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Hi just recently diagnosed

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Susie P

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Type 2
Hi I am new to this forum and only been diagnosed since the start of September unfortunately I cannot have an appointment with the Diabetic Nurse until 18th October. At the moment I am not on any medication the Doctor gave me the diagnosis over the phone and said she wanted me to see the nurse first. As you can imagine I feel a little confused at the moment and not sure what I should be doing in the mean time I am trying to watch my Diet and take more exercise but apart from that I'm not really sure. I guess I will find out more on the 18th Oct. The help line was very good and sent me some booklets through the post.
 
Hi Susie P and welcome to our elite forum tho sorry to hear you've been diagnosed with Type2 Diabetes ~ being diagnosed comes as a shock doesnt it & is overwhelming to say the least ~ and confusing, yes. We aim to help & support Newbies as best we can to make their Diabetes journey not so daunting. Our forum is friendly & helpful so should there be any questions you wish to ask then please do ask away.
Here is a link you'll find useful to help you understand your Diabetes & your bgls (Blood glucose levels) Take care & do please stay in touch.

https://forum.diabetes.org.uk/boards/threads/useful-links-for-people-new-to-diabetes.10406/
 
Susie P said:
Hi I am new to this forum and only been diagnosed since the start of September unfortunately I cannot have an appointment with the Diabetic Nurse until 18th October. At the moment I am not on any medication the Doctor gave me the diagnosis over the phone and said she wanted me to see the nurse first. As you can imagine I feel a little confused at the moment and not sure what I should be doing in the mean time I am trying to watch my Diet and take more exercise but apart from that I'm not really sure. I guess I will find out more on the 18th Oct. The help line was very good and sent me some booklets through the post.
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Hi Susie P, welcome to the forum 🙂 Sorry to hear about your diagnosis, and the fact that you have been left hanging without much information from your healthcare team :( Good to hear that you found the Helpline useful, and do please take a look at the 'Useful Links' thread that @wirralass has suggested - there is a section there with links to resources for people with Type 2 diabetes. I would particularly recommend reading Maggie Davey's letter and getting hold of a copy of Type 2 Diabetes: The First Year by Gretchen Becker - these will help you to understand what it all entails and present a very positive plan for gaining good control and eating a diet that suits both your tastes and your blood sugar levels! 🙂

If you have any specific concerns, please do let us know - there is a lot of knowledge and personal experience here, so whatever it is someone is bound to be able to help out 🙂

And remember, although diabetes is a serious condition, it is something that can be managed well and does not have to stop you doing the things you want to do. In many (possibly most!) cases people find they feel happier and healthier than they have for sometime once they have made the adjustments they need to make in order to maintain good, steady blood sugar levels 🙂

As well as diet, I'd also recommend trying to get some regular daily exercise - this will help make your body more sensitive to the insulin it is producing, and really help with the blood sugar control, keep you fit and - if you need it to happen - lose weight 🙂 Try for half an hour a day doing something you enjoy! 🙂
 
Thanks very much for this it is really helpful although I am not on medication (apart from blood pressure tablets) do u think it is benificial to purchase a glucose monitor or should I wait till I have seen the nurse ?
 
Susie P said:
Thanks very much for this it is really helpful although I am not on medication (apart from blood pressure tablets) do u think it is benificial to purchase a glucose monitor or should I wait till I have seen the nurse ?
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My suspicion is that the nurse will just say you don't need to test - many have the mistaken belief that you only need to test if you are on certain types of medication, like insulin, that may cause low blood sugars. However, this misses the point that another very important reason for testing is to determine your own particular tolerances for the food choices you make. Diabetes is a very individual condition, and people's tolerances for the same things can vary widely - it's thought to be this way because we all have our own unique bacteria in our gut, which influence how you react. As such, there is no 'off-the-shelf' healthy diet that everyone can follow - apart from certain basic principles, like reducing/avoiding sugar, white bread, excess daily carbs - you need to know how things affect you personally. Testing gives you the necessary details so you can make informed decisions about your food choices - anything else is just guessing I'm afraid :( You don't need to test forever, just whilst you work out how to tailor your diet to suit your tolerances. Once you have established the main good and not so good things the only time you need to test will be for the occasional spot check on progress, or when trying out something new 🙂 Read Test,Review, Adjust by Alan S to understand how to go about it 🙂

Many of our members use the SD Codefree Meter which has test strips at around £8 for 50. High St brands can charge £30+ for 50 strips, so it's important to take the cost of 'disposables' into consideration when getting a meter if you have to fund it yourself.

The likelihood is that the nurse will say a test every 3-6 months is sufficient to show progress, but if, after 3 months things have got worse you will have no idea why if you haven't been testing specific ingredients 🙄 Sounds daunting, but it gives you an element of control over the recovery process that many people prefer, rather than being completely in the dark and leaving things to guesswork and Lady Luck! 🙂
 
I got given a monitor by my nurses, although I don't seem to be in the majority when it comes to other people's experiences on here. Wonder if it's worth hanging on to see?

And welcome 🙂
 
Hi Susie P , welcome. Firstly I would like to reassure you that Diabetes is a condition that can be well managed.
Sadly Northener is correct about most T2s not being provided glucose meters.
 
I have just ordered the book by Gretchen becker thanks for the recommendation and am looking at all the links etc you have sent me so thanks for that and your welcoming messages
 
It probably seems like you are floundering around atm, don’t worry you’ll soon start getting the hang of things.
IMO self testing is the best way to find out how the various carbohydrates affect us so we can make informed changes , you see some professionals don’t seem to understand that Diabetes is very individual in its likes and dislikes. Ie, Some can eat porridge others have to avoid it like the plague.
 
Yes I think self testing is going to be the way to go for me because if I can see what a food is doing to my blood glucose I will find it easier to avoid eating it. Just think my.personality will be best suited to this method I expect I will be asking lots of questions when I get my meter lol
 
Susie P said:
Yes I think self testing is going to be the way to go for me because if I can see what a food is doing to my blood glucose I will find it easier to avoid eating it. Just think my.personality will be best suited to this method I expect I will be asking lots of questions when I get my meter lol
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The key thing about self-testing is to ensure that each test yields information that you can then act upon. That may mean rejecting something, or accepting it is OK, but if a test isn't going to give you any new information then don't do it 🙂 One of the objections to self-testing is that healthcare professionals worry that you might become 'obsessive' or be alarmed by the results and get depressed - this is because they don't understand how valuable it is when used effectively, and as you say, some personalities types are likely to be much more depressed if they don't feel in control and don't have a clue what's going on! 🙄
 
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