Am I messing up? :(

[Duskie]

Hi guys, sorry to flood the forum with loads of new topics like I seem to have, but I've been really concerned lately.

My blood glucose has been horrible today. I woke up to 12.6! I had two weetabix with milk for breakfast and a little pot of fruit cocktail (in juice, not syrup!) and an hour later it rose to 19.4!

Now I admit that today I didn't actually wake up til 1pm, as I've been sleeping really bad lately, so I didn't eat anything else. Tested at 5pm and it was 16.1... I was happy, as it seemed to be dropping. But then I went out to our local supermarket, came back and tested and it was 25.5! 😱 Then about half hour later I tested again as my dad suggested it might have been wrong, and it was 11.3.

About half hour after my dinner it was 12.2 and then risen to 15.2, now its dropping again. I don't know what to think of this. I know I should have eaten more in the day, but wouldn't this have caused a low reading instead of high?

I'm just so confused

 

[Northerner]

Hi Duskie, don't worry about asking questions, that's why we're here! 🙂 I think what you need to do is not look at the actual numbers you are getting but look instead at the relative numbers i.e. how much your levels rose and fell after eating. This shows you the effect of your food. For example, you were 12.6 on waking and rose to 19.4 - this is a rise of 6.8 mmol/l and I don't think it is unusual an hour after the breakfast you had. Weetabix, milk and fruit all contain carbs and despite the advertising many people find that weetabix will hit your blood sugar levels fast. I would suggest trying different breakfasts and testing an hour after eating them to see which you tolerate best - some people find porridge to be OK, or Burgen soya and linseed bread toasted. Alternatively, a low carb breakfast like scrambled egg and tomatoes might be better - many people find that, on waking, they are much more insulin resistant so carbs in the morning have a greater effect than they would later in the day.

The 25.5 was most likely due to something on your fingers as it's highly unlikely you would have dropped by 14.2 mmol/l in half an hour. So, in fact the 11.3 was good relative to your earlier readings. The rise to 12.2 after dinner is very good as it is only a rise of 0.9 mmol/l and the 15.2 shows a rise of 2.9 mmol/l from your pre-dinner level, which is excellent.

As I hope you can see, all the readings you got are totally normal, but what you need to try and do is get your base levels down so that you are starting from 5s or 6s rather than 11s or 12s. You also need to experiment with other types of breakfast as weetabix does not appear to suit you. Hopefully, the bydureon will soon kick in and help you reduce that base level 🙂

Hope this helps to put things in perspective! 🙂

 

[Kwaka1]

It also depends on what excercise you may (or may not) be doing. If I was to have the breakfast that you had, I'd have to walk it off or compensate with more Insulin, the latter you can't do.
I would suggest carb counting may be your way forward.

 

[keith97]

Bear in mind that sleeping badly will show in your numbers too, so if you can address your sleep issues as well in between everything else you'll probably benefit.

Personally I've tried all sorts for breakfast, but have settled on one that while I don't particularly want it, doesn't upset my meter: 2 poached eggs, 10 brazil nuts, instant coffee with skimmed milk & a dash of cinnamon powder. I have the same day in day out (& get my eating excitement at other meals), and get such consistent results that I don't bother testing anymore.

As the saying goes - Test, Review, Adjust

 

[cherrypie]

Hi guys, sorry to flood the forum with loads of new topics like I seem to have, but I've been really concerned lately.

My blood glucose has been horrible today. I woke up to 12.6! I had two weetabix with milk for breakfast and a little pot of fruit cocktail (in juice, not syrup!) and an hour later it rose to 19.4!

Now I admit that today I didn't actually wake up til 1pm, as I've been sleeping really bad lately, so I didn't eat anything else. Tested at 5pm and it was 16.1... I was happy, as it seemed to be dropping. But then I went out to our local supermarket, came back and tested and it was 25.5! 😱 Then about half hour later I tested again as my dad suggested it might have been wrong, and it was 11.3.

About half hour after my dinner it was 12.2 and then risen to 15.2, now its dropping again. I don't know what to think of this. I know I should have eaten more in the day, but wouldn't this have caused a low reading instead of high?

I'm just so confused

Hi,
Diabetes likes regular meals and responds well to this method. Your liver had probably compensated earlier than when you woke as you had left a large gap between meals. Even briefly waking and rolling over again to continue sleeping would have been enough to cause this.
The weetabix may have driven your blood sugars up but so will the fruit cocktail in juice. The fruits were probably tropical as opposed to temperate and I always strain the juice off if I am eating fruits.
Once your levels were high and there was a gap between the next meal plus exercise, it could have explained the erratic numbers.
Has anyone ever explained to you about the carb content of meals? You really need to keep a food diary and see what does and doesn't raise your levels when you are eating regularly.
There is no rhyme or reason to diabetes control, it is a pain in the proverbial and just when you think it is sailing along nicely, something happens to make you wonder why.
This link provides a good basic guide and there may be something in it that will help.
http://www.diabetes-without-borders.org/FreeTiger.pdf

 

[Caroline]

Can't add to the suggestions already made, except be patient with yourself. Things do take time to sort out.

With your sleeping, do you have a bed dtime routine? many people find a routine helps. I find it also helps to avoid TV for at least half an hour before I plan to go to bed.

Don't worry about posting lots of questions and needing lots of advice. We are here to help and support you and someone with ideas is never far away.

 

[mcdonagh47]

Hi guys, sorry to flood the forum with loads of new topics like I seem to have, but I've been really concerned lately.

My blood glucose has been horrible today. I woke up to 12.6! I had two weetabix with milk for breakfast and a little pot of fruit cocktail (in juice, not syrup!) and an hour later it rose to 19.4!

Hi Duskie,

perhaps you should go back to basics....read Jennifer's Smart Advice again in the Stickie Section of the Newbies Thread and also Alan S's "Test,Review,Adjust" which is also there.

You should also find the Breakfast threads in the archives. Basically cereal and fruit juice are out of the question for most T2s.

 

[Duskie]

Thank you everyone for the advice, its definately put my mind at rest and given me something to think about.

Its sort of worrying that the advice I've been given by my diabetes nurse seems to be totally wrong... She told me I could have around ten portions of carbs a day. Now I haven't been eating nearly that much, but it still seems to be affecting me badly. I wasn't even told I had to watch carbs until about two weeks ago... Only sugar.

I've noticed a number of people on here have been having problems with their healthcare 'proffesionals'. Its pretty worrying.

Anyway, I'll skip the weetabix and the fruit in future. Silly me for thinking I was being good

 

[Northerner]

Anyway, I'll skip the weetabix and the fruit in future. Silly me for thinking I was being good

Not silly at all - I ate Weetabix regularly after diagnosis thinking it was healthy - it is, but only if your body can tolerate it with diabetes 🙂 Some fruit is better than others - berries are supposed to be best, apples generally OK for a lot of people, bananas if they have only just ripened to yellow from green - but avoid if they are going black as they become sugar-laden! - melon has a high GI, but is mostly water so is actually nowhere near as bad as it might appear. It would be worth getting a copy of The GL Diet for Dummies, it's a practical way of selecting food that is likely to have the least 'spiking' effect on your levels.

As with everything, you will discover in time what is best for you, and in what proportions. I'm guessing a 'carb portion' is 15g? Making 150g carbs a day? It's certainly not impossible, but it is a case of choosing the rightcarbs!

 

[Smit]

Keep at it, its all trial and error. Even after been diabetic for 27 years I'm still learning how different foods effect me. The funny thing is I eat weetabix everyday and keeps my blood stable with very little insulin. See we're all different. X

 

[Vicsetter]

Hi Duskie, all good advice and good to see you are testing, it will tkae some time to find out what affects you.
I have days when my readings don't seem to drop like they should. I would suggest the following 2 things to help you reduce your levels:

Avoid:
a) food containing sugar
b) products made from wheat (includes bread)

I have a bowl of grapefruit segments in juice for breakfast (sometimes with Burgen bread and peanut butter)
A bowl of soup or cold roast chicken and broad beans for lunch
Cooked evening meal with at most 3 small potatoes.

I read that it take 6-7 weeks after starting Bydureon for your after meal levels to come down.
Do you test before bed and first thing when waking? If you start the day high it is hard to get it down.