How quickly should I see a change? 10 days in and feeling despondent :(

[Lioncub]

Hi all,
Thank you for the welcome last week. I’ve been testing BG for 10 days now, have cut out all treats/ sugar and have significantly reduced carbs but have seen very little change in my fasting BG (or weight ). Given how much sugary rubbish I was eating before, I’m feeling a bit fed up that it doesn’t seem to be making a difference.
Morning (fasting) bloods have been:
6.8-7.3-8.4-7.2-7.6-7.2-6.6-6.6-7.8-7.2-7.6
PS am pre-diabetic and have yet to see diabetes nurse (appt next week)

 

[CathyB]

Hi Lioncub, remember this is a marathon not a sprint so be patient, it will take time for your body to adjust so keep going, watch those carbs and keep checking your bloods. Your numbers are nor horrendous so hopefully you should see things settle 🙂

 

[Northerner]

These things do take time @Lioncub, so try to be patient 🙂 You are doing the right things, and it's often that waking level that can be the slowest to change. This is because it is less dependent on the food you eat through the day (that will all have been digested by the time you wake, and probably mostly before you went to bed 🙂 When you are not eating, your liver is releasing glucose to keep you supplied with energy, and therefore how well you are able to process that will depend on your overall improvements over time, so no need to panic 🙂 Just keep up the good work 🙂 Your levels are only slightly elevated and will not be causing harm. Are you managing to exercise daily? This will really help with your insulin sensitivity which in turn will mean your body copes better with the liver glucose overnight 🙂

 

[Lioncub]

Thanks @Northerner, I was just hoping to see an improvement to assure me that all this hard work is doing some good -I have been on holiday for 1/2 term and turned down so many yummy things
Re exercise, I don’t do any formal exercise but I’m a childminder so my day to day life is reasonably active, I do two school runs and I walk to all groups etc. At the moment I’m single crewing at home too (my husband is working away) so getting out in the evenings to do exercise is pretty hard. Maybe I’ll have to dust off an old exercise dvd (and the DVD player )

 

[Lioncub]

Thank you @CathyB too, I’m just impatient to see changes! When I had gestational diabetes they only gave me two weeks to see diet changes before moving on to metformin so I think I was expecting to see a quicker change.

 

[Northerner]

Thank you @CathyB too, I’m just impatient to see changes! When I had gestational diabetes they only gave me two weeks to see diet changes before moving on to metformin so I think I was expecting to see a quicker change.

Two weeks was a tad optimistic then! 😱 Bodies have evolved to avoid 'shocks to the system', so it takes a while for them to realise that the changes you are making are not short-term. I'd say try not to even think about it, just try and do the right things, keep doing your testing, write down the numbers, but don't try and analyse them for a couple more weeks 🙂

 

[Lioncub]

Thanks @Northerner I guess with GD they only have a limited time to make changes before the baby might be affected. Glad to hear that I’m not a lost cause regarding the lack of BG response to my best efforts. On the plus side I’m definitely not suffering from the ‘starving’ feelings I used to get mid morning/mid afternoon. I guess looking back I was craving sugar/energy?

Any ideas for snacks that are low carb? I’m eating cheese, nuts and yogurt for snacks at the moment (not all together!) I remember living on cheese when I was pregnant!

 

[Sharron1]

Hi,

As everyone has said it does take time to work it all out. I don't self test so much anymore as I have a much clearer idea of works food wise etc. It took about 5 weeks to sort it out and my BGLs are pretty level between mid 5 - 6s, I do snack on nuts, avocado, cheese and plain yogurt - yum! Although I did find brekkie the hardest thing to work out in the end I kept the porridge (although it was usually between 7-10 when I tested) as I was advised it is low GI and therefore OK. Have you started a food diary? I found once that is done it makes the eating thing a whole load easier. I am no expert and this is all stuff I have learnt from the forum, and 3 months in I am so glad I was able to find answers to my questions. Good luck

 

[SB2015]

Hi LionClub

It sounds like you are diong al the right things, and when you are making such an effort it is hard to be patient. However give yourself time, and your body a bit more time to realise just how well you are doing.

I used to have porridge until I realised how my body reacted, with a big spike in glucose after breakfast. It is just different for different people. I really missed my porridge, but I switched to making my own mix of quinoa, flaxseed, coconut flakes, ground almonds and brazil nuts. I roast them briefly in the oven, cool them and then store. It is excellent with fresh fruit and yogurt, and I even take it on holiday with me to avoid problems/ temptations (most of the time).

The important thing is to find out what works for you, so as others have said a food diary, alongside your BGs will help you to make informed decisions.

 

[Lioncub]

I saw the diabetes nurse yesterday - she didn’t say anything about what to eat (didn’t even tell me to cut out sugar!) but simply said “lose some weight and come back for a blood test in 6 months”
So my plan is to stick with you guys instead!

 

[Sharron1]

Sounds a good plan to me. There are always answers on the forum, I am still shocked at the lack of useful help from the medical professionals. Ask away and keep with the food diary. Best wishes.

 

[CathyB]

Good plan! It’s here that I learned what I needed to know and got the support to make a change for the better 😉

 

[Lioncub]

Finally seen some weight loss 2lb off since last fri. Morning bloods being a bit slower to change but I haven’t had any over 7.5 so things are moving in the right direction 🙂

 

[CathyB]

Great result Lioncub! Keep up the good work