfast cereals and surprisingly fruit...particularly the more exotic fruits like bananas and mangos and pineapple and grapes. (best fruit options are berries... packed with nutrients and flavour so a small portion goes a long way) Portion control with all carb rich foods is really important, so you don't necessarily have to give up all those foods above but aim for less of them than you normally eat and fill up with more leafy green veg, protein and natural fats.
Increased activity
Medication.
Hope that gives you a bit of an idea of things you need to be aware of and a way forward on your journey with diabetes. Slow, steady changes are less risky to your sight particularly as the fine blood vessels are under strain and sudden reduction in BG can cause them more stress.
Keeping a food diary for a few days and then go through ti to see where the main carbohydrate components are in your meals and where you can shave a bit off here and there. So 1 or 2 less spud on your plate, just 1 Yorkshire pud instead of 2, more sauce and a bit less pasta... start measuring the pasta and rice etc in spoons or weight so that you have a reference point for reductions, choose a lower carb cereal or just have one slice of toast instead of 2 and have lots of scrambled eggs on it to fill you up)
If you would like to post the sort of foods you currently eat for breakfast, lunch and evening meal, then we can give you lower carb suggestions, if that is easier and you decide to try the lower carb route.
Some people follow the rapid weight loss, very low calorie diet option (Newcastle diet/ Fast 800) through diet shakes to see if that will reverse it. Perhaps that might appeal to you more.
