Hi I'm Nikki

[nikkijloakes]

Hey I'm Nikki. I was diagnosed with type 2 two weeks ago and I'm already very scared. Despite being on medication, my blood sugar remains high. I'm not sure what to do regarding my diet and I'm frustrated and frightened. PS I have autism too.

 

[Inka]

Welcome @nikkijloakes 🙂 Let me tag @Lucyr for you as I think she has experience of autism and has Type 2. It’s very normal to be scared, but you’ll gradually get the hang of things so try not to worry too much. Take things slowly and systematically.

How high is your blood sugar? Have you made any changes to your diet? Most Type 2s need to watch the amount of carbs they eat - bread, potatoes, rice, biscuits, etc etc. Sometimes it’s just a case of watching your portion size.

 

[nikkijloakes]

Welcome @nikkijloakes 🙂 Let me tag @Lucyr for you as I think she has experience of autism and has Type 2. It’s very normal to be scared, but you’ll gradually get the hang of things so try not to worry too much. Take things slowly and systematically.

How high is your blood sugar? Have you made any changes to your diet? Most Type 2s need to watch the amount of carbs they eat - bread, potatoes, rice, biscuits, etc etc. Sometimes it’s just a case of watching your portion size.

I've tried cutting down my portions for the past 2 weeks as well as taking my meds. But so far no change. The only time my blood sugar got down to a decent level was this Wednesday when I skipped lunch. I don't know what to do.

 

[Drummer]

I've tried cutting down my portions for the past 2 weeks as well as taking my meds. But so far no change. The only time my blood sugar got down to a decent level was this Wednesday when I skipped lunch. I don't know what to do.

Perhaps if you tell us what you would eat on a typical day we could suggest what to try.
I have to eat a very small amount of carbs each day, by modern standards, but the 40 gm of carbs eaten as low carb vegetables and some berries a few times a week seem to be fine for my and control my BG levels, but I have been eating this way for years now.

 

[Lucyr]

Hi Nikki. I’m also type 2 and have autism. There’s a few autistic people on this forum. Don’t let diabetes and all the changes it means scare you too much. It is a lot to take in but you will soon get used to it.

what sort of blood sugar readings are you seeing?

 

[Inka]

I've tried cutting down my portions for the past 2 weeks as well as taking my meds. But so far no change. The only time my blood sugar got down to a decent level was this Wednesday when I skipped lunch. I don't know what to do.

What was your blood sugar when you skipped lunch? And what is your blood sugar at it’s highest? If you give us the numbers you’re getting that will help. Also, if you’re able to list an average day’s food for you that will help too.

 

[SB2015]

Welcome to the forum @nikkijloakes
Sorry to read of your diagnosis, but pleased that you have found the forum.

If you are happy to do so, let us know some figures from your glucose readings, and also a typical days food. This will help us to advise you on some swaps that you might make. Some find it helpful to begin with a brutally honest food diary. This can help you and also your health care team identify any changes that you could make.

If you are also able to start to identify the amount of carbohydrates there are in what you eat that will start to give you an indication of how much glucose your body is taking on board at each meal. These seems complicated at the start and the food packaging doesn’t always make it easy, but you soon start to become familiar with the amounts in the foods you eat regularly. Sometimes simple switches to a lower carb option and/or a reduction in portion sizes is all that is needed.

There is plenty of experience to tap into on here so fire away with any questions that arise.

 

[nikkijloakes]

Perhaps if you tell us what you would eat on a typical day we could suggest what to try.
I have to eat a very small amount of carbs each day, by modern standards, but the 40 gm of carbs eaten as low carb vegetables and some berries a few times a week seem to be fine for my and control my BG levels, but I have been eating this way for years now.

Well I weigh out 30g of my cereal every morning. mostly rice snaps or coco snaps. I don't always have time for lunch cause I go to the gym 3 times a week and when I do its white toast and eggs or a ham and cheese sandwich. I admit I have alot of potatos at dinner. Mashed, chips or baked. as I'm autistic I like routine. so I need some clear guidance diet wise

 

[nikkijloakes]

Welcome to the forum @nikkijloakes
Sorry to read of your diagnosis, but pleased that you have found the forum.

If you are happy to do so, let us know some figures from your glucose readings, and also a typical days food. This will help us to advise you on some swaps that you might make. Some find it helpful to begin with a brutally honest food diary. This can help you and also your health care team identify any changes that you could make.

If you are also able to start to identify the amount of carbohydrates there are in what you eat that will start to give you an indication of how much glucose your body is taking on board at each meal. These seems complicated at the start and the food packaging doesn’t always make it easy, but you soon start to become familiar with the amounts in the foods you eat regularly. Sometimes simple switches to a lower carb option and/or a reduction in portion sizes is all that is needed.

There is plenty of experience to tap into on here so fire away with any questions that arise.

I admit I eat alot of potatos at dinner. but thats because I don't know what else to have

 

[nikkijloakes]

Hi Nikki. I’m also type 2 and have autism. There’s a few autistic people on this forum. Don’t let diabetes and all the changes it means scare you too much. It is a lot to take in but you will soon get used to it.

what sort of blood sugar readings are you seeing?

Well i took my blood sugar before dinner yesterday and it was 18. this morning when i woke up it was 10.6

 

[Inka]

Well I weigh out 30g of my cereal every morning. mostly rice snaps or coco snaps. I don't always have time for lunch cause I go to the gym 3 times a week and when I do its white toast and eggs or a ham and cheese sandwich. I admit I have alot of potatos at dinner. Mashed, chips or baked. as I'm autistic I like routine. so I need some clear guidance diet wise

ok, well you’ve got some possibilities to change there. Some Type 2s are ok with moderate portions of cereal but the two you’ve mentioned there are pretty high GI (put your blood sugar up quickly). Would you eat a low carb granola or Greek yoghurt and berries or poached eggs on one slice of wholegrain bread, for example?

For lunch, you could have a salad with protein like chicken, etc, and maybe one slice of wholegrain bread or some low carb crackers.

For evening meal, potatoes won’t be helping you. What do you have with the potatoes? Concentrate on that part of the meal and get rid of the potatoes or reduce the portion right down to, say, 30g carbs of potatoes (which would be a small portion) So, you could have meat, plenty of green veg, and a small portion of potatoes eg two or three little new potatoes. You could also have curry or chilli with cauliflower rice.

Your blood sugar meter will guide you as to what works for you, and testing before your meal and again 2hrs after the start-time of your meal will show you which meals produce the smallest rise (you’re looking for a rise of no more than 2 or 3mmol).

 

[nikkijloakes]

ok, well you’ve got some possibilities to change there. Some Type 2s are ok with moderate portions of cereal but the two you’ve mentioned there are pretty high GI (put your blood sugar up quickly). Would you eat a low carb granola or Greek yoghurt and berries or poached eggs on one slice of wholegrain bread, for example?

For lunch, you could have a salad with protein like chicken, etc, and maybe one slice of wholegrain bread or some low carb crackers.

For evening meal, potatoes won’t be helping you. What do you have with the potatoes? Concentrate on that part of the meal and get rid of the potatoes or reduce the portion right down to, say, 30g carbs of potatoes (which would be a small portion) So, you could have meat, plenty of green veg, and a small portion of potatoes eg two or three little new potatoes. You could also have curry or chilli with cauliflower rice.

Your blood sugar meter will guide you as to what works for you, and testing before your meal and again 2hrs after the start-time of your meal will show you which meals produce the smallest rise (you’re looking for a rise of no more than 2 or 3mmol).

So sorry but I don't like brown bread or granola. I haven't liked veggies since I was a kid and isn't greek yogurt fattening? I'm clearly doomed. theres no hope for me

 

[Drummer]

So sorry but I don't like brown bread or granola. I haven't liked veggies since I was a kid and isn't greek yogurt fattening? I'm clearly doomed. theres no hope for me

Good - brown bread and granola are high in carbs, so there is no reason to eat them.
I cooked a whole pack of chicken thighs and I had some for dinner with a stir fry, then put the rest in the cold fridge to have with salad this week, though I do sometimes make a chicken curry and eat it with chopped cauliflower instead of rice.
I find that I only need to eat twice a day as the meals I do have are so nutritious I can go 12 hours between them and just not think of food at all.
High fat foods are not fattening - geese are fattened on grain, cattle and pigs are fattened up on grain, and supermarket leftovers - and as I have lost weight and inches eating a diet defined as high in fat (though it is just the fat which comes naturally along with the protein) it seems the right way to eat.

 

[RubyQ]

So sorry but I don't like brown bread or granola. I haven't liked veggies since I was a kid and isn't greek yogurt fattening? I'm clearly doomed. theres no hope for me

Hi Nikki, I've just joined today & this is my first comment
I sympathize with you as I don't like granola, yogurt, berries, & some brown breads are just not tasty. You are definitely NOT doomed tho. I'm T2 & have been for over 20 years. I think our appetite changes & so do our tastebuds ( at least mine have). I used to eat potatoes everyday...a learned behaviour from mum's home cooking. Big plates piled high. Nowadays I eat them once a week & in much smaller quantities. Boiled or mash. Chips only occasionally & cooked in new kitchen gadget Actifry. Tasty but not dripping in greasy fat. You might have one or two vegetables that are tolerable. You like fruit? Fill your boots & stave off hunger with a fruit salad with cheese..nice. Ask GP to refer you to a dietician & buy a big notebook. Try new things & experiment, old habits are hard to break but can be done. Keeping notes helps a lot. You will soon feel more confident & less stressed about your diet & this site looks like it will be a great source of information, guidance & support for you especially in these early stages. Apologizes for lengthy spiel. You're going to be fine

 

[Inka]

So sorry but I don't like brown bread or granola. I haven't liked veggies since I was a kid and isn't greek yogurt fattening? I'm clearly doomed. theres no hope for me

Greek yoghurt is fine. If you don’t like brown bread then crackers are an option. You’re speaking to a big veg fan here Veg should be a big part of your meal and there are many nice ways to eat it. Don’t judge it by childhood memories. Salad, baked veg, soup, stir fries, sauces, etc. When people say it’s good for you, that makes it sound a bit boring, but it’s far from boring🙂

Lots of the foods you mentioned are high GI. Even a few changes to foods with less carbs and lower GI will help 🙂

Edited to add that if you like the lightness of rice cereals, you can get granolas that are similar in texture - ie light and ‘fluffy’ not oaty and hard and crunchy. Some of the Eat Natural ones might suit you.

 

[nikkijloakes]

I'm really unsure what to think. I really hate veggies. if theres any way to make veggies taste nice I'd gladly eat them. but as far as I know theres no way. I read somewhere that if food tastes good, its bad for you. so I can't win

 

[Inka]

What vegetables have you tried? Is there anything in particular you don’t like about the taste? Have you tried them with dressing and/or sauces? In a rush now but I’ll dig out a thread about salads for you later.

 

[nikkijloakes]

What vegetables have you tried? Is there anything in particular you don’t like about the taste? Have you tried them with dressing and/or sauces? In a rush now but I’ll dig out a thread about salads for you later.

Peppers are crunchy and spicy, don't like them. Tomatos are gross. Onions are extra gross. andi thought dressings made them bad for you?

 

[AntonLew]

Hi. Sorry to hear you’re having a hard time. I’m new here too so I can’t give many answers other than as I would as a Biol teacher. However, I taught for years in a school with an ASD base so I have a pretty good idea of some of the additional issues that might be affecting you. All I’d say for now is just that I think you will get sorted. Regarding foods I would guess everyone is different so it’ll just be a process of finding the foods you like that fit with the diet.

 

[Inka]

Peppers are crunchy and spicy, don't like them. Tomatos are gross. Onions are extra gross. andi thought dressings made them bad for you?

Interesting you chose peppers and onions there. Yes, peppers have a bitter/dry taste, but the orange and red taste sweeter than the green - and when they’re roasted their flavour changes completely and becomes sweet, just like with onions. Onions have a strong flavour but caramelised in a pan or roasted in the oven they become sweet. Again, sun-dried tomatoes have a very different taste from fresh.

Most (all?) veg can be prepared or cooked in a way that radically changes the flavour and/or texture. Over-boiled school dinner cabbage tastes very different (and smells very different too!) from raw cabbage in a salad or quick-fried in a wok or pan with flavourings.

Dressings are ok, unless you’re planning to float your salad in a vat of olive oil. Far better to eat a nice salad with a dressing of your choice than not eat the salad at all. You can also use fruit in a salad to add a sweet flavour, if that’s something you like. If you like lemon-y flavours then a lemon dressing is fine, if you like to dip your broccoli in a bit of ketchup that’s ok too because it’s better than not eating the veg

You didn’t mention any green veg above, but they’re one of the healthiest kinds of veg. Again, it’s all about how you prepare and cook it. Kale boiled in water tastes very different from baked kale, for example.

Here’s a link to the Salad thread:

https://forum.diabetes.org.uk/boards/threads/salad-recipes.93167/#post-1070641


@Pattidevans Also has a list of veg somewhere with ways to prepare them. There are also lots of soup recipes and meals where veg is part of the meal not the side eg @Drummer ’s chicken stir fry above, or a casserole with veg in, or a mild curry or chilli, for example.