Hi it is JOV

[JOV]

Well just been “diagnosed” with type 2.

Long story short.

I had a bad UTI with physical symptoms, went to the doctor who confirmed with a pee test.

They check my notes and tells me I was pre-diabetic in early 2019. I was not told, it was not flagged, no referral to diabetic nurse or increased testing – yes I am miffed.

Told to have a repeat test 2 weeks after infection i.e. 7 days after finishing antibiotics went and had test

I then get a phone call from a diabetic nurse who says my bloods indicate I may have diabetes - I have no idea what my Hba1c reading as I was not told. She said to get repeat bloods to confirm I agree the call ends.

5 minutes later she calls back and says I have now seen the 2019 HbA1c so you are diabetic.

Put on Metformin 500g slow release initially once a day for a week then twice and atorvastatin (Lipitor) 20mg once a day and told to get a repeat Hba1c test in 3 months – she also kindly sent me a link to some NHS info.

So here I am – cutting out the bad stuff and on a diet aiming for 10% weight loss in 3 months. .

Confused as hell with all the conflicting stuff online.

 

[s'nic]

Welcome to the forum
You have come to the right place. The best people to advise are those living with diabetes and actively seeking to improve their health.
Please fire away with any questions you may have, someone will be able to share their experience.
Sadly keeping patients informed seems extremely hit and miss. Some are lucky to have good communications with their surgery, others like you and I are not so lucky.
If you have still not been told what your hba1c is you may want to request your test results. It could help you identify how much work is needed to lower your blood sugar

 

[JOV]

Welcome to the forum
You have come to the right place. The best people to advise are those living with diabetes and actively seeking to improve their health.
Please fire away with any questions you may have, someone will be able to share their experience.
Sadly keeping patients informed seems extremely hit and miss. Some are lucky to have good communications with their surgery, others like you and I are not so lucky.
If you have still not been told what your hba1c is you may want to request your test results. It could help you identify how much work is needed to lower your blood sugar

Thanks, I have another phone appointment already scheduled to get any other news re the blood test as was a general old man test so will ask then -

 

[Ieva DUK]

Hi @JOV and welcome to the forum!

It's sad to hear you've been one of the people who were 'on the radar' for T2 and never properly told.
I'd say make a list of all the things you want to ask prior to your appointment, as it's easy to let things slip through and forget - it's likely to be a lot of information at once. You might find our Learning Zone useful, if you'd like to read up on some things, and any questions or worries you might have - share them on the forum, we're a supportive bunch and there are a lot of Users, both new and long-time, recently diagnosed and 'veterans', so there's a lot of different advice and experience that's offered.

 

[Leadinglights]

Thanks, I have another phone appointment already scheduled to get any other news re the blood test as was a general old man test so will ask then -

It is very important to get that test result as then you have a starting point and it will indicate how much work you will have to do with your diet and getting more exercise if you can.
Have a look at this link for some ideas for making some dietary changes, it is a way that many have found successful https://lowcarbfreshwell.com/
It is a low carb approach but it is not a NO carb way. The suggested amount of carbs is no more than 130g per day carbs not just sugar.

 

[JOV]

It is very important to get that test result as then you have a starting point and it will indicate how much work you will have to do with your diet and getting more exercise if you can.
Have a look at this link for some ideas for making some dietary changes, it is a way that many have found successful https://lowcarbfreshwell.com/
It is a low carb approach but it is not a NO carb way. The suggested amount of carbs is no more than 130g per day carbs not just sugar.Thanks

As I do not even know my HbA1c numbers that resulted in being told over the phone I was diabetic. I bought a BGM just a basic VivaChek Ino. I tested this morning having not eaten or drunk anything for over 9 hours and I showed a 8.5.

I know this is high but not how bad it is.

​

 

[Martin.A]

As I do not even know my HbA1c numbers that resulted in being told over the phone I was diabetic. I bought a BGM just a basic VivaChek Ino. I tested this morning having not eaten or drunk anything for over 9 hours and I showed a 8.5.

I know this is high but not how bad it is.

​

First things first, 8.5 is not especially high. It would put you somewhere mid 50's for HbA1c, although bear in mind it's from a single test. Do it again every morning to see if that's a consistent level. It's over the line for diabetes (48) but some of us were diagnosed with an HbA1c in 3 figures but have still managed to turn things around. You would likely be prescribed medication at mid-50s but you might be offered a chance to try lifestyle changes first - diet, being more active and (if needed) losing weight. Many have been successful with that approach and @Leadinglights has pointed you in the right direction..

 

[JOV]

First things first, 8.5 is not especially high. It would put you somewhere mid 50's for HbA1c, although bear in mind it's from a single test. Do it again every morning to see if that's a consistent level. It's over the line for diabetes (48) but some of us were diagnosed with an HbA1c in 3 figures but have still managed to turn things around. You would likely be prescribed medication at mid-50s but you might be offered a chance to try lifestyle changes first - diet. being more active and (if needed) losing weight. @Leadinglights has pointed you in the right direction.

Martin - Thanks for that, I will get my actual HbA1c number next week. Already on Meds Metformin 500 mg slow release twice a day - (Once a day for the first week) but only started on Thurs - plus a Statin - I have taken out all the bad stuff and weight loss is the plan, as it sneaked up and up as I became less active over the last 10 years of semi retirement. I plan to test every morning and hope to see a decline in a few weeks, but I am aware it takes months to see good results.

Thanks again for your help!!

 

[JOV]

Well managed to speak with a "doctor" this morning he said my HbA1c was 81 but he spoke it as 8 then 1 so was not sure if it was 8.1 or 81 - Found out all results are on the NHS app so checked and it was 81 mmol/mol so around 12.6 mmol/l.

Way higher than I was expecting and higher than 9 mmol/l, my biggest morning reading.

I am hoping the 81 HbA1c was elevated due to the infection I had. Hopefully my current daily figures which have been between 7.4 and 9 are more indicative of my normal levels.

Time will tell - but I am very miffed at my doctors surgery ability to communicate, when I asked questions about my tests results in general he said he did not know why they were done as he did not ask for them to be done. Very Helpful

So I will continue with the meds eat healthy and lose weight and retest in November.

 

[Leadinglights]

Well managed to speak with a "doctor" this morning he said my HbA1c was 81 but he spoke it as 8 then 1 so was not sure if it was 8.1 or 81 - Found out all results are on the NHS app so checked and it was 81 mmol/mol so around 12.6 mmol/l.

Way higher than I was expecting and higher than 9 mmol/l, my biggest morning reading.

I am hoping the 81 HbA1c was elevated due to the infection I had. Hopefully my current daily figures which have been between 7.4 and 9 are more indicative of my normal levels.

Time will tell - but I am very miffed at my doctors surgery ability to communicate, when I asked questions about my tests results in general he said he did not know why they were done as he did not ask for them to be done. Very Helpful

So I will continue with the meds eat healthy and lose weight and retest in November.

Don't get confused by comparing your Hba1C result which is a sort of average over the previous 3 months and that result is in mmol/mol 81 in your case.
The readings you get from your monitor are a moment in time and will vary throughout the day and night depending on many factors mainly what you have just eaten ot level of activity but other things as well. They only loosely compare to an HbA1C in so far as the higher blood glucose readings are, the more likely the HbA1C will be high.
Generally the more consistent readings are between 4-7mmol/l fasting and before meals and no more than 8mmol/l 2 hours post meal the more likely your HbA1C will be in normal range.

 

[stephenS50]

Hello @JOV and welcome to the forum.

 

[JOV]

First things first, 8.5 is not especially high. It would put you somewhere mid 50's for HbA1c, although bear in mind it's from a single test. Do it again every morning to see if that's a consistent level. It's over the line for diabetes (48) but some of us were diagnosed with an HbA1c in 3 figures but have still managed to turn things around. You would likely be prescribed medication at mid-50s but you might be offered a chance to try lifestyle changes first - diet, being more active and (if needed) losing weight. Many have been successful with that approach and @Leadinglights has pointed you in the right direction..

Well my HbA1C was 81 which was higher than expected but hey ho it does not change my approach..

 

[Martin.A]

Well my HbA1C was 81 which was higher than expected but hey ho it does not change my approach..

This is the chart I was looking at. It gives a rough comparison between the 3 different ways that BG is measured. Did you take further readings as suggested? Your HbA1c suggests your finger pricks would be in double figures.

 

[JOV]

This is the chart I was looking at. It gives a rough comparison between the 3 different ways that BG is measured. Did you take further readings as suggested? Your HbA1c suggests your finger pricks would be in double figures.

View attachment 31297

My morning BG has been between 7.4 and 9 but I have only been doing the tests for a few days - I suppose as the HbA1c is a sort of average over weeks it will not match exactly, plus I had a severe infection which I would have had for a while. There is also the + - of the meter which could be around 9%. I will use the meter daily for a week or 2 than work out a weekly average and hopefully it will go down -

 

[Martin.A]

A prolonged severe infection would raise your BG and would consequently have had an influence on your HbA1c result. I've been finger pricking for over 5 years and long ago came to the conclusion that if I want a rough guide to where my HbA1c might be I have to allow +/- 2 on whatever my finger prick averages are telling me.

 

[JOV]

My first weekly average of BGM moring test is 8.08 so call it 8.1 - so hopefully the meds will kick in and it will drop further - I also shed 6 lbs in my first week of torture, so quite pleases

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

My first weekly average of BGM moring test is 8.08 so call it 8.1 - so hopefully the meds will kick in and it will drop further - I also shed 6 lbs in my first week of torture, so quite pleases

Congratulations on your weight loss @JOV

Some members seem to find that their first-thing-in-the-morning reading can be a bit stubborn and be the last to come down - though there is a general feeling among HCPs that the early reading is likely to roughly reflect your average fingerstick glucose level through the day.

Have you considered checking before/after meals to see if you can fine tune your menu? You can take a pair of readings - one immediately before a meal, and the second 2hrs after the first bite. Then look at the difference between the two. Ideally you’d want the rise from the meal to be 2-3mmol/L or less from the starting number. Reducing portion sizes of carbohydrates, and choosing ones which are more slowly absorbed can help keep the meal rise down.

Ultimately you’d want to aim for 4-7 before meals, and no higher than 8.5 after 2hrs. Keeping your ‘meal rises’ down to 2-3 can really help your overall BG levels to drift gently downwards.

Metformin should also help by increasing insulin sensitivity and reducing glucose output from the liver.

 

[Leadinglights]

My first weekly average of BGM moring test is 8.08 so call it 8.1 - so hopefully the meds will kick in and it will drop further - I also shed 6 lbs in my first week of torture, so quite pleases

Averages can often hide the high levels which are the ones which are more likely to cause problems so being aware of high readings 2hours after eating will help you tailor your meals to reduce those.

 

[JOV]

I am on a Carb reduced diet and only non refined carbs in smaller portion size. I probably will do the occasionally test after food especially with the different Carbs, if I then see a spike I will swap out to different food. I am trying to cut out all the bad stuff - and lose weight. If after 3 months this has not worked I will try a different approach. I am hoping to see a gradually reduction in the morning average each week - even a .1 would be good.

 

[Leadinglights]

I am on a Carb reduced diet and only non refined carbs in smaller portion size. I probably will do the occasionally test after food especially with the different Carbs, if I then see a spike I will swap out to different food. I am trying to cut out all the bad stuff - and lose weight. If after 3 months this has not worked I will try a different approach. I am hoping to see a gradually reduction in the morning average each week - even a .1 would be good.

You do need to do paired readings don't forget otherwise you don't know if it is the meal or what.
Taking you morning reading whilst still in bed can give you more consistent result as it is not influenced by the activity you will do as you get up.