Feeling down (warning: may contain ranting)

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RachelT

RachelT

Well-Known Member
Relationship to Diabetes
Type 1.5 LADA
Oh bloody hell, where do i start? I'm having a nasty attack of the "what the hell do i have to do?" blues.
First of all, i'd like anybody who's not on a low-carb diet to reassure me.
This is probably gonna sound silly. I'm worried that my blood sugars are to high coz it's been a while since my last HbA1c (September) and when i get tired and spaced out, i test to see if i'm too low...i'm normally high. So i'm also worried that i wouldn't know what i hypo was if i had one. I think i should test more, but test strips are hard to come by. Di i just bite the bullet and buy them? And if so, how do i get more lancets, coz i've about used up all the ones i was given 18 months ago and pricking with blunt lancets hurts.
If i test and find it's high what do i do?
a) get my doctor to up my metformin dose? I don't think he'll do that.
b) force myself back to the gym in the hope that that works? or
c) cut the carbs?
Everybody here seems to say cut the carbs. I can't!!!! I think i'm actually more scared of that than i was cutting out sugar.... I don't want to have to live on chicken salad for the rest of my life, and i certainly can't cope with bacon and eggs every morning. Besides, i've of the opinion that actually, some forms of cholesterol are quite bad for you. (Sorry but i don't care if it's fat deposits or inflamation, but one way or another it makes your blood vessels smaller and that's not good.) I can't do it! Please don't ask me to give up the only comfort food i have left! I am soo sick of feeling guilty about what i eat. Stupid supermarkets and thier stupid easter eggs and chocolates at the till! Stupid cookery programs and thier cakes and desserts!!
I'm taking this too personally arn't i?
Still, at least i'm not in denial...
I'm also stressing about the potential or non-potential of purchasing my first property next week. Why's that so complicated? Why won;t anybody be prepared to give me a date for completion? Also my brother had a minor surgical op on thursday, (he's ok, he has an anti-inflamitory injection in his spine) and i wasn;t able to support him coz of the stupid flat business. My friend can't find a job and all i wanna do is eat toast! Which sounds like a bad thing.
Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!

Ok rant over, thanks for listening.
Why do these attacks only come late at night?

Rachel
(the depressed toastaholic)
 
Oh Rachel, you're really having a hard time at the moment aren't you? Sometimes no matter how you try to be positive and proactive all the time, the halo has to slip and temptation is all around. I cannot claim to be saintly - I've just polished off a pack of low cal/low fat crisps and a kiddies size bar of cadbury's after having a full portion of veg pakora from the takeaway.. However, I know that I'll be back on track tomorrow and do some extra exercise to balance out my sins!...

Now, repeat after me:

"I am a strong woman and I will not let diabetes beat me!" followed closely by "tomorrow is another day and another fresh start".

Goodnight petal, sleep tight.

Karina 🙂
 
Rachel,
Do you change lancets every time you test? I try to use mine more often than that partly 'cause i cannot be bothered to change them every time and i find they can easily be used quite a few times before changing- and i'm lucky enough to get mine free being type 1.
If you're not able to test often it may be worth testing after your meals - say 30 - 60 mins later, then you can see how high you go. The rest of the time ie, before meals etc .. you're levels will almost certainly be lower. If you can use this information to keep yourself from going too high after eating, that's not a bad start.
 
I reuse my lancets, and to be honest, i don't test often enough to work out how many times, but after about four or five they tend to sting a bit. I have a nasty feeling that if i tested less than two hours after eating i'd scare myself stupid. Last time i tried (and this is what's bugging me), it was 8.6, that was three hours after eating and taking metformin. I'm one 500mg once daily, normally at lunch.
It's not tragic, i'm just suffering with that little voice in my head which says
"well, if you want your blood sugar levels to improve, you should eat better. You must be eating too many carbs." It only says that coz it knows it can't catch me on the sugar. It's a crafty and vindictive bugger, my inner voice...

Thanks for trying to help guys.
 
You are on metformin so you should qualify for free prescriptions... the only time I had to pay for stuff was when I was diet and exercise, as soon as I went on metformin I didn't have to pay...

http://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/HealthCosts/2095.aspx

The above link tells you how to apply for a medical exemption certificate.
 
Lancets

RachelT said:
I reuse my lancets, and to be honest, i don't test often enough to work out how many times, but after about four or five they tend to sting a bit. I have a nasty feeling that if i tested less than two hours after eating i'd scare myself stupid. Last time i tried (and this is what's bugging me), it was 8.6, that was three hours after eating and taking metformin. I'm one 500mg once daily, normally at lunch.
It's not tragic, i'm just suffering with that little voice in my head which says
"well, if you want your blood sugar levels to improve, you should eat better. You must be eating too many carbs." It only says that coz it knows it can't catch me on the sugar. It's a crafty and vindictive bugger, my inner voice...

Thanks for trying to help guys.
Click to expand...

Dear Rachel,

As I'm sure you know I'm a controlled carbers so I won't talk about that! If we can determine that my lancets are the same as yours, I'll send you some. I have a lot and will never use them all - I go months on the same one!

Warmest Regards Dodger
 
Can't add much to the advice already given, I hope you feel better soon.

I have been experimenting with less carbs. One of the things that is helping me is have an extra portion of vegtable and not potatos. I know many people like carbs at every meal, and that is OK. I don't formally carb count but aim to eat more fruit and vege and less sweet stuff.
 
Hi Rach sorry to hear your feeling abit down , things will brighten up they always do hun x x you have us as a release and you knwo we will all be here for you, i can only add to what squidge has sis about your strips you should get them on script cause as far as i know only diet and exercise controlled have to pay for there prescriptions.
 
RachelT said:
Oh bloody hell, where do i start? I'm having a nasty attack of the "what the hell do i have to do?" blues.
First of all, i'd like anybody who's not on a low-carb diet to reassure me.
Hi Rachel,
Don't know about re-assuring you. As a T2 you need to be aware of carbohydrates and the quantity of them you are eating. That doesn't necessarily mean Low Carbing ( I have always considered that to be "golfing with one club"). The major issue for us is management of carbs not escape from them.
The X-Pert course for T2s ( have you been on one ?) sees 15 grams of carbs as a Carb Portion and suggests T2s should have about 15 of them a day depending on physique and work done. One of those Carb Portions from the X-pert booklet turns out to be quite small e.g ONE New Potato.
T2 control is often said to be an effective mix of Diet/Exercise/medication/Insulin. Only experimentation will tell you what the best mix of those elements is for you.
Perhaps you should establish a level of carbs you are happy with and can live with and then walk up through the quantity and quality of medication available. And of course some exercise is also necessary.If you end up on insulin sooner than other T2s, no problemo. All t2s fight against the idea of insulin injections but in the end it is the only thing that makes their control straightforward.
The usual treatment Algorythm in Britain for T2 Diabetes runs something like this ...
-D&E
-D&E plus metformin to max dose ( 2500mg)
-D&E plus metformin plus a sulfonylurea ( e.g. gliclazide)
-D&E plus met plus a sulf plus a TZD ( e.g Rosiglitazone)
- D&E plus met plus Byetta ( or other Incretin Mimetic)
- D&E plus met plus and introductory Insulin regime
- D&E plus met plus Physiological Insulin Regime ( basal/bolus)

If you are only on Metformin at the mo you can see from this that you have barely started and there is a range of steps to come. From what you are saying the Doc is likely to add Gliclazide to your regime.
From my 18 years experience as a T2 I have come to the conclusion that most T2s are several steps behind where they should be on this treatment stepladder and that the 40% of t2s on insulin should be more like 60% ( too expensive says the NHS, lets fob 'em off with pills for as long as possible).

To sum up, I suggest you decide what level of carbs you want, then go through the stages above until you have a regime that gives control on that level of carbs. Certainly you should moderate starchy carbs but that does not mean cutting them entirely. If you want a decent T2-friendly Diet and doesn't require you to wear a hair shirt, try Audrey Eytons F2 Plan.
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I don't want to have to live on chicken salad for the rest of my life, and i certainly can't cope with bacon and eggs every morning.
Click to expand...

and nor would I ,and like you I would still be concerned about the sat fat.
I have LADA but for over three years thought I had type 2. I am convinced that adopting low gi principles, selecting the type of carbs rather than going low carb is what helped me keep on top of things and gave my declining beta cells less to do( though I have to admit a fair amount of exercise). I still use it a lot and it works well for me.
Have a look at the gi index FAQs. http://www.glycemicindex.com/
and the newsletter.
My second link is to some success stories but the newsletter has lots of ideas and recipes.
http://ginews.blogspot.com/2006/01/your-success-stories.html
 
Thanks for all your advice. I'm feeling a bit better this morning, i'm guessing that the stress of work+health+moving is all doing the power of no good to my blood sugar levels anyway. Works a pain but at least everybody else is experiencing the same problems so i know it's not just me. The move won't go on forever, chances are that will be resolved in the next couple of weeks, it's just the first time i've ever bought a flat so i don't know what to expect. Spending large ammounts of money makes me nervous at the best of times... and up till now that's been anything over about 300 pounds, so 12-13 thousand is a new experience for me.
What i really need to do is talk to my doctor, but i have a hard time with that. He's not exactly Dr Aproachable. Gotta see him next week anyway about my thyroid tests (please please please can i come off the Carbimazole?). All i have to do is tell him i'm worried, can i have an HbA1c please or at least, some test strips and lancets. I do have medical exemption, (which was a struggle coz nobody had the form or knew where to get one. I had to wait four weeks till i went back to work to find one.) but somebody has to pay the drug companies, and i think our PCT objects to spending it's drug budget on me. Which is a bit mean, considering i spend 37 and a half hours a week sorting out medication for thier other patients. All i really need (besides a manager who does her job properly and a completion date on my move) is to up my meformin to twice daily or three times daily. I might just be panicing over nothing...in fact i probably am. Might go to the walk in clinic on tuesday at the hospital, if only to get some advice about how to stop worrying about my blood sugars.

Thanks for listening and for all your offers of help

Rachel
 
Rachel, hope you feel better after your rant, and things start to make turb for the good. And I hope you do have a stress free home purchase, or at least as stress free as possible!

What lancet device/meter do you use, if you are going to one of the meets I'm sure someone could sort you out something😉

Take care

Rossi🙂
 
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