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sharons

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Type 2
Hi all

Well obviously as I'm here have also been diagnosed. Type 2 in my case and hereditary. I had GD in pregnancy and managed to control the first one with diet but not quite with the 2nd.

I'm 40 and am in a quandry. My doctors surgery do not really go down the diet and exercise route and head straight for Metformin. My pre and post GTT sugars were 4.9 and 12.4 (ouch) at the last test, but my HBA1C is only 5.4 (or 39 in the new measurements) so pretty good.

My cholesterol is all over the place - one's way up, one's way down etc.

Nurse has suggested metformin plus a cholesterol drug (not sure which). I'm loathe to take them as I know that'll be it, but also thinking do I want to be ruled by everything I eat. I could do a bit more exercise and lose a stone but I'm not that bad really.

What experiences have you had. Just in a quandry what to do.
 
sharons said:
Hi all

Well obviously as I'm here have also been diagnosed. Type 2 in my case and hereditary. I had GD in pregnancy and managed to control the first one with diet but not quite with the 2nd.

I'm 40 and am in a quandry. My doctors surgery do not really go down the diet and exercise route and head straight for Metformin. My pre and post GTT sugars were 4.9 and 12.4 (ouch) at the last test, but my HBA1C is only 5.4 (or 39 in the new measurements) so pretty good.

My cholesterol is all over the place - one's way up, one's way down etc.

Nurse has suggested metformin plus a cholesterol drug (not sure which). I'm loathe to take them as I know that'll be it, but also thinking do I want to be ruled by everything I eat. I could do a bit more exercise and lose a stone but I'm not that bad really.

What experiences have you had. Just in a quandry what to do.
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Hi Sharons, I had similar BS readings to you when first diagnosed and my doctor was happy to go down the route of D/E, however, my problem was that I kept getting repeated infections (skin and styes) and although my readings were good, the doc suggested I try the metformin, it took a lot of persuading on his part because I was loath to have to take tablets all the time. However, I have to say, it did work for me, my HBA1C has come down lower than it was and I havent had any infections since I started the medication. Also, you might like to try taking it for a bit until your levels come down and then discuss coming off the medication, I know several people on here have come off the meds and I myself hope to at some point.

With regard to the cholesterol levels, I think they may prescribe you statins - my cholesterol is good so I've never had to take them, however, I know several people on here do and I must say I've yet to see anything in praise of them - I cant remember the ins and outs of statins but I have no doubt that someone else will come on with the info shortly.

Welcome to the forum by the way, its a wonderful place with tons and tons of advice and very friendly folk - I most definitely would have been lost without it.
 
Also, you might like to try taking it for a bit until your levels come down and then discuss coming off the medication, I know several people on here have come off the meds and I myself hope to at some point.
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Thanks Karen

I did chat to the nurse about the above and she seemed to think that it might not be the case since it's progressive and it's heriditary rather than due to my current lifestyle :confused:

The cholesterol drugs are statins yes. Would be good to get some advise on those. I think my reading are way out. The good cholesterol is only 0.8 and should be a lot higher apparently.

arggghhhhh what to do lol

Sharon
 
sharons said:
Thanks Karen

I did chat to the nurse about the above and she seemed to think that it might not be the case since it's progressive and it's heriditary rather than due to my current lifestyle :confused:

Sharon
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Its progressive for everyone I believe, also I think its hereditary for everyone too, but I'm not an expert on that - and also as far as I can tell I'm the first in my family to get it - though to explain that, we're really not a close family and I know nothing about my grandparents health at all, my parents cant remember.
 
Klocky said:
Its progressive for everyone I believe, also I think its hereditary for everyone too, but I'm not an expert on that - and also as far as I can tell I'm the first in my family to get it - though to explain that, we're really not a close family and I know nothing about my grandparents health at all, my parents cant remember.
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One of the things that I'm a little confused about (well one of the many) is that she's not asked me to monitor my blood sugars at all so I'm not getting an idea of which foods are good and bad for me (though have a bit of an idea from the pregnancies). Not that I really want to be stabbing my fingers 4 times a day, just thought I'd probably be asked to do that.

Just need to decide whether to cash in my presciption or dig out my old monitoring stuff and get the diet and exercise regime going
 
sharons said:
One of the things that I'm a little confused about (well one of the many) is that she's not asked me to monitor my blood sugars at all so I'm not getting an idea of which foods are good and bad for me (though have a bit of an idea from the pregnancies). Not that I really want to be stabbing my fingers 4 times a day, just thought I'd probably be asked to do that.

Just need to decide whether to cash in my presciption or dig out my old monitoring stuff and get the diet and exercise regime going
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I'd say you'd definitely need to test, I couldnt have done as well as I have without the testing - although I do know that GPs are reluctant to prescribe the strips for type 2 and that may be why they havent told you to do it. My GP wont prescribe so I buy my own, although I dont test as regularly these days now that I've got more of an idea of what to eat and how it affects me.

With regard to the exercise, you'd be well advised to do that because it helps with the levels although I confess I dont to as much as I should. When I saw my GP last week he said he'd recently attended a conference which recomended half an hour of exercise 5 times a week, I think that'd kill me before the D does lol

Anyway, I shall have another look at this thread when I get home from work this evening, cos its long past my lunch break and I'll be in trouble if I dont get off here now :D
 
Hello Sharon and welcome to the forums.

It will take a while for you to get your head around things but if you have a look at these links you may find something to help you.

http://www.diabetessupport.co.uk/boards/showthread.php?t=10406

Do you think that your GP would give you a chance to change things before meds. Some people find they are able by losing weight and restricting their carbs that they can keep on top of things. Others no matter what they do will need meds.

I have seen articles that metformin can help with cholesterol levels - so depending on your levels - maybe you could try them plus changes to diet - ask to see if there is a dietician at the surgery that you can see.
 
Hi Sharon, welcome to the forum 🙂 Medical opinion does seem to be very divided over whether a patient should be put immediately on medication or allowed a period of trying to improve things through diet and exercise. Certainly, your HbA1c suggests that you haven't suffered bad control over the time before you were diagnosed, although your GTT does show that your body is unable to cope well with a rapid ingestion of fast-acting glucose. I think that you would be wise to dig out your testing kit and start monitoring the effects of ordinary food on your levels, to give you a better idea of whether you should go back to your GP and discuss staying off the pills. If you can chronicle your results, plus what you ate, when you tested etc., then you will have something tangible to base the decision on. Is there another doctor at the practice who could give you a second opinion? As the others have said, taking the metformin may not be forever - although small, you have identified changes like losing a little weight and increasing exercise which may be just enough to achieve good levels, given that you are showing good fasting numbers and good HbA1c.

Exercise will certainly help both with your blood sugar levels and also with your levels of good cholesterol, plus other things you can do like eating oily fish a couple of times a week (I usually have sardines on toast to get my quota!).

Please feel free to ask anything, nothing is considered 'silly' and we're happy to help in any way we can! 🙂 I look forward to hearing more from you, please let us know what you decide.
 
Welcome to the forums sharons 🙂
 
Sharons hi and a warm welcome to the forum
 
Think I might monitor for a while and just tell them that's what I'm doing.

Having had a good trawl around the forum I think the decision to go straight onto metformin is a little drastic with the HBA1c so low.

Just had sausage, mash and peas and hour ago and reading is 6.2 (have dug out my stuff - few test strips left though they're past their expiry so that might be why). I guess my body just doesn't like being starved then fed high glucose first thing in the morning. During pregnancy breakfast was where my issues were.

Will see if I can get some testing strips tomorrow.
 
sharons said:
Think I might monitor for a while and just tell them that's what I'm doing.

Having had a good trawl around the forum I think the decision to go straight onto metformin is a little drastic with the HBA1c so low.

Just had sausage, mash and peas and hour ago and reading is 6.2 (have dug out my stuff - few test strips left though they're past their expiry so that might be why). I guess my body just doesn't like being starved then fed high glucose first thing in the morning. During pregnancy breakfast was where my issues were.

Will see if I can get some testing strips tomorrow.
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A lot of people experience increased insulin resistance in the morning, and the liver also has a tendency to release an extra boost of glucose at the start of the day in some people. You can get a free meter and 10 strips from here:

http://www.abbottdiabetescare.co.uk/free-meter-signup

or there is a meter with cheaper strips recently discussed by one of our members here, but may not be available in your local pharmacy:

http://www.diabetessupport.co.uk/boards/showthread.php?t=18200

Hopefully, you will be able to persuade your doctor to prescribe some strips for you 🙂
 
Hi Sharon and welcome to the forum.

It's good that you're asking a lot of questions. When I was first diagnosed, I had so many questions and they were all kindly answered here with such a degree of patience. One of the best things you've done, is to come on this forum. I've received far better advice here than any given by my doctor and luckily, they don't seem to restrict test strips in this country (Norway).

My Hba1c was initially 10.5% back in November and didn't make much sense to me at all. The doctor didn't give me any option other than to start taking Metformin immediately. I started the first week on 500mg and increased it, the second week to 1000mg. I've since read that Metformin has many benefits to the health by lowering cholesterol levels and protecting the heart. However, my levels are now back down to 6.2% and decreasing as we speak. It's not a nice thought being on a drug for the rest of your life but you have to weigh up the pro's and cons.

On a personal level, if I hadn't had the ability to test, I wouldn't have had a clue what was happening in the first initial months. You soon learn, which foods are good and the one's you avoid like the plague as they will indefinitely spike you.

For instance, last night, I was round at a friend's and had a couple of glasses of wine, chilli con carne with rice and garlic bread. I knew I would spike and sure thing, my fasting level was 8.3. 1 hr after that 8.4 but 2 hrs after that 6.4. I will stick to low carbs for the rest of the day and I'm pretty certain that around 5pm I will be around the 4.7 mark which is a regular thing now.

I would have been completely lost without the friendship and advice offered in this forum. Living in a foreign country and not knowing their system was a bit frightening but I feel like one of the gang now, which is great.

Welcome.
Donna 🙂🙂🙂
 
Northerner said:
A lot of people experience increased insulin resistance in the morning, and the liver also has a tendency to release an extra boost of glucose at the start of the day in some people. You can get a free meter and 10 strips from here:

http://www.abbottdiabetescare.co.uk/free-meter-signup

or there is a meter with cheaper strips recently discussed by one of our members here, but may not be available in your local pharmacy:

http://www.diabetessupport.co.uk/boards/showthread.php?t=18200

Hopefully, you will be able to persuade your doctor to prescribe some strips for you 🙂
Click to expand...

Hi Sharon. You can find the Glucorx Nexus meter on Pharmacylink it's ?4.90 and the strips are about ?11.94 for 50 from http://www.pharmacylink.co.uk (search for glucorx). It's seems to read a bit high for readings over 5, but about right below that. Quite suitable for testing food reactions.

When you do test, I suggest you start by cutting out (or down) on bread for a while and see what that does, you'll be surprised. (Cut down on breakfast cereals as well).
 
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