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first time on Forum

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T

Tom Higgins

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Relationship to Diabetes
Type 2
Hi

Just been told i have type 2 and trying to get my head round it and how it will change my life
 
Welcome to the forum, Tom.
Depending on your current diet, level of exercise, bodyweight etc, you may or may not have to make changes.
How were you diagnosed? What Have you been told so far?
 
Hi Tom and welcome to the forum. You have come to the right place for help and advice. lots of knowledgable people on here.
 
I had to go though the walk in centre as i could not get in to see my GP
i weigh 14 stone 7 pound go used to go the gym 3 times a week but i am worryed now as to just what i should do at the gym
unsure of what to eat not been told very much to tell the truth
 
Tom Higgins said:
I had to go though the walk in centre as i could not get in to see my GP
i weigh 14 stone 7 pound go used to go the gym 3 times a week but i am worryed now as to just what i should do at the gym
unsure of what to eat not been told very much to tell the truth
Click to expand...
Hi Tom...it is a shock to most diabetes when they get the diagnosis...however...as said depending on your blood glucose levels you may not have to make changes yet or very few...do you know what your blood glucose was...and were you given any medication...or are you waiting to see your GP?...it is a lot to take in...after you have had a while to think about it... it won't be so daunting...honestly type 2 can be managed effectively ...many of us here do just .keep us updated...and ask for as much advice as you need.
 
Welcome. We have all been where you are so a bit more information and you will get lots of helpful advice. So how were you diagnosed. Did you have an on the spot blood test (i.e. finger prick test), if so what was your blood glucose or did you have a hba1c test which measures your average blood sugar over the last couple of months (i.e not a finger prick test). Do you have any symptoms that made you go for a test? Have you been given a meter to measure your blood sugar, have you been given any medication.

Regardless of all the results the "diet" to reduce blood sugar is to cut out carbs. As simple as that in majority of cases. Loads on this forum have successfully changed their diet to reflect this and then with testing blood sugar reintroduced some to see what they can tolerate and keep blood sugar within healthy range. So a quick start is no potatoes, pasta, rice or bread. As much healthy protein and fat as you want so in comes butter, chicken, cream, fish, green veg. You can drink wine but give beer a miss as high carbs.

I was diagnosed end of Nov 16 with a very high blood sugar level but I'm on quite a low level of medication (2 tablets of metformin a day) and I've cut carbs and my blood sugar is now generally within target. I know this as I was given a meter to test but not all GP give to type 2 so many self fund. Someone will be along with link for a meter and strips.

It's daunting changing a life time diet but also empowering. Once again welcome to the forum
 
thank you both for the feedback

thanks for the food advice it is daunting i am on 2 metforim a day
 
Welcome Tom 🙂. Good luck with "taking it all in" When you do you will feel better 🙂
 
Hello Tom, it is all very daunting. A good place to start is the book by Gretchen Becker, called Type 2 Diabetes, the first year, (or something similar). I found it really helpful when I was first diagnosed ( though I was later found to be Type 1) She goes through all sorts of things, like, what all the blood tests mean, etc, what you need to do day by day, etc.
 
Robin said:
Hello Tom, it is all very daunting. A good place to start is the book by Gretchen Becker, called Type 2 Diabetes, the first year, (or something similar). I found it really helpful when I was first diagnosed ( though I was later found to be Type 1) She goes through all sorts of things, like, what all the blood tests mean, etc, what you need to do day by day, etc.
Click to expand...
Another good book is the one by Dr Cavan, Reversing your Diabetes which is Type 2 specific i think. Really interesting and easy to read like the Gretchen Becker book. Doesn't swamp yyou with too much medical gobbledygook
 
Hi Tom, Welcome . I know it seems daunting now but honestly in time it almost becomes second nature.
Many of us here do LCHF ( low carb high fat) don't worry bout the high fat bit, it doesn't mean eating a pound of lard. Its more like not choosing low fat yogurts and using butter , that sort of thing.
Basically our bodies can't handle carbs too well, things like potatoes, bread esp white, pasta and rice are the worst culprits, it's not to say we can't have any, but cutting down and finding substitutes sure does help. Fruit juice though marketed as healthy , is packed full of sugar and many of us need to be careful with fruit, grapes are little sugar bombs, often berries are tolerated better.

We do need to know how food affects us. Wrongly in our opinion most T2s who are not on meds that can cause hypo's, Metformin doesn't, are provided with the very tool that can help us learn what our body tolerates well, diabetes is very individual in this, some people can eat eg porridge others dare not go near it
Many reasons are given ,some of them are dead silly,
The SD Codefree meter is the cheapest one to self fund that we know of, it's test strips are around £8 for 50 other brands strips are between £15 - £25
It's available from Amazon or direct from Homehealth .
We use the mmol/L measurement in the UK and don't forget to claim VAT relief
https://homehealth-uk.com/all-products/codefree-blood-glucose-monitoring-system-mmoll-or-mgdl/
 
Hi grannylorraine it is indeed with a lot of people who are willing to help you as well and give advice which i have found very helpful
 
Welcome from a fellow T2, who's just two years in.
 
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