Hi, being a newbie at 58 is something I hadn't ever expected.

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Totty3822

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Type 2
Hi, just been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes after feeling rough for a couple of months.Increase in using the loo & tiredness were the main things but put it down to getting older & work.Over the last week or so an increase in getting up in the night 7-8 times & grinding to a halt were unsustainable & took myself to the docs. Blood tests etc & while waiting for results felt so bad last weekend that I took myself to a hospital walk in, who were fantastic.They had the doc's results.Blood was 106 & they said over 48 is type 2 diabetes.Urine was 17 (whatever that means) & went back to docs during the week who put me on Metaformin. Got a leaflet through about contacting a diabetes nurse, which I'll do tomorrow & bought a,monitor off Amazon.Took blood test on it yesterday & 17.2, today 14.5. Any advice going forward with this would be greatly appreciated, it was a bit of a shock to the system & the whole thing has my head swimming right now.Started changing diet but have so many other questions.
Thank you if you got this far
 
Welcome to the forum
You've come to the right place. Ask any and all questions
 
Totty3822 said:
Hi, just been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes after feeling rough for a couple of months.Increase in using the loo & tiredness were the main things but put it down to getting older & work.Over the last week or so an increase in getting up in the night 7-8 times & grinding to a halt were unsustainable & took myself to the docs. Blood tests etc & while waiting for results felt so bad last weekend that I took myself to a hospital walk in, who were fantastic.They had the doc's results.Blood was 106 & they said over 48 is type 2 diabetes.Urine was 17 (whatever that means) & went back to docs during the week who put me on Metaformin. Got a leaflet through about contacting a diabetes nurse, which I'll do tomorrow & bought a,monitor off Amazon.Took blood test on it yesterday & 17.2, today 14.5. Any advice going forward with this would be greatly appreciated, it was a bit of a shock to the system & the whole thing has my head swimming right now.Started changing diet but have so many other questions.
Thank you if you got this far
Click to expand...
Welcome to the forum, It is often a shock to receive such a diagnosis but as it explains symptoms you have had can be a relief.
Metformin will take a while to kick in as it is advised to build up the dose gradually to allow the stomach to settle with it.
Dietary changes are going to be important as all carbohydrates convert to glucose so reducing those in your diet will be a good start.
Have a look at this link for some good explanation and some do's and don'ts as well as some menu plans to suit various tastes. https://lowcarbfreshwell.com/
 
Leadinglights said:
Welcome to the forum, It is often a shock to receive such a diagnosis but as it explains symptoms you have had can be a relief.
Metformin will take a while to kick in as it is advised to build up the dose gradually to allow the stomach to settle with it.
Dietary changes are going to be important as all carbohydrates convert to glucose so reducing those in your diet will be a good start.
Have a look at this link for some good explanation and some do's and don'ts as well as some menu plans to suit various tastes. https://lowcarbfreshwell.com/
Click to expand...
Hi, thank you for the advice & link, at the moment everything seems so confusing, so your link will be a great place to start especially for choosing food.
Kind regards.
 
Totty3822 said:
Hi, thank you for the advice & link, at the moment everything seems so confusing, so your link will be a great place to start especially for choosing food.
Kind regards.
Click to expand...
Your Hba1c level of over 100 is quite high, so a drastic alteration in what you eat is perhaps a bit over the top.
I'd suggest evaluating the sources of carbohydrate in your diet, the high starch and sugary foods and drinks are the easy targets to start with, either removing them or cutting back. Personally I found it easiest to fill the gaps left my such staples as potatoes, rice or pasta by using swede, courgette, aubergine, celeriac or cauliflower - so the new menu was far more varied than before - though I did have to be careful not to waste food by having too much in the fridge. I made three different shopping lists and rotated through them to cope with that.
 
Hi and welcome. The initial diagnosis is always a shock, but at least you now have the answer about why you felt ill, and can start to address it. An HbA1c of 106 is high but many on this forum have started higher and successfully reduced their level. The thing is, every person is different. That's why so much of the information seems conflicting, and you have to work out what suits you best. Diabetes has been referred to as a marathon, not a sprint, so take it one day at a time, and give yourself time to absorb all the information. One bit of information about Metformin - it can affect the tummy, but often settles after a couple of weeks. If it doesn't you can ask for a slow release version.

The best tips that worked for me:
* Work your way through the Learning Zone, one module per day is best
* Glad you got a monitor. Test immediately before and 2 hours after first bite (to see the effect certain foods have on you). You are aiming for a rise of no more than 3mmol/l and a maximum of 8mmol/l. I stopped this once I worked out what suited me, and I just test for new foods now
* Get a food tracking app and use it first thing each morning to plan your day (I use NutraCheck). In conjunction with your finger prick tests you will soon see what foods affect you.
* Slowly reduce your daily carb intake to 130gm or below (too quickly can have a temporary effect on your eyes)
* Increase your exercise - I started going to the pool twice a week.
* Moderation not abstinence.
* Don't beat yourself up if you have a bad day (nobody's that disciplined or perfect).
 
Drummer said:
Your Hba1c level of over 100 is quite high, so a drastic alteration in what you eat is perhaps a bit over the top.
I'd suggest evaluating the sources of carbohydrate in your diet, the high starch and sugary foods and drinks are the easy targets to start with, either removing them or cutting back. Personally I found it easiest to fill the gaps left my such staples as potatoes, rice or pasta by using swede, courgette, aubergine, celeriac or cauliflower - so the new menu was far more varied than before - though I did have to be careful not to waste food by having too much in the fridge. I made three different shopping lists and rotated through them to cope with that.
Click to expand...
Thank you for the reply, all advice is very much appreciated. Already stopped with the sweets,chocolate & crisps & looking at carbohydrates this evening.
Kind regards
 
Felinia said:
Hi and welcome. The initial diagnosis is always a shock, but at least you now have the answer about why you felt ill, and can start to address it. An HbA1c of 106 is high but many on this forum have started higher and successfully reduced their level. The thing is, every person is different. That's why so much of the information seems conflicting, and you have to work out what suits you best. Diabetes has been referred to as a marathon, not a sprint, so take it one day at a time, and give yourself time to absorb all the information. One bit of information about Metformin - it can affect the tummy, but often settles after a couple of weeks. If it doesn't you can ask for a slow release version.

The best tips that worked for me:
* Work your way through the Learning Zone, one module per day is best
* Glad you got a monitor. Test immediately before and 2 hours after first bite (to see the effect certain foods have on you). You are aiming for a rise of no more than 3mmol/l and a maximum of 8mmol/l. I stopped this once I worked out what suited me, and I just test for new foods now
* Get a food tracking app and use it first thing each morning to plan your day (I use NutraCheck). In conjunction with your finger prick tests you will soon see what foods affect you.
* Slowly reduce your daily carb intake to 130gm or below (too quickly can have a temporary effect on your eyes)
* Increase your exercise - I started going to the pool twice a week.
* Moderation not abstinence.
* Don't beat yourself up if you have a bad day (nobody's that disciplined or perfect).
Click to expand...
Hi, thank you for your reply, very useful with the figures regarding finger prick tests & reassuring with your kind words. Is the blurred vision a usual symptom to have? I've noticed it today when looking through the tv guide. I like the marathon analogy, it all seems quite daunting at the moment & I know it's just the start.Thank you again.
Kind regards
Mark
 
Totty3822 said:
Hi, thank you for your reply, very useful with the figures regarding finger prick tests & reassuring with your kind words. Is the blurred vision a usual symptom to have? I've noticed it today when looking through the tv guide. I like the marathon analogy, it all seems quite daunting at the moment & I know it's just the start.Thank you again.
Kind regards
Mark
Click to expand...
Eye issues can happen both when blood glucose is high and that is something that often leads to a diagnosis picked up by the optician. This is because the environment in the eye which will be 'sugary' changes it's shape and thus the focal length so vision is blurry and out of focus. Then when blood glucose drops due to treatment for the condition, meds and or diet the eye environment returns to the more normal salty and the shape changes again. For most people it will settle down but can take a few weeks or longer in some people.
Your optician should not prescribe new glasses until your vision has settled. Some people have found cheap reading glasses helpful.
I found my distance vision was fine but near vision was all over the place, it felt as if my eyes were in different heads.
 
Totty3822 said:
Thank you for the reply, all advice is very much appreciated. Already stopped with the sweets,chocolate & crisps & looking at carbohydrates this evening.
Kind regards
Click to expand...
Chocolate isn't all that much of a problem, it is the bars made with loads of sugar which should be avoided.
 
Totty3822 said:
Hi, thank you for your reply, very useful with the figures regarding finger prick tests & reassuring with your kind words. Is the blurred vision a usual symptom to have? I've noticed it today when looking through the tv guide. I like the marathon analogy, it all seems quite daunting at the moment & I know it's just the start.Thank you again.
Kind regards
Mark
Click to expand...
Blurred vision can occur when you start reducing carbs too quickly. As your HbA1c lowers, the blurring should reduce, although it may take some time. Opticians usually do not change prescriptions whilst a new diabetic's eyes are adjusting. Leadinglights explained it much better than me!!
 
Leadinglights said:
Eye issues can happen both when blood glucose is high and that is something that often leads to a diagnosis picked up by the optician. This is because the environment in the eye which will be 'sugary' changes it's shape and thus the focal length so vision is blurry and out of focus. Then when blood glucose drops due to treatment for the condition, meds and or diet the eye environment returns to the more normal salty and the shape changes again. For most people it will settle down but can take a few weeks or longer in some people.
Your optician should not prescribe new glasses until your vision has settled. Some people have found cheap reading glasses helpful.
I found my distance vision was fine but near vision was all over the place, it felt as if my eyes were in different heads.
Click to expand...
Hi, that is very reassuring thank you, I was getting worried. Is it normal to occasionally have moments of confusion? I was playing Yahtzee with my kids last night & had trouble adding up the dice, my brain didn't seem to compute the sums.Really appreciate your reply about the blurred vision.
Thank you
Mark
 
Felinia said:
Blurred vision can occur when you start reducing carbs too quickly. As your HbA1c lowers, the blurring should reduce, although it may take some time. Opticians usually do not change prescriptions whilst a new diabetic's eyes are adjusting. Leadinglights explained it much better than me!!
Click to expand...
Hi, it's good to know that there is so much knowledge on here,thank you.
Mark
 
Totty3822 said:
Hi, that is very reassuring thank you, I was getting worried. Is it normal to occasionally have moments of confusion? I was playing Yahtzee with my kids last night & had trouble adding up the dice, my brain didn't seem to compute the sums.Really appreciate your reply about the blurred vision.
Thank you
Mark
Click to expand...
High BG levels can cause fatigue and/or brain fog and make it difficult to concentrate and you will likely find this worst within a couple of hours after eating, as the food spikes your levels higher during that time after a meal. With your HbA1c being so high, it would not be unreasonable to get these symptoms, particularly if it was after a carb rich meal. Do you remember what you had for evening meal?
 
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